"Uptempo" and "Pop" are by themselves two concepts that - in the business of being an indie band - can take you quite far; but if on top of that you add to the equation also comparisons to The Smiths, then the hype can get out of control. Brooklyn's Drowners have more than one similarity with Morrisey's act, and although they will surely feel belittled by such comparison, they should not, because no artists really managed to be The Smiths' worthy musical heir yet (like, for example, XTC were for The Beatles, Robin Hitchcock for Syd Barrett, and The Strokes for Lou Reed - uhm, maybe...).
The band's 3 songs debut EP features the remarkable single "Between Us Girls" (streaming below) which immediately throws us back to the days of "Meat is Murder," with the electric guitar alternating between jangly parts and arpeggios, and Welsh frontman Matt Hitt singing semi-melancholically about some girls' hair length - rather than about how big they are... The edge is slightly punkier, while the songwriting reveals an almost clinical concision (the song clocks in just under 2 minutes, with the first chorus coming in after 26" - A&R allergic to intros will dig that).
The second song, "You've Got it All Wrong," beats a similar musical path, tackling the infinite well of inspiration that (for Brits) is life at the pub, with the difference of a slower bridge, which acts as a breather for the final chorus. Final track "A Shell Across the Tongue" is the punkier of the bunch, but also the one with the least memorable melody.
This is obviously a band with enormous songwriting potential. If they'll manage to write songs as good as these and integrate their influences in a more mature and personal sound, the world can be theirs. - PDG
Though set in the year 43,000 BCE, The Vanderbuilts latest record 'What We Forgot' is really an exercise in timelessness. On the surface, the band is every bit a gesture to the joys of classic rock riffs, and long road trips, but listen to the album back to back, and quite a bit more is ahead for your journey.
From the barren landscape of 'Moscow,' to the resplendent 'I'm Coming Home,' this is a band that travels far and wide to feed their imaginations (half the record seems to take place in the stone age), but always comes back with a surprising knack for making all their stories sound like they just happened, or that they're happening to you right now. And if you're not careful, you're liable to get wrapped up in all the drama...
It's hard to keep track of all the things that are important to us in the rush of the day to day, but The Vanderbuilts' ambitious new record helps remember them all over again. Watch their claymation ode to the Jurassic in the video to 'I Wish I was a Saber Toothed Tiger' below. - Mike Levine (@Goldnuggets)
In the mood for some dark, brooding weirdness? NYC's Zula - who last Wednesday opened for Deli Portland's favorites Radiation City at Mercury Lounge - will definitely fix you up in that department. With a debut LP brewing for the summer, the band takes its cues from a variety of places, from Krautrock to acid house and everything in between. Check out their captivating psychedelic samples and swirling effects in the track streaming below, entitled "Make Contact" or on their bandcamp page here, or see them live at Silent Barn's Block Party on June 21. - Zack Kraimer
Whatever happened to the independent ladies of the Lilith fair era, that golden time from the 90s when everyone re-learned how cool the piano and a great voice can be. Half Waif has some of that singer-songwriter sensibility setting off her emotions, but coupled with a scientist's flair for sound design (check out the long and soaring intro to album opener 'Wooden Horse'). New EP 'Future Joys' is at first an intimate journey told through her carefully wrought piano plays... but I'm continually surprised at how inventive the journey becomes as everything gets wound through her endlessly inventive sonic machinery.
So if you've ever wondered what kind of offspring Tori Amos might have had if she'd spent one stormy night with Brian Eno, check out Half Waif's new record here. - Mike Levine (@Goldnuggets)
Tonight things get rather interesting at Northside, with a bunch of bands I've been meaning to see live for a while but always missed.
My night will start at The Grand Victory, where I'm curious to see Supercute! (pictured and streaming). Teenager girl playing Syd Barrett-influenced pop sounds just too intriguing to be missed!
After that, Brooklyn Bowl around 7pm: Xenia Rubinos will open the show (we booked her for our Best of NYC show last year, and we were glad to see Pitchfork reward her explosive musical imagination with a review approaching the 8 mark), but I'll be there mostly for Sinkane (streaming below), who has been doing interesting things in the NYC scene. I think he should tour with Delicate Steve.
Cameo will host a show with two artists I definitely want to check out, Vensaire and in particular Ludwig Persik, whose first EP was our Record of the Month late last year. Two great bands who graced our cover (Snowmine and Bear Hands) will follow but we'll be gone by then, maybe to see our psych rock friends Tempers (streaming below) if we can get there on time, who feature ex Seasick singer Jasmine Golestaneh, of whom we've been long time fans.
To keep things dreamy we might check out Phonetag, an interesting electro-dream-pop one man act (streaming below) playing Muchmore's at 10.30, or maybe Butchers & Bakers, who'll be playing The Gutter at 11pm between Shilpa Ray and Lazyeyes
We hope you won't think we are chauvinistic if we say that Heliotropes' brand of rock doesn’t often come from the fairer sex. Yeah because we are not just talking about 'punchy' stuff here, it's more like... fury! The Brooklyn female foursome has an explosive debut record on the way, and a release show to celebrate it in one of the finest NYC venues. Glasslands will be abuzz with excitement for A Constant Sea’s release on 6/18, and with support from Bad Cop and Fan-Tan, the night promises to be interesting from the first act to the last. You don’t want to miss this one, but if you do, they’re playing at 4Knots this summer, so you’ll have another chance. - Zack Kraimer
The grungy, hardcore post-punk trio that is Verses Narrow hits your eardrums with rich, piercing guitar riffs, precisely driven drum work, and passionate indie vocals that all come together nicely to make for a well-executed sound that we think you should check out. Formed in Brooklyn in October of 2011, Bryan Louie, Sal DellAquila and Aaron Nice seem to borrow separate elements from the styles of their 90s band influences like The Jesus Lizard, Shellac and Quicksand to make a their own sound that they claim through their well-rounded execution. If you liked At The Drive In, check out Verses Narrow. They are set to play Pianos on 6/14 with Strangers, Lord Classic and The Gorgeous Hands. Listen to “Boredom” below. –Michael Haskoor (@Tweetskoor)
Singer-songwriters are rarely inspired by punk themes and imagery. For Sizzy Rocket, she has all the love in the world, but channeled beneath her eyeliner, tattoo ink, leather jacket, and sexy grand piano, it can come out in some fairly unconventional ways. Whether singing odes to a crush ('Jamie'), or walking down memory Lane in 'Sid and Nancy,' Sizzy Rocket is about as devil-may-care as her latest EP 'We do it for the Thrills' would make her out to be. The pianist breathes more fire into her 88-key chords than most guitarists with twin Marshall stacks and a six string. - Mike Levine (@Goldnuggets)
We'll take the opportunity given us by Northside to highlight a few emerging local artists we haven't blogged about in some time - or not at all. Browsing through the list of bands playing tonight, we notice that NYC Kenrda Morris will be at Matchless with Aabaraki (pictured, song streaming below), two acts dedicated to bringing soul back to the heights it deserves (here's an article about the Soul Revival in NYC by the way).
On the other side of the musical genres' spectrum, noise masters Yvette will challenge (and probably destroy some) ears at Muchmore's, headlining a bill of droney bands that includes Courtship Ritual (good name! streaming below), and electro experimenter Alan Watts.
Semi-French pop treat Slowdance (song streaming below) will play Public Assembly's back room with two fully French bands (by the way, now that the main room is closed, Pub. Ass. is throwing shows in a pretty cool room upstairs). Spike Hill on the other hand will host three Brooklyn bands we covered inside out: ARMS, Conveyor and Miniboone, and one we never heard about: Chris Mills.
Grand Street's mainstay dive Trash Bar will host loud garage New Jersey based outfit The Everymen and rising indie crooner Tyburn Saint, together with this weird NYC band called The Cowmen - what the heck is this, zombie-country? Some imaginative heads at work there!
285 Kent will surely have a packed show featuring Ava Luna, Twin Sister, Julian Lynch and other great bands from out of town, but these are artists on the verge of not being emerging anymore... Glasslands on the other hand has a DJ only night with some local stars behind the booth - but we don't care about DJs...
“Fade to Grey” is an enticing chilled-out track being offered up for free by emerging dreampoppers Rohypnotise on their bandcamp page. A loose and jammy drum pattern rises up from the depths, with soft, dreamy vocals quickly entering the mix. The vocal phrasing and subsequent deliberate matched-stepped chord progression brings to mind the work that former Depreciation Guild and current Ice Choir creator Kurt Feldman does so well. There’s sophistication in the songwriting and recording here, with the initial pattern giving way to a much bigger central hook. With plenty of movement throughout the track, little sonic surprises like tambourines and keyboad lines appear at unexpected moments. The band is playing Drunken Piano's Northside Fest show on 06.13 at Buffalo Snow together with other noteworhty NYC bands Railbirds and Gondola. - Dave Cromwell
"Uptempo" and "Pop" are by themselves two concepts that - in the business of being an indie band - can take you quite far; but if on top of that you add to the equation also comparisons to The Smiths, then the hype can get out of control. Brooklyn's Drowners have more than one similarity with Morrisey's act, and although they will surely feel belittled by such comparison, they should not, because no artists really managed to be The Smiths' worthy musical heir yet (like, for example, XTC were for The Beatles, Robin Hitchcock for Syd Barrett, and The Strokes for Lou Reed - uhm, maybe...).
The band's 3 songs debut EP features the remarkable single "Between Us Girls" (streaming below) which immediately throws us back to the days of "Meat is Murder," with the electric guitar alternating between jangly parts and arpeggios, and Welsh frontman Matt Hitt singing semi-melancholically about some girls' hair length - rather than about how big they are... The edge is slightly punkier, while the songwriting reveals an almost clinical concision (the song clocks in just under 2 minutes, with the first chorus coming in after 26" - A&R allergic to intros will dig that).
The second song, "You've Got it All Wrong," beats a similar musical path, tackling the infinite well of inspiration that (for Brits) is life at the pub, with the difference of a slower bridge, which acts as a breather for the final chorus. Final track "A Shell Across the Tongue" is the punkier of the bunch, but also the one with the least memorable melody.
This is obviously a band with enormous songwriting potential. If they'll manage to write songs as good as these and integrate their influences in a more mature and personal sound, the world can be theirs. - PDG
