I Do Not Like This New Yeasayer Track

So during CMJ 2007 I saw this band called Yeasayer. They looked like a bunch of fucking creeps but the music was amazing. Like all caps AMAZING even. It was a weird mix of backwoods and robot future.

Then I got the album and while I didn't think the production was great the music was some of the best I'd heard in years. I went on to declare they are the best Brooklyn band since TVOTR. Based on the first album I feel very confident about that statement.

And then a couple days ago I went ahead and very eagerly put on the new track "Ambling Alp". I was with some friends at the time who are also fans of Yeasayer. We all looked around the room at each other with a look of confusion. Was this Yeasayer at all? Did I click play on the wrong track?

Upon further review I realized it was indeed Yeasayer. What the hell happened? Too much time hanging with MGMT? The single is dancey pop music. Nothing at all like the first album.

All I can say is I'm super fucking bummed. Maybe, just maybe, it's all for show. You know, put out a poppy first single to make the label happy and get the teeny boppers buying the presale package, or whatever. But damn I'm going to be in shitty mood for the rest of the winter if the whole fucking album sounds like "Ambling Alp". And the bad news is I know someone who practices in the same studio they do and word is the new stuff sucks. Damn it!

Link:
Download the new tune here

Tonight: 66Sick Anniversary w/ Andrew W.K.; Kurt Vile & Wild Yaks @ Europa

If you're down with the whole hipster dance party scene then there's only one choice for tonight and it's Six Six Sick. It's like an all-star lineup of nightlife figures, past & present. Even my lazy ass is getting off the couch for this one. I'll be the guy that looks just a little too old for a party like this (no not Bronques or WK, the other one). There are two hour long, back-to-back, open bars: first vodka then PBR (thanks Daniel James).

In Brooklyn Kurt Vile and Wild Yaks are playing Europa. The details are in the next post down.

Win Tix To Kurt Vile & Wild Yaks Tonight

Hurry up and shoot an email over to list@brooklynskiclub.com (you'll be added to the email list, don't worry I only use it when there's a BSC show) for a chance to win tix to the Kurt Vile, Wild Yaks, Home Blitz, & Pink Reason show at Europa tonight.

Or you can just buy a ticket for $10 on TicketWeb.

Again, email:
list@brooklynskiclub.com

Subject line = Vile Yaks

Richard Lloyd Played The Studio At Webster Hall

On Thursday Gabe and I went to The Studio to see Richard Lloyd. Here's what Gabe had to say about the show.
------------------------------------------

I was at home cramping a frightening amount of recording gear into my shoebox-size room when I got a text from Matt.

“Richard Lloyd 2nite?”
“Recording a new song tonite. Whos that?

…“Television”

The amount of time between my message and his, along with the one-word pithiness of his response had a subtext of, “Dude…really?”

“Oh right.”

Television is one of those bands that don’t really need an introduction. The scope of their influence on rock and roll is pretty massive. At least the rock and roll I like. So if you don’t know, betta axe somebody.

Music snobbery aside though, they are personally one of my favorite bands of all time. The recording of my shitty shit could wait.

“When and where?”
“Studio at Webster Hall. I got a +1”

Great. Free to boot. I finished up a vocal take and geared up to leave. Shoes, jacket, iPod, crossword puzzle, and one last gulp of wine for the road.

When I got there, Matt was waiting outside. We showed our ID’s to the bouncer and walked downstairs to the girl with the list.

“Matt K. I’m on the list. This is my plus one.”

It’s a good feeling to get in somewhere for free when other people are paying. Especially when you’re on “The List.”

First thing we did was weave our way to the bar. Matt and I seem to think alike in many ways. I noticed a sign with drink specials on it.

“$3 PBR’s”
“Yeah, I saw that”

Not a bad price for a place like that. But if I had my druthers, PBR would be free. Like ice water at a restaurant. Standard. You walk into a bar and the first thing the bartender does is crack you open a PBR and say, “What else you havin?”

The opening band was playing. Hey Battlefield I think they were called. A three-piece standard rock outfit. Unremarkable. Not bad really, just unremarkable. Nice little songs. They didn’t move much and neither did we. One woman called for an encore. Must’ve been one of their girlfriends or something. It was funny when they actually did it.

A long time passed between them and Lloyd. Matt and I compared iPhones. Lame, I know, except for the fact that I got mine for free. Finders keepers, right? Everybody follows that rule, right?

Lloyd’s drummer (JP, of Dictators fame) put his cymbals about 6 feet off the ground. They were really fucking high. And he played huge sticks. Must be a Bonham fan.

His bass player looked strangely familiar. A chubby little guy with shaggy red hair. He looked like a kid in high school at his first Battle-of-the-Bands.

They played a few songs I didn’t recognize, but if I had to guess, I’d say they were post-Television originals of Lloyd’s. Then they played a Television song. And he did it well. He’s still a damn good guitar player. But he had more of a squishy, bluesy feel to his playing. Much different from the choppy and angular stabs I recognize as the Television “sound.” It was Television played as a power trio, a la the Hendrix Experience.

Then Lloyd went to the mic and said a few words.

“This next song is the 5th symphony from Beethoven. One of my favorite composers.”

Then they started the “Dumm DAH Dumm DAH Dumm DAH Dumm DAH” octave riff. You know the one. The fuckin PURPLE HAZE intro, brah!

I think I let out an audible “huh” in puzzlement. Ok. He’s doing a Hendrix cover. That’s cool I guess. Then he did another Hendrix cover. And then another. And then a-fucking-NOTHER. He did 4 in the middle. Then he played a few more Television songs I think. But then he went back into MORE Hendrix covers. “What the fuck?” I thought.

It turns out he’s promoting an album of Hendrix covers. I was unaware. And, according to his Wikipedia page, he claims to have gotten guitar lessons from a guy who got guitar lesson from Jimi. AND, Matt says he read somewhere online that Lloyd claims that Jimi once WEPT into his hands. Apparently, they’d had a fight and Jimi felt bad about it. Bad enough to weep into another man’s hands. But hey, it was the 60’s. Love and openness all around. And mind-altering and emotion-oscillating LSD. That too.

Could be true I guess. Or he could be making it up to help promote an indulgent album of fanboy cover songs.

During an awkward rendition of “Are You Experienced?” I went to the bathroom. There were a group of 6 or 7 clubbing-type dudes in there smoking weed. Apparently, they thought enough Axe body spray would mask the smell. They did not look like Television fans. Well, television maybe, but not “Television.”

When I got back, Matt walked up to me excitedly with a smile on his face.

“Dude, he just introduced his band. You know who the bass player is?”
“Who?”
“Danny Tamberelli!”
“Who’s that?”
“Little Pete from Pete and Pete!”

With that, we had a good laugh and left.

Tonight: Friday The 13th (Team Robes, Wild Yaks, Sherpas, DirtyFinger, Art Brut)

There's a shit ton of shit going on tonight (I'm a regular fuckin' wordsmith ain't I). There's seriously 15 solid choices tonight but I've narrowed it down to the places I'll be likely hitting.

First I'm heading to Legion to check out Workout and Sherpas. Our homeboys Forest City were supposed to play but they got sick. Then I might check out Art Brut at Brooklyn Bowl, because they're fucking fun. Then it's over to Starr Space for a KILLER party with Team Robes, Wild Yaks, Lauren Flax, FOTP, and bunch of other shit too.

If I'm still going late night my final stop will be 171 Lombardy for another killer with Dirtyfinger and Jah Jah DJing plus a bunch of bands. The cover is $5 or free if you show your dick at the door...seriously. People are actually asking to see your dick. There's a first for everything, huh buddy? It's OK.

Wild Yaks Free Download On RCRDLBL + Friday The 13th Show

RCRDLBL has two free Wild Yaks MP3's posted, go download them. You probably already have Blood Red Field but the River May Come MP3 is a live version, so that's cool. Don't forget that Wild Yaks officially have an album out now. You can buy it on Amazon.

Link:
Wild Yaks RCRDLBL

Crystal Stilts, Grass Widow, & The Beets Played Brooklyn Museum

On Saturday the above mentioned bands played a Todd P curated show at the Brooklyn Museum. It was part of the museum's First Saturday series. Bob Gruen was also on location with an exhibit and special discussion panel.

I arrived at the museum a bit later then I wanted, thanks MTA! The Beets were almost done their set at this point. Despite seeing them many times, and even booking them, I didn't even realize it was them on stage because the sound was so terrible. The stage was center in a long narrow room that was about 50% glass with very high ceilings. Now I'm no sound engineer (actually I was a long time ago) but that sounds like a bad combo for acoustics.

Like I said I missed most of The Beets so I won't comment any further on them but I was there for Grass Widow. They're one of those bands no one has ever heard of and then all of a sudden they play a show in NYC and they're suddenly everyone's favorite band. I had no idea what they sounded like so I had no expectations. After two songs I gave up on them. Not that they're a bad band, it's just that the sound was so awful I had to get out of there. I went to the deli down the street to pick up some supplies.

When I got back they had just finished and we were excited to see Crystal Stilts. I'm not going to pretend to be a huge fan but they're pretty good. By this point we had talked plenty of shit on the sound but I was hoping that for the headlining band shit would improve. What I didn't consider is the fact that Crystal Stilts likes the reverb... a lot.

They started their set and it was like mud soup. The excessive reverb effects were mixing with the excessive natural reverb in the room and it was just terrible. I was with a friend who's a pretty big fan of Stilts and he walked out after 4 songs. The rest of us made it through 5 maybe before we left. Damn. I guess I should have skipped the bands and checked out Gruen instead. In retrospect that would have been the wise move.

I have no pictures from the event but the museum asked people to photograph the bands and submit them to their Flickr group so there's plenty to see. Bob Gruen will comment on the ones he thinks are worth his critique.

Link:
Brooklyn Museum Flickr

Tonight: Beets, Crystal Stilts @ BK Museum (FREE); Multiverse Playground

There's a pretty killer event going down at the Brooklyn Museum today. First of all there's a free Todd P curated show with The Beets, Crystal Stilts, & Grass Widow at Brooklyn Museum. Bob Gruen is also going to be there speaking on a panel or something. They have tons of other shit happening for free at the museum as well.

Then it's over to Third Ward for Multiverse Playground with Boy Crisis, Das Racist, and a bunch of other bands, artists, and comedians. Should be good times.

Tonight: Freelance Whales @ Pianos

CMJ darlings Freelance Whales are playing Pianos tonight. This band was without a doubt my favorite discovery during CMJ.

They're fucking adorable. They kinda sound like Arcade Fire but much more childish and I mean that in a good, no great, way. They sound like a kids version of Arcade Fire and look like a whole band of Matt & Kims, all smiles - all the time. When I first saw them I turned do my friend and said "I have the sudden urge to go see Where The Wild Things Are" meaning they are a live soundtrack to a childhood adventure.

I know none of this makes any sense but go see them and you'll get what I'm driving at. If they can figure out how to properly mic these kids on a big stage they will be huge.

That said, they're playing what might just be their last little NYC show, depending on how this tour goes. I'd suggest going to this one. $10 sucks but it's worth it in this case.

Freelance Whales
@ Pianos
10PM
$10

New Omar Rodriguez Lopez Album Streaming On MySpace

Apparently this is only available to stream today, so get while it's hot. I did not realize that Omar apparently records like 12 solo albums every year. I guess there's a lot leftover from 25-minute Mars Volta jams. I haven't listened to the whole thing yet but I dig it so far.

Link:
Stream Xenophanes on MySpace

The '90's Video Assault, Episode 4: Deftones

This video right here changed the world. When this hit MTV and The Box (remember that shit?) within hours every punk kid with a skateboard in America was rocking Dickies. This was the soundtrack to our lives we were all waiting for. This song inspired half the kids I know to pick up guitars. When we all rushed out and bought the album we were even more blown away. Adrenaline became the standard and was heard everywhere. "Bored" became the first of many Deftones songs every heavy band in every town covered (mine covered "Bored" and "7 Words"). I even went out and bought a Stephen Carpenter ESP LTD, which I still have and was just playing 10 minutes ago. So while this song is my least favorite from the album it does not take away the importance. Enjoy.

Aww, look how skinny Chino is...

Tonight: Gunfight! & We Are Country Mice @ Cameo; Cerebral Ballzy @ PA; Fucked Up w/WK & Viv Girls

It's a good night for rock n' roll, especially punk. If you're in the Burg you've got two solid choices (Bikes In The Kitchen & Crashin' In parties) right across the street from each other. N.6th is the place to be tonight. There's also an insane Fucked Up show at the Masonic Temple. I guess all Fucked Up shows are insane but this time they've got Andrew WK and Vivian Girls as additional band members.

Titus Andronicus Did Not Have Fun At The VICE Party

Saturday night I checked out the VICE 15-year anniversary / Halloween party at some giant warehouse on N.10th. I got there early and didn't have to deal with any of the door drama that ruined the night for a few people. The space itself was impressive, the booze was free, the bands were pretty awesome and the DJs were playing 90's tunes. Apparently though all types of fucked up shit was going on, which isn't surprising at all. I didn't experience any of this but I left kinda early.

Patrick from Titus Andronicus wrote about his experience and I commend him for still playing his set after all this bullshit. Read all about it here:

Link:
Patrick Got Assaulted By Hired Goons

***By the way 75% of the people at the party were wearing costumes that had more to do with 1984 then 1994. Is it that people just didn't give a shit about the theme or has pop culture bled together so much with our generation that we no longer recognize the difference between 84 and 94? I'm just saying, in 1994 we fucking hated all things 80's so it's weird that people are mixing the two...or maybe I'm just an old bastard.