Man Man @ McCarren Pool, Brooklyn July 1st, 2007

I continue to be blown away by Man Man shows. They just keep getting better. I saw them a few months ago at the Bowery and they smoked it. But this time they were otherworldly, headlining at the McCarren Pool, a much larger and more intimidating outdoor venue. First off, their drummer is phenomenal, a joy to watch and hear. Of course everyone in their group is a percussionist, which adds to the tribal vibe. I love how they play facing each other on stage, like they actually care about communicating with each other musically onstage. Yes, their signature all white outfits, face paint, and bandanas were in effect, which at first might be off-putting but after a couple shows you come to expect it, in fact anticipate it, as it adds to the drama. They played an encore, which is the first one I’ve seen at McCarren Pool (which shows how huge this band is in Brooklyn). They closed with a slow, dreamy version of Van Helsing’s Boombox, my favorite song on their latest album, Six Demon Bag (of course, I don’t think any of their albums have truly captured the energy of their live shows). I had forgotten about that song, wrapped up in their gorgeous set, but once it started, I knew this show would be unforgettable.

Home Video @ Mercury Lounge, June 25th 2007

Home Video opened up for Apostle of Hustle last night at the Mercury Lounge, and they play a shoe-gaze style of electronica that is a little bit Radiohead and a little bit, dare i say it, Slowdive! But perhaps more suitable for a dance club than either of the aforementioned groups. Their drummer has machine-like accuracy, and it's a wonder that he doesn't get tired from all those open hi-hat fills. Anyway, play them at your next dance party, or during your next lonely midnight drive.

Apostle of Hustle @ Mercury Lounge, June 25th 2007

Apostle of Hustle is my new favorite Broken Social Scene spin-off group. Maybe because the lead-guitarist in BSS, Andrew Whiteman, is such an integral part of BSS's signature sound, so it rubs off in 'the Hustle' more than in the other 'Scenes.' Tonight they played with special guest Latin percussionist, Danielito "el suerte" Patanemo, who definitely added another rhythmic level to their sound, and made it even spicier (in short, think of BSS, but happier, less instruments, and an up-beat Latin rhythm base - sweet). Overall, it was an intimate and lovely show, with that happy vibe that BSS shows are known for. Whiteman was in a talkative mood and it was nice to see stage banter that isn't formulaic (his story about a ninja-midget drugging the white house was hilarious!). Even though I didn't know any of the songs, and half of them were sung in Spanish, I had to stay to the end (which was a little later than I wanted to stay out on a monday), but the music was that good. Anyway, I've finally found the BSS spin-off that I can really get excited about, so now all I have to do is buy all of their records and take them to the beach for my life to be complete. :)

The New Mastersounds @ The Annex, June 23

It's hard not to shake your booty with The New Mastersounds. They're a five-piece funk-blues band from England but they sound, to quote my buddy Chris, as if "they came up playing bars in New Orleans in the late 60s." It's hard to find bands that can pull this off, especially without a singer. They reminded me of that other notable funk-super group, The Meters. So, check 'em out if you're into that shit... and you should be.

Voxtrot and Au Revoir Simone @ Webster Hall, June 15th, 2007

Geez, I go to too many shows. I should really like stay home and read a book or something... Anyway, I only caught the last few songs of Au Revoir Simone, because they played an early set at the ghastly hour of 7pm (don't they know I have to work!) They have a very sweet sound comprised from vintage synths and drum machines, with vocals that hearken to Dirty on Purpose (one of the three lovely ladies in the band used to sing for DOP) I was trying to decide which one I wanted to make-out with the most, but I couldn't, but I guess that is really part of their charm. No, it's the music dammit! Aaaaggh!

Voxtrot photo: courtesy of Brooklyn Vegan.

My buddy Jay introduced me to Voxtrot. And when I first saw them, they reminded me of like a punk Belle & Sebastian, if B&S were schooled on the mean indie streets of Austin. Of course now, I absolutely love their free-indie.com album, which is really why i went to this show (mostly to see Mothers, Daughters, etc. played live). This Webster Hall show had more of an early Beatles vibe (maybe it was just the bass player's Paul McCartney hofner or the use of the additional string section for this show). And of course the audience dug it (gotta love those pop melodies). They wouldn't even leave after Ramesh played a lonely encore, solo on the acoustic guitar. I know if I was a 15 year old girl, I would definitely have their poster on the wall. Heck, I might even do it anyway.

Foreign Islands @ Luna Lounge, June 14th, 2007

This is a live review I wrote for Loose Record. You can see it there, or just read it below:

Ah, the lovely Foreign Islands… No, I’m not talking about some vague tropical scene that undoubtedly crossed your mind when I wrote those words. I’m talking about an electro-punk band from Brooklyn that I saw last night at the spacious new Luna Lounge in Williamsburg. Luckily, this band sounds nothing like the lazy, steel drum music that their name-sake implies. In fact, their songs would be more at home in some sort of sweaty island dance party in between tracks by Daft Punk and Franz Ferdinand.

Now, I knew nothing about this band before the show, except what I heard on their MySpace page. But it says something about those 3 songs, if they motivated me enough to go see their live show without any further kind of recommendation. Unfortunately, the set I saw was cut short by a computer malfunction after 5 songs. Apparently their “bass player,” (which is the affectionate term they call their laptop computer) got drunk at the bar before the show (ie. Crashed in the middle of their set) and they couldn’t recover from this loss.

Yes, for better or worse, they play synched up to a laptop, so all the bells and whistles on their record (of which there are many) are right where you expect them to be in the live show. Sometimes when bands do this it comes across as a little too prefabricated for my taste, with not enough raw energy or improvisation for me to enjoy the live show (hey, if I wanted to hear an exact version of the album, I wouldn’t pay $8 bucks to see it in a poorly lit club at high volume). But thankfully Foreign Islands produce the majority of their sound through good old-fashioned guitar amplifiers and a kick-ass drummer (there is an old saying: that a rock band is only as good as its drummer, which, in this case, Foreign Islands should have a promising future). Not that the singer or two guitarists are lacking in any sense. I mean you gotta love those high speed dueling guitar riffs. Overall, the band had an energy and musicianship that was fun, enthusiastic and effortless. They’re definitely worth checking out if you’re into LCD Soundsystem, or just a fan of up-tempo anthem electro-rock music. I just hope next time their laptop can keep up.

Panda Bear @ Bowery Ballroom, Monday June 18th, 2007

If Television is the past, then Panda Bear is the future. Just one guy running a sampler into effects into a mixer and singing over it. This is first-class electronica. I feel like more people will eventually (when they figure it out) make this kind of music. The key is using reeeeeally good samples. I especially liked when he would sample his voice and then harmonize with himself. Many of the samples he would subtly pitch-shift, or slightly change the tempo of, all as he's adding massive amounts of reverb and delay, which sounded rad. And the best part is, I got in to the show for free! (it was sold out, and some dude gave me his wrist band as he was walking out after like 2 songs -- thanks dude!) Actually, that wasn't the best part, it was the insanely good music. The audience didn't even know how to react. Seriously, that shit was maybe 10x better live than on the album, and the album is damn good. I hope somebody recorded a bootleg...