Music Snobbery

Angus & Julia Stone Skipping Across U.S./Canada This Rocktober

The Stone Family Slideshow Players continue to plug away for their 2010, Down The Way. I'm considering it for best of 2010, and why don't you, the fine people of music snobbery land. If think it's all soft, folk pop tunes, think again. When I saw them last June, I saw that there was more more to them.

They'll be coming through this parts during CMJ with shows at Bell House, Maxwell's and an opening slot for Devotcha at Lincoln Center.

Rocktober 5: El Rey Theatre -- Los Angeles
Rocktober 6: The Independent -- San Francisco
Rocktober 8: Austin City Limits -- Austin
Rocktober 11: The Crocodile Cafe -- Seattle
Rocktober 12: Venue -- Vancouver   
Rocktober 13: Aladdin Theatre -- Portland
Rocktober 15-16: Lincoln Hall -- Chicago (opening for Devotchka)
Rocktober 18: Iron Horse Music Hall -- Northampton, MA 
Rocktober 20: World Cafe Live -- Philadelphia   
Rocktober 22: Bell House -- Brooklyn   
Rocktober 23: Damrosch Park, Lincoln Center -- New York  (opening for Devotchka)
Rocktober 24: Maxwell's -- Hoboken, NJ
Rocktober 26: Paradise -- Boston   
Rocktober 28: Opera House -- Toronto   
Rocktober 29: Le National -- Montreal   
Rocktober 30: Le Cercle -- Quebec

Here's the video for their latest single, it's for the song, Hold On:

Alice Gold Sends You Into Orbit

Here's something funky, fresh and different to keep your eyes and ears on. Alice Gold is a U.K. singer-songwriter with some tricked out electronics over a funkadelic 70s groove. It's like the soundtrack for a female-revenge flick from the 70s with a heavy bass groove and strong vocals. There's bad assitude going on here. She's almost Beck-ian in her approach to taking all these different styles and making it her own. 

As her bio points out, she won a Winnebago in a poker game and took that bad boy across the U.S. for six months. Along the way, she wrote and recorded in the vehicle, using the bathroom as the vocal booth. And to think I was using my bathroom for .... you know.

"Everyone I met before I left warned me of danger and strange people," she notes. "But the only bad experience I had was having to break into my own van after locking myself out." She made a stop in Nashville, Tennessee, performing gigs nightly. "Just seeing the way musicians do things over there," she says, "The standard of performances are higher, even the small acoustic nights were incredible - unsigned artists really putting on a show and giving it their all."

The big graber is her first single and video for the song Orbiter with her large, inviting vocals and that wacka-wacka guitar hook. The other songs she has to offer on her myspace page have a similar slant -- a little bit of this, a little bit of that and whole lot punch. She's already been signed to Fiction Records, so she's going to legit.

Check out the colorful video for Orbiter.

A little research shows she's opened up for Holly Miranda in London, and tomorrow she opens up for Eels at Brixton Academy.

Smoke Fairies Set With New Album, Through Low Light And Trees

Those frighteningly talented ladies, Katherine Blamire and Jessica Davies, have put the finishing touches on their major-label debut album, Through Low Light And Trees. V2 in the U.K. will release the album next Monday with a U.S. release imminent. The album was produced by long-time PJ Harvey producer, Head. The album artwork is to the right, and the track listing is below.

1. Summer Fades       
2. Devil In My Mind       
3. Hotel Room       
4. Dragon           
5. Erie Lackawanna           
6. Strange Moon Rising           
7. Morning Blues           
8. Storm Song           
9. Blue Skies Fall           
10. Feeling Is Turning Blue           
11. After The Rain

Here's a four-track preview of the album, and you'll see why the two are a must-listen.

Previously:

• The duo opened up for Laura Marling at Johnny Brenda's

Marina & The Diamonds Launches First U.S. Tour This Week -- Stops in NJ and Philly

This flew under my radar: After a jaw-dropping performance last March at Le Poisson Rouge, Marina Diamandis and her sparklies will go cross country on their first extensive U.S. tour. She hits up World Cafe Live in Philly this Friday, which I would love to go to if the traffic wasn't so hellish.

So maybe a little visit next Sunday to that legendary club in Asbury Park. No, not that one -- the other. No, the OTHER one. Ahh, The Wonder Bar, which is kind of random, but cool none the less. I haven't been there since it's been renovated, so this would be good chance to check out the joint.

 

September 1: Paradise -- Boston    
September 2: Webster Hall -- New York   
September 3: World Cafe Live -- Philadelphia    
September 5: The Wonder Bar -- Asbury Park, NJ    
September 6: 930 Club -- Washington, D.C.    
September 8: Opera House Concert Venue -- Toronto   
September 9: Lincoln Hall -- Chicago   
September 10: Triple Rock -- Minneapolis    
September 13: Crocodile -- Seattle,   
September 14: Doug Fir -- Portland,   
September 15: Independent -- San Francisco   
September 17: El Rey Theatre -- Los Angeles   

LCD Soundsystem Is Playing Near My House ... My House

I'm really curious at what kind of crowd LCD Soundsystem will get at the Wellmont when they role through on Sept. 23. I might have to create a post, The 5 People You Meet at the LCD Soundsystem Show in the Burbs.

On top of that, the band you're sick of hearing about even though they've only been together for 10 months, Sleigh Bells, is opening. You can get their CD at Target. It's the suburban hipster uprising.

That whole week is just a clusterfuck of awesome shows. Pavement picked the wrong week to dominate New York, because damn, they are just so many things that week. The National play the Wellmont the next day as well. My Pavement tickets are the 23rd and 24th. I'll spend more time thinking about this then important things, like what am I going to do with the rest of the my life.

September 23: The Wellmont Theatre -- Montclair, NJ
September 24: Philadelphia Naval Cruise Terminal -- Philiadelphia,
September 25: Merriweather post pavillion festival -- Columbia, Maryland
September 27: Memorial auditorium -- Burlington, Vermont
September 28: Orpheum -- Boston
Rocktober 1: Hamilton College -- Clinton, New York
Rocktober 2: Charlottesville Pavilion -- Charlottesville, Virginia
Rocktober 4: Tabernacle -- Atlanta
Rocktober 5: Hard Rock -- Orlando
Rocktober 6: Fillmore -- Miami
Rocktober 8: Verizon Amphitheater -- Houston
Rocktober 9: Austin City Limits festival -- Austin
Rocktober 13: RIMAC Arena -- La Jolla, CA 
Rocktober 15: Hollywood Bowl -- Hollywood, CA
Rocktober 16: Treasure Island -- San Francisco, CA
Rocktober 19: the complex -- Salt Lake City 
Rocktober 20: Fillmore Auditorium -- Denver 
Rocktober 22: Eagles Ballroom -- Milwaukee
Rocktober 23: Roy Wilkins Auditorium -- St. Paul, MN

Previously:

• LCD Soundsystem at Randall's Island
• LCD Soundsystem at Theatre of Living Arts

Film School Wants You and Your Stripes To Help The Animals

The worlds of indie rock and Major League Baseball are finally colliding for a cause.

Film School is holding at merchandise design contest at Animals of Fission. they are looking for something animal striped based like zebras and tigers. You vote for the best, the top 3 get to see their designs in the merch. You have until Sept. 8.

Then, 10% of the merch sales will be donated to St. Louis Cardinals' manager Tony La Russa's charity, Animal Rescue Foundation. Tony La Russa's Animal Rescue Foundation (ARF) saves the lives of countless animals each year whose time has run out in public shelters and who are scheduled to be killed. ARF's team of trained volunteers and expert staff make sure every animal receives proper nutrition, medical evaluation and treatment, training and lots of love as they await their new forever home. ARF's shelter touches the lives of thousands of animals and people each year.

Will somebody think about the animals?

Summer Camp Re-Edits A Swedish Love Story for Round the Moon Video

Those two crazy cats of Summer Camp are at it again. This time, they've re-jiggered scenes for an obscure Swedish film called En kärlekshistoria (A Swedish Love Story) for their video for their latest single, "Round the Moon." That certainly saves on production costs.

Moshi Moshi will release the single on Sept. 13. I see them on Oct. 1st at the Lexington with Frankie & The Heartstrings. Frankie is coming to the U.S. for CMJ, Summer Camp will not be.

The plot: Two idealistic teenagers fall in love for the first time in this romantic drama. They try to remain hopeful in a cynical world of adults that discourage them. Their parents are weary from life's constant problems and fail to take the young couple seriously when they speak of love and hope for the future. Rolf Sohlman and Ann-Sofie Kylin are the young couple in love who try to rise above the clouds of despair created by their parents. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide

Cornershop Finally Touring America This November

They took their sweet time rescheduling the 2002 Summerstage show that they canceled, but Cornershop will bring the Brimful of Asha back to the U.S. If my memory recalls, they had played some opening dates for Oasis in the U.S., but haven't headlined since they broke through with When I Was Born for the 7th Time.

Now that you're enjoying their fifth album, Judy Sucks a Lemon for Breakfast, you might want to see them in live form. They've got NYC and Philly dates lined up.

November 11: Showbox at the Market -- Seattle    
November 12: Crystal Ballroom -- Portland   
November 14: The Independent -- San Francisco   
November 15: El Rey Theatre -- Los Angeles
November 17: The Middle East -- Cambridge, MA
November 18: The Trocadero -- Philadelphia
November 19: Irving Plaza -- New York
November 20: 9:30 Club -- Washington, D.C.
November 21: Cat’s Cradle --  Carrboro, North Carolina 

In the meantime, here's the video for Top Knot, from that album.

The Strange Death of Charles Haddon of Ou Est Le Swimming Pool -- Band To Release Debut

This has been a bad summer for deaths at concert events. Twenty-one died and 500 were injured during a stampede at The Love Parade techno-fest held in Germany. Last week, a man committed suicide during a Swell Season show. The latest development on that is that the Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová (who are going their separate ways professionally), will pay for grief counseling for those who are traumatized from seeing the suicide on stage.

Now we have Charles Haddon of Ou Est Le Swimming Pool, who committed suicide last Friday at the Pukkelpop festival in Brussels. The bizarre story goes like this: Ou Est Le Swimming Pool is an upstart dance-rock-electro trio from North London, so their live shows are intense. Keyboardist Joe Hutchinson stage dove, but the crowd got out of the way instead of catching him. Haddon also lept into the crowd. Unfortunately, one young girl got knocked over and was seriously injured. This distressed Haddon, and reports indicate that he looked disoriented after their set, seeing the girl being carted away. A few hours later, Haddon climbed a 60-ft. tour and fell to his death. The speculation is that Haddon feared that the fan would be crippled for life. While the injuries are serious, the fan is expected to make a full recovery, according to The Guardian.

Today, the band released the statement that the band will go forward with releasing their debut album, The Golden Year. "After speaking with the late Charles Haddon's family, remaining band members Joe Hutchinson and Caan Capan have decided to proceed with the original schedule for the release of the record they planned with Charles."

This is the band's video for Jackson's Last Stand. Don't know about you, but the video is sad to watch:

Tennis @ Cake Shop: Love Match

Making their New York debut tonight were the darling husband-wife duo of Patrick Riley and Alaina Moore. They call themselves Tennis, an ode to the sport where every game starts with love-love. File them under a good band name that's hard to Google.

The group is all about nostalgia --sweet harmonies, girl-group vocals, boardwalk organs, twitchy guitars and a steady beat. It's that early 60s pop sound that both coasts have been championing. On the right, it's Vivian Girls and Beach House. On the left, it's Best Coast and Dum Dum Girls. Thus, Tennis hails from the great surfing and seaside town of Denver, Colorado. Go figure.

This being their important introduction to New York, they made the most of it with a flawless set in front a packed crowd. With this type of music, you tend to think its dreamy. I felt it was comforting, like a re-assuring pat on the back that everything will be okay. The two clearly have a gasp of the sound. I dig that organ on the tune Marathon -- it portrays that loving look at early 60s Californian culture. They even threw in a cover of Jackie DeShannon's "When You Walk in the Room" just to make sure that you knew where they are coming from. By the end, I wanted to hug them.

For your reading enjoyment, the NY Times had a piece on them three weeks ago about their year-long sailing adventure. I guess they are a true Yacht Rock band.

They have a 7" out on the Underwater Peoples, the fine label based in NJ. They play Glasslands tonight in Brooklyn and will return to these parts in Rocktober.

 

Check out the Fred Perry kicks, it's legit!