Movie Night at Music Hall
August 23rd, 2010
Variety is the spice of life, right? Which means sometimes it’s fun to do unfamiliar things in familiar places. Sure, we’ve all seen cool bands play Music Hall of Williamsburg, but have you ever seen a movie there? Well, now you’ve got the chance because the guys in the Scottish post-rock band Mogwai are starring in their very own flick, Burning, directed by La Blogothèque founder and indie-rock video auteur Vincent Moon and Nathanaël Le Scouarnec. It’s pretty cool, so check out the trailer, above, and then make your way to the BK for movie night at Music Hall of Williamsburg tomorrow.
Crystal Castles – Terminal 5 – August 21, 2010
August 23rd, 2010
You Can’t Keep a Good Ska Band Down
August 23rd, 2010The English Beat/Bad Manners – Webster Hall – August 21, 2010
The English Beat
The floor at Webster Hall probably never shook as much as it did last night when 2 Tone ska revivalists the English Beat and Bad Manners were onstage. During both sets, the crowd filled every foot of the main floor, skankin’ and boppin’ to each note from these legendary music makers. Bad Manners—perhaps best known for bald-headed frontman Buster Bloodvessel’s outlandish personality, oversize tongue and animated onstage antics—played a rowdy set of career favorites, with an amped-up horn section, including the up-tempo “Lip Up Fatty” (the band’s most well-known song about being fat had Bloodvessel swinging his gut every which way) and the slightly slower-grooved and perfect for this time of year “Walking in the Sunshine.”
Upon taking the stage, the English Beat immediately jumped straight into their rendition of “I’ll Take You There” before an onslaught of original chart-topping material, including “I Confess,” “Save It For Later,” which segued into a few bars of Pearl Jam’s “Better Man,” and “Can’t Get Used to Losing You.” They also covered General Public’s “Tenderness,” did a newer original, “Loving You Lasts Forever,” and closed with “Mirror in the Bathroom.” Although singer Dave Wakeling was a man of limited words, except joking about calling one’s mum to let her know you’re safe (and not drinking too much), first-class toaster Antonee kept the interludes moving and the ladies in mind with chants like: “I want a 2 Tone lady, a 2 Tone girl,” which eventually morphed into something raunchier, “I want a 2 Tone BFF, so we can go home and just F, F, F.” —Kirsten Housel
Photos courtesy of Kirsten Housel
See the Giraffes for Free
August 20th, 2010
Looking for something fun and free to do tomorrow night? Then you’ve come to the right place because you’ve got the chance to see the Giraffes play the late show at Mercury Lounge on Saturday for free thanks to Sailor Jerry. The Brooklyn-based hard-rock band has been at it since 1998, releasing four LPs and Show, a live DVD. To say the Giraffes (above, doing “Haunted Heaven”) are committed to their music is no joke because not even an onstage heart attack has slowed down singer Aaron Lazar. But you can see for yourself if you RSVP here.
(The Greenhornes play another Sailor Jerry-sponsored show at Mercury Lounge on Friday, 9/3. RSVP here.)
Devendra Banhart Defies Expectations
August 20th, 2010Devendra Banhart and the Grogs – Terminal 5 – August 19, 2010
Devendra Banhart and the Grogs opened their set last night at Terminal 5 with Cripple Crow’s “Long Haired Child.” Fans who have followed Banhart’s music over the years likely associate the artist himself as a long-haired child—originally gaining popularity as a bohemian, shaggy-locked musician, prone to singing winding freak-folk tales over a gently plucked guitar. Yet the Banhart who appeared onstage last night, hair and beard trimmed short, dressed sharply in a tailored blazer, spent the night defying expectations.
In addition to performing tracks like “Angelika” and “First Song for B” from his latest release, What Will Be, a collection of mellow folk peppered with Latin influences, Banhart enjoyed shifting among different sounds, genres and moods throughout the show. He hammed it up as frontman, strutting and dancing around the stage during songs like “Baby,” and then Banhart picked up his guitar and revisited older favorites, with delicate solo renditions of “The Body Breaks” and “A Sight to Behold,” the latter as lovely and mournful as ever. When the band returned to the stage, Banhart shifted gears yet again, performing an intense, snarling cover of Johnny Thunders’ “You Can’t Put Your Arms Around a Memory,” an extended classic-rock-style jam of “Seahorse” and an ebullient “Carmensita.”
Although perhaps neither fans nor the shaggy, psych folk-leaning Banhart of yesteryear would have predicted that by 2010 he would be clean-shaven and dancing goofily while performing a rocking cover of the 1988 Taylor Dane hit “Tell It to My Heart”—perhaps the night’s biggest surprise—I’m guessing if Banhart saw how much fun he’d be having, the long-haired child would approve. —Alena Kastin
Photos courtesy of Jennifer Macchiarelli | www.jennylow.com
An Extra Chance to See Florence and the Machine
August 19th, 2010
Back in April, Florence Welch thrilled the sold-out crowd at Terminal 5 so much so that she’s returning to town to play the venue twice, on November 1st and 2nd. But you won’t have to wait that long to get your fix of the bluesy redhead with a big voice because Florence and the Machine will be performing “Dog Days Are Over” at the 2010 MTV Video Music Awards (Sunday, September 12th). The song’s video is nominated for Video of the Year and Best Rock Video. Welch, an enthralling live performer, says the song is about “chaotic freedom and running really, really fast with your eyes closed.” Decide for yourself: Check out Florence and the Machine, above, in the video and, below, playing the song on the English show Live on Alan Carr.
See the English Beat on Saturday Night
August 19th, 2010
The English Beat formed in Birmingham in the UK back in 1978. This ska revivalist group featured alternating lead vocals from guitarist Dave Wakeling and toaster Ranking Roger and an actual touch of Jamaica in Saxa, a former Desmond Dekker sax player. The band (known as the Beat outside of North America) quickly found success with their first single, a cover of “Tears of a Clown.” They released three albums between 1980 and ’82 and toured the world alongside the likes of David Bowie, the Talking Heads, the Clash and the Police, only to break up in 1983. The two singers then formed General Public while guitarist Andy Cox and bassist David Steele helped put together Fine Young Cannibals. Of course this is where the story would end if the band hadn’t reformed several years ago. But they did, and the English Beat (above, doing the oft-covered-by-Pearl Jam “Save It for Later” on Fearless Music) plays Webster Hall on Saturday night.
Counting Crows – The Wellmont Theatre – August 18, 2010
August 19th, 2010
Win Free Tickets to See Devendra Banhart Tomorrow
August 18th, 2010
Alternative folkie Devendra Banhart (above, performing “Sight to Behold” on Later…with Jools Holland) is back in town, playing Terminal 5 tomorrow night. And the even better news is that The House List is giving away two tickets. Want to go? Then fill out the form below, listing your name, e-mail address, which show you’re trying to win tickets to (Devendra Banhart, 8/19) and a brief message explaining why you deserve a free Thursday night at Terminal 5. The winner will be notified tomorrow.
Not Even Nerves Can Stop MGMT
August 18th, 2010MGMT – Radio City Music Hall – August 17, 2010
MGMT performed the majority of their first of two sold-out Radio City Music Hall shows covered in shadows. The focal point of the venue’s cavernous stage instead fell upon an onslaught of colorful psychedelic images and lights projected onto a backdrop of large abstract shapes. The eager crowd danced and waved glow sticks as the band played material from their most recent album, Congratulations, with the trippy visuals complementing the eclectic-retro sound on songs like “Brian Eno,” “Flash Delirium,” “It’s Working” and “Siberian Breaks.”
In addition to newer material, MGMT also played a sizable portion of their 2008 breakthrough album, Oracular Spectacular. Though two years have passed since its heyday, one of the loudest cheers of the night erupted with the opening notes of “Time to Pretend,” the group’s tongue-in-cheek tale of rock-star excess, which unwittingly became the soundtrack to every hipster BBQ and house party from Brooklyn to Brisbane that summer. Despite the fact that in the years since the song was written, MGMT founding members Andrew VanWyngarden and Ben Goldwasser have actually become what most would consider bona fide rock stars, with fancy magazine-cover stories and headlining slots at festivals around the world, their understated performance further cemented the fact that they have certainly not become the rock-star clichés they once wrote about.
As the show began to wind down, the modest rockers finally let the lights come up a bit during the undeniably catchy “Kids,” with Goldwasser and VanWyngarden stepping away from their instruments and awkwardly, endearingly attempting to dance with the crowd—but mostly just looking down, nodding their heads to the beat and wandering around the stage as they sang. When the song finished and the crowd erupted with approval, VanWyngarden seemed relieved, admitting in utter un-rock-star fashion that when faced with the task of playing Radio City Music Hall, “I think we were a little bit nervous.” —Alena Kastin
Photos courtesy of Greg Aiello | www.ga-photos.com
Spend Saturday Night with Juliette Lewis
August 17th, 2010
Perhaps you first saw her as Wayne’s girlfriend on The Wonder Years. Or maybe it was when Robert De Niro stuck his thumb in her mouth in Martin Scorsese’s remake of Cape Fear. And you probably had no idea Juliette Lewis could sing—unless you saw her do PJ Harvey covers in Strange Days—before she fronted Juliette and the Licks up until last year. Well, she can. And she’s back with a new band, the New Romantiques, a new album, Terra Incognita (produced by the Mars Volta’s Omar Rodriguez-Lopez) and the same fiery, swaggering stage presence. See for yourself when Juliette Lewis (above, doing “Hard Lovin’ Woman” for Rolling Stone) plays Music Hall of Williamsburg on Saturday.
Grow a Pair: Win Free Tickets to See Crystal Castles on 8/21
August 17th, 2010
Looking for something fun and free to do on Saturday night? Then try to spend it with the Canadian electronica duo Crystal Castles. They play Terminal 5 this Saturday, and The House List is giving away two tickets. Want to go? Then try to Grow a Pair. Come on, you know you want to. Just fill out the form below, listing your name, e-mail address, which show you’re trying to win tickets to (Crystal Castles, 8/21) and a brief message explaining what you love so much about our neighbors to the North. Eddie Bruiser, an unabashed McKenzie Brothers fan, will notify the winner by Friday. Good luck.
Dr. Dog – The Beach at Governors Island – August 15, 2010
August 16th, 2010
Photos courtesy of Charles Steinberg
