Comet Gain w/ Crystal Stilts and Cold Cave @ Music Hall of Williamsburg, April 12th, 2009

If you don't like Comet Gain, I don't think we can be friends anymore. Yep, friendship over. But why wouldn't you like them? I see no reason. I have been looking forward to this show for quite some time. I haven't seen them since they played with Girlfrendo (currently members of Love Is All) and The Aisler's Set at NYU back in 2000! Phew, that takes me back! Needless to say, they were great! Finally a band having fun on stage AND playing good songs. What's not to like? And they give good advice, "It's never too late to live your life."



Crystal Stilts also had a good night, probably inspired by having a solid headliner after them. Also, did I smell weed drifting in from back stage right before they played? Might have something to do with it...


My buddy Kevin really likes Cold Cave, so I wanted to give them a shot, but I just couldn't get into it. I even bought a cassette, to see if their recorded stuff was better, but alas, not so. Their lead singer kinda tries to project Noel Gallagher on stage. Eh.

Kurt Vile @ Silent Barn, Friday April 3rd, 2009

Kurt Vile was exactly what I needed after a long week of 9-5. I actually enjoyed his live show better than his most recent record, Constant Hitmaker, mainly because this was a mostly a solo acoustic set, which is a little more intimate than an effects-heavy full band set. Check out the video... Lush! Dreamy! Psych!

Diehard w/ DD/MM/YYYY @ Union Hall, Tuesday March 31st, 2009

Diehard is my buddy Ezra's brand-spanking new band with all original music. Ezra doubles as the lead singer in The Blue Album Group, a Weezer album tribute band, and as expected, some of the sweetness and power-pop charm of the Weez is present in his original music (think green-album weezer, still bubblegum but not as super-pop or emotional as the first two albums -- and not as shitty as the rest of them). With Liz's female vocal harmonies, you get a touch of the Rentals for added flavor. This was their first show ever, so understandably they were a little nervous and you can't expect perfection in a first outing. But I liked what I heard (what can I say, smartly-crafted indie-pop is my jam), and I'd love to see them again as a tighter, more well-oiled machine. Great job Ezra! You make me want to start a indie-pop band myself!


DD/MM/YYYY (pronounced "date format" ? --not sure) has been popping up on some pretty impressive line-ups lately so I'm glad I got a chance to check 'em out. They were uber-tight and energetic (and sweaty!), with lots of UFO sound effects, instrument switching, and band camaraderie. Good stuff, but I couldn't really make out any of the lyrics and the hooks never really grabbed me, so I'm not anxious to see them again, but it was nice to see a band this devoted to the craft and perfection of their music.