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A Great Saturday Bill at Mercury Lounge

February 6th, 2012

Alex Bleeker and the Freaks/La Big Vic – Mercury Lounge – February 4, 2012

La Big Vic

After a reverb-heavy swinging set from Family Portrait on Saturday night at Mercury Lounge, next up came Alex Bleeker and the Freaks, a spin-off from indie-jammers Real Estate, the Frasier to their Cheers. Bleeker, who plays bass in Real Estate but naturally moves to guitar and lead vocals in his own band, requested dim purple lights as the group tuned up with psychedelic swirls behind him. A quick-hit love song made way for a pitch-perfect Grateful Dead transition jam with two lead guitars fluttering around each other like playful birds. It was an impressive “our second team can beat your starters” stretch of music, all loose and nebulous. As the jam melted into more terrestrial roots rock, the ragged nature persisted, giving a cozy just-friends-watching-a-rehearsal feel for the crowd.

La Big Vic finished the night. Gone were the dim purples, in fact, gone was all color whatsoever. In lieu of lights, the band projected images from a laptop on a white sheet. The images were completely black and white giving the whole band in front of it a drained-of-color look. The music was a hypnotic, electronic after-midnight collection of synthesizers, violin, trumpet and guitar burying Emilie Friedland’s voice. As gray digital jellyfish swam across the back wall, the music was equally aquatic, the kind of buzz-enhancing trip-hop you might stumble upon in some early-morning subterranean club scene. —A. Stein

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Tycho Closes Out First American Tour in Brooklyn

February 6th, 2012

Tycho – Music Hall of Williamsburg – February 4, 2012

(Photo: Dan Rickershauser)

Are we living in the golden age of electronic music? If we’re not, one could make a strong argument that we’re fast approaching it. With so much innovation in all directions of the genre, it’s sometimes hard to keep up with emerging frontiers. But somewhere out there deep into the abyss of sonic creativity you’ll find Tycho. Finishing their first-ever U.S. tour with a sold-out show on Saturday night at Music Hall of Williamsburg before heading overseas, Tycho brought a set to Brooklyn that was equal parts dance music and ethereal bliss.

While Tycho is typically a one-man operation led by producer and graphic designer Scott Hansen, bassist Zac Brown and drummer Rory O’Connor joined him onstage. Not only did O’Connor’s live drums add additional punchiness to the set, but they also pushed a driving rhythm to the forefront—leaving Hansen’s space-out inducing symphony of swirling synth arpeggios, somewhat reminiscent of Boards of Canada, sitting just behind these almost trip-hop rhythms.

This aural bliss was all topped with the aesthetic backdrop projections of deserts, ocean waves, icebergs and other assorted colorful designs similar in style to Hansen’s graphic-design work. Tycho finished the set with a bass-heavy rendition of “Coastal Brake,” with low pitches so loud and drone heavy they were more felt than heard. A graphic designer who’s also a musician, ambient music you can dance to, visuals that add to the overall ambiance, bass that’s more felt than heard, electronic music that’s played with organic drums and bass guitars. Does this all sound somewhat contradictory? Such is the emerging face of electronica. —Dan Rickershauser

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Electronic Music Takes a Step Forward

February 6th, 2012

Nicolas Jaar – Music Hall of Williamsburg – February 3, 2012

(Photo: Jared Levy)

LCD Soundsystem frontman James Murphy predicted the current state of electronic dance music. On the 2002 single “Losing My Edge,” he lamented, “I’m losing my edge to the kids whose footsteps I hear when they get on the decks.” Those kids pack venues. Those kids are young—very young. Nicolas Jaar, 22, is the latest wunderkind. His 2011 album, Space Is Only Noise, introduced audiences to a unique electronic approach: the introspection of Pink Floyd and the modern dubstep of James Blake.

But Jaar is also a phenom of the dance floor. Multiple remixes and a history of international club performances point to an interest in party-making as well as headphone music. And the former was the focus of his sold-out performance at Music Hall of Williamsburg on Friday. While Jaar opened with atmospheric sounds and a gloomy visualizer to match, he eventually increased the tempo to a danceable clip. The crowd’s appreciation confirmed his commitment to Friday-night music over Sunday-night ambience.

With a firm control of pace, Jaar incorporated an improvisational element, adding keyboard flourishes and his baritone vocals. The effect was greatest when he invited collaborators Will Epstein and Dave Harrington onstage to play saxophone and guitar, respectively. On the best-of-show “Space Is Only Noise If You Can See,” Epstein’s twangy guitar skittered in great juxtaposition to Jaar’s huge bass drops. The kids are better than all right. They are the best around. —Jared Levy

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Can You Describe the Ruckus?

January 30th, 2012

Rubblebucket – The Bowery Ballroom – January 28, 2012


In between the opener and the headliner of Saturday night’s sold-out Bowery Ballroom show a woman asked us for the name of the first band. When I said, “Superhuman Happiness,” she responded, “They were really good!” I nodded in agreement: Indeed, they had just turned the room into a dance hall, blending Afrobeat with modern touches ranging from the Talking Heads to LCD Soundsystem. It was jamming horn-heavy groove music with claws, gratifying fans in the crowd and winning over plenty more.

Then the woman asked if we had ever seen Rubblebucket, the headliner. We replied that we hadn’t and she got a look in her eye. I know that look. I’ve given it to people plenty of times. It says, “You’re in for a treat and you don’t even know it.” Not many acts can put that kind of spark in someone’s eye. But later in the night—somewhere in between the crowd-surfing guest sousaphonist and the robot puppets (or puppet robots?) dancing through the arms-in-the-air crowd while the band stretched out a jam that had begun with a whiplash version of Blondie’s “Heart of Glass”—there was no question where that look had come from because I had the same one.

Rubblebucket picked up right where Superhuman Happiness had left off, taking the organic stuff of the tribal and the electronic and burying it underground until it liquefied into pure party petrol. The music was utterly post-genre—horns, synth, guitars, harmonies—a smile-inducing point on the tangent that connects Björk and Broken Social Scene. If those in the audience were enjoying themselves to the legal limit, the band members were right there with them, amid the crowd-surfing and the confetti cannons and returning for the encore ensconced in LEDs that seemed to blink in time with the drums. By the end of the show, which included material off last year’s Omega La La and even stronger first-time-played material, not a booty was left unshaken and not an eye was left untwinkling. —A. Stein

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A Unique Talent, Just Like Everyone Else

January 30th, 2012

John Roderick – Mercury Lounge – January 28, 2012


The first time I saw John Roderick was with his full band, the Long Winters, at a now-defunct East L.A. venue back in 2008. He was in rock-star mode with long hair and a loud maroon jacket, and he never took off his sunglasses. But on Saturday night, a mellower version, perhaps a more authentic Roderick, took the stage at Mercury Lounge with an acoustic guitar, plaid shirt and horn-rimmed glasses. It ended up being more of a group-therapy session than a rock concert. He seemed to accept and embrace this, one of the most self-aware and whip-smart musicians of his generation, positioned at the edge of being an indie-rock icon and a guy, like everyone else, getting older.

Roderick came onstage, tuned his guitar and asked for requests, later admitting he had half a mind to make the entire hour-plus set all requests, but this emerged as mildly problematic in the night’s second song. After playing “Hindsight,” Roderick took another suggestion, “The Sound of Coming Down,” a song from the Long Winters’ nearly decade old When I Pretend to Fall. After the first verse and chorus, a perfect and sublime Roderick hook (“Hey, you know nobody’s chasing us”), it was clear the singer struggled with the lyrics to the second verse. When an audience member shouted the first couplet, Roderick laughed and picked up the thread. He would apologize for the misstep, but it was a perfect reflection of the evening: audience members throwing requests, help, sarcastic barbs and Roderick responding in kind—a sort of yuppie ringleader for this circus collection of liberal arts degrees, facial hair and memorized indie-rock lyrics.

The audience wanted more than the 11 acoustic versions of Long Winters songs that Roderick played. “The Commander Thinks Aloud,” which Roderick informed us was “about a spaceship crash,” produced the type of silent reverence that brought all these quippy, culturally relevant fans to the same place. It was Roderick, alone, describing the last moments of the Space Shuttle Columbia. The final chilling lyric, “The crew compartment is breaking up,” describes the fatal perils of reentry. And the moment transcended any snappy comebacks as Roderick earnestly, and somewhat awkwardly, struggled to thank everyone for coming. —Geoff Nelson

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A Voice in the Dark

January 26th, 2012

Cass McCombs – The Bowery Ballroom – January 25, 2012


The band played in relative darkness, with a screen projecting shimmering gold dots providing the only light onstage. And, against the background, they looked like backlit shadows. The figures created sound, but their performance couldn’t be seen—all the better for Cass McCombs. The reportedly elusive singer-songwriter delivered his literal and personal lyrics with as much anonymity as possible.

Camera flashes provided brief glimpses of the frontman, but on the whole, his voice came from a silhouette. He sang about creatures and passwords written on sticky notes similar to Charlie delivering secrets to his angels. The audience listened attentively for instruction and information. And, for his part, McCombs was a purveyor of both.

During such upbeat numbers as the opener, “Love Thine Enemy,” McCombs tossed off aphorisms and advice. But the tone shifted mostly to midtempo country and folk. The comfortably laid-back sound, pervasive in the current indie-music scene, sounded effortless coming from McCombs and company. It is, after all, his signature. So when they finished with the 2011 lauded single “County Line” and left the stage, the lights immediately came back on. No needs to hide once you’ve left the stage. —Jared Levy

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Caveman’s Evolution

January 23rd, 2012

Caveman – The Bowery Ballroom – January 20, 2012


Surfing an ever-growing tidal wave of buzz around debut album Coco Beware, Caveman headlined a sold-out Bowery Ballroom on Friday night, displaying musical chops and hometown pride in equal measure. “We used to come to shows here in high school,” reminisced lead singer-guitarist Matthew Iwanusa between songs. He later, in true New York City spirit, asked, “Anybody know if the Knicks won tonight?”

In addition to all the NYC shout-outs during the set, songs like “Old Friend” and “December 28th” contained references to a range of other contemporary New York City bands like Interpol, Grizzly Bear and the Walkmen. Of course, the Brooklyn quintet adds its own spin to these pedigreed musical influences, most notably the penchant for throwing in extended instrumental jams, filled with screeching distortion and hazy feedback—a loud but pleasing wall of sound, in peak form during “Vampirer.” The impressive effects the band wrings out of its guitars can be attributed in part to the unique instruments themselves, personally crafted by Jimmy Carbonetti, one of the guitarists. Just as cavemen crafted their own tools, so too does Caveman, albeit in a bit more evolved way.

The expert guitar work was enhanced by washes of dreamy synth, powerful drumming and well-crafted vocal harmonies, demonstrated on songs like “Thankful,” “Decide,” and “A Country’s King of Dreams.” Although the group was clearly humbled to be headlining the venue (“The first show we ever played was here, and now … we’re doing this,” remarked Iwanusa) Caveman’s polished, bravado-filled performance was up to the honor. —Alena Kastin

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A Highly Influential Band Returns

January 20th, 2012

Mission of Burma – Music Hall of Williamsburg – January 19, 2012


It’s sometimes interesting to imagine how today’s musical scene would be different if you removed just a few hugely influential bands from the equation. What would music look like today without Mission of Burma? From a short-lived stint in the early ’80s, Mission of Burma found a way to contort punk rock beyond the limitations of the genre, creating an entirely new one that became known as post-punk. Much like that of the Velvet Underground and the Stooges before them, Mission of Burma’s unique sound went on to forever alter the trajectory of rock. Without them, there likely would be no Sonic Youth, Pixies or Fugazi. Put simply, music would probably suck a lot more.

But to state that Mission of Burma’s best days are in the past couldn’t be further from the truth. After reuniting in 2002 the band has put out three critically acclaimed albums (with another one on the way), and they still put on one hell of a live show, bringing their relentless cerebral art-punk to wildly enthusiastic Music Hall of Williamsburg crowd last night. The post-punk veterans featured songs both old and new, powering through the noise-heavy guitar jams of “Fun World,” the punk rock sing-along friendly “This Is Not a Photograph” and the distorted wall of sound of “2wice.”

They returned for a three-song encore ending with a cover of the Dils’ “Class War” before coming back to the stage once more at the request of the hungry-for-more audience. They finished off things with “Red” and the wildly popular “Academy Fight Song.” As energetic, loud, dynamic, innovative and still (likely) as influential as ever, perhaps in 30 years we’ll be trying to imagine a world when Mission of Burma never reunited. We’re fortunate we don’t have to live in such a place. —Dan Rickershauser

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A DJ Takes the Stage

January 19th, 2012

Madlib – Music Hall of Williamsburg – January 18, 2012

(Photo: Jared Levy)

“Brooklyn, wake the fuck up,” the man repeated. He moved from the middle of the pack to the front of the stage. The demand seemed out of place. The crowd, mostly still, focused on each selection. Some brought out their iPhones to identify foreign songs. Madlib, for his part, barely noticed. The “DJ first, producer second and MC last,” literally danced to his own beat. With only a few interspersed comments and saluting gestures, Madlib created a thoughtful and eclectic mix.

Pulled from his Madlib Medicine Show imprint, the set highlighted his expansive grasp of music history. “Who knew rock was black?” he asked after a string of esoteric Nigerian tracks. The selections seemed designed for education as much as enjoyment. For perspective, “Crying” by the Edgar Broughton Band played after a muffled Busta Rhymes track. And there were at least a dozen more examples of juxtapositions.

But in the middle of his set, Madlib invited recent collaborator Freddie Gibbs to the stage. And, with his time, the Gary, Ind., rapper left an unshakable impression. Opening with the Madlib-produced track “Thuggin’,” Gibbs went on to steal a blunt from the audience and the room’s collective attention. He frequently rapped, skillfully, without a beat, and he reminded the audience of his gangster past (present?). All appeared to revere or at least respect his effort. For this show, he proved worthy of Madlib’s beats and time. —Jared Levy

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Just Passing Through

January 18th, 2012

Portugal. The Man – The Bowery Ballroom – January 17, 2012

(Photo: Gregg Greenwood)

On top of all the other things that make New York City a AAA-rated live-music town is that it’s a place you often have to go through on your way to somewhere else. So, as the guys in Portland, Ore.-based Portugal. The Man ready to cross the ocean to support the Black Keys in Europe and play some festivals and dates in Australia, they found themselves in town, and what better way to spend time here than with a couple warm-up shows? Tuesday night’s gig at The Bowery Ballroom was a free event put on by Pandora for lucky die-hards, the second event of what the Internet radio station hopes will be many to link fans with the bands they “click through” on Pandora.

As the show launched with a short spasm of instrumental jamming, it appeared that the sponsor of the night was a perfect one. The set proceeded like a Pandora station with stream-of-consciousness linking of genres and influences. The band bubbled up some straight rock, punk, reggae and plenty of are-we-on-acid psychedelia, dropping in covers of the Beatles, Oasis and Mott the Hoople’s “All the Young Dudes” while always maintaining their unique Portugal. The Man-ness. The first thirty minutes were a continuous in-your-face block of interlaced songs, tight jams, flashing lights and smoke machines. And when it seemed the energy couldn’t get any higher, the show settled into a nice groove, as the band highlighted songs from its entire catalog, with particular emphasis on the The Satanic Satanist and In the Mountain, in the Cloud albums.

Frontman John Gourley complained of rustiness: his hands ached after “not playing guitar all winter” (has winter even started yet?), and there were a few forgotten lyrics and bumpy finishes along the way. But the lucky attendees in the crowd barely noticed or seemed to care as they matched the band’s energy for a nonstop 90-minute show that felt like three hours and still plenty short. If this was just the warm-up, Portugal. The Man is undoubtedly ready to take on the world. —A. Stein

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Talent Beyond Their Years

January 12th, 2012

King Krule – Mercury Lounge – January 11, 2012

(Photo: Dan Rickershauser)

The 17-year old British phenom Archy Marshall, who performs as King Krule, is often cited for the seeming dichotomy between his appearance (lanky, fresh-faced) and his singing voice (deep, resonant, mature). While this may be a charming contradiction, there was nothing precious about King Krule’s performance at a sold-out Mercury Lounge last night—just some solid music from a band that, yes, happens to be quite young. Having only begun performing in the US a few months ago, Marshall displayed confidence with minimal bravado, focused and rarely cracking a smile.

Over the course of a concise set, the band played several numbers from King Krule’s recent self-titled EP along with older numbers (“Baby Blue,” “Greyscale”), lo-fi gems that Marshall originally recorded in his bedroom under the moniker Zoo Kid. As both Zoo Kid and King Krule, Marshall grabs influences from a range of sources, with hints of jazz, soul, sentimental ’50s rockabilly, and even hip-hop and spoken word, as demonstrated on songs like “A Lizard State.”

That song’s frenzy was countered by “Bleak Bake,” from the new EP, which found Marshall playing a jangly riff on his guitar over a subtle dub beat while affixing his eyes on the crowd in a direct, piercing stare before beginning to sing with a calm, laconic delivery. Modestly thanking us for coming out, King Krule ended the set with crowd favorites “The Noose of Jah City” and “Out Getting Ribs,” similar in their hypnotic, looping sound and bleak lyrics. Certainly no youthful optimism here, and perhaps that’s why we like it. —Alena Kastin

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Hard to Categorize but Easy to Like

January 3rd, 2012

Xray Eyeballs – Mercury Lounge – January 2, 2011


Xray Eyeballs are more than just a wall-of-sound concoction of garage low-end reverb with a carefree punk delivery, and they’ve managed to cultivate a faithful following of fans that showed up at Mercury Lounge last night, post-holiday, to play along with the band. The die-hard audience left to drown in the sea of tom-tom-rock reverb and delinquent harmony from O.J. San Felipe and Carly Rabalais, who looked the goth part that’s just one of the varied components in the band’s work. Masterminded by San Felipe less than a year ago, the ex-members of Golden Triangle have already put out a couple of singles on Hozac Records and a full-length on Kanine with another, Splendor Squalor, on the way next month.

Xray Eyeballs are getting away with overdoses of downer-slacker lullabies of the “Let’s get high” Wavves variety, but a long ways away from the sand and surf, instead filtered through the once scuzzy alleys and the bearded-lumberjack chic of Williamsburg. With heavy guitar and vocal effects nearly working against them, they managed to distill sentimental melodies out of the haze, making the act feel like a typical night; a soundtrack of substance excess and disappointment that goes back one generation to the Jesus and Mary Chain or, even further, to the psyche repetition of the Velvet Underground. Living proof that a punk attitude and crass delivery will always be in style over catchy, crafted hooks, Xray Eyeballs aren’t easily categorized, blending together that asphalt-surf reverb and the “My Boyfriend’s Back” garage reinterpretations of Hunx and his Punx’ ’50s style in their own seemingly accidental combinations. —Jason Dean

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Anarchy in the BK

January 3rd, 2012

Leftöver Crack – Music Hall of Williamsburg – January 1, 2012

(Photo: Dan Rickershauser)

New Year’s Day in New York City is a peculiar thing. After the confetti settles, the trash is removed and those with party-hard hangovers awaken to wander the streets like zombies, the city returns to its chaotic normalcy. Cue Leftöver Crack at Music Hall of Williamsburg. The NYC-based punk-rock veterans provided the perfect foil to the commercialized made-for-TV Times Square celebration that most of the world associates with New Years Eve in New York City. And there’s no better way to welcome a New Year than with a fist in the air.

There’s really no separation between Leftöver Crack, true to their egalitarian beliefs, and their audience. During the entire set, different audience members would run onstage and somersault back off into the crowd, one after another after another, like punk-rock lemmings. This kept the first few rows of the audience occupied catching—or attempting to catch—people. The rest of the crowd, and I mean the entire fucking crowd, was in a constant circle-mosh that swept up everything in its path like a tornado of human bodies. Chaotic as it sounds, Leftöver Crack provided a soundtrack that put the whole scene into its proper context.

Playing classics like “One Dead Cop,” “Born to Die,” “Gay Rude Boys Unite” and the Choking Victim cover “500 Channels,” lead singer Stza took breaks between songs to rant about everything from the BART police shooting of Oscar Grant and homophobia to police brutality and the new Muppets movie (“Disney is Tex Richman!”). His screed against private prisons was cut somewhat short, as he said, “I’m too drunk to explain this right now.” This was followed by a short impromptu rendition of Michael Jackson’s “Beat It,” which made his inability to explain the complexity of the United States’ private-prison system forgivable. The concert ended with him lying on his back onstage and guitarist Brad Logan explaining, “That’s it, you fucking killed him.” The crowd emptied to reveal several deserted shoes sacrificed to the show, the true indicator of a successful punk-rock concert. —Dan Rickershauser

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Gogol Bordello Almost Brings Down the House

January 3rd, 2012

Gogol Bordello – Terminal 5 – December 30, 2011


It’s lucky that Terminal 5 is still standing. If a Gogol Bordello show weren’t enough to turn the place into a pile of rubble, nothing will. The venue withstood more than an hour of people jumping up and down across three floors. It withstood a ruthless barrage of Gypsy punk on the eve of New Year’s Eve. It even held up against Eugene Hütz and company’s deluge of charisma. And Gogol Bordello bleeds plenty of it. It’s as if this band—hailing from Ukraine, Ecuador, China/Scotland, Russia, Ethiopia, Israel and the U.S. of A—formed as an international supergroup with punk-rock super powers designed to put a captivated rock audience under a hypnotic sing-along spell.

With the audience joining in on the very first lines of the show, “Ai ai ai ai, a-woo hoo hoo” from “Avenue B,” practically the entire show was one giant sing-along. While bandmates Pedro Erazo and Elizabeth Sun dabbled in percussion instruments and tambourines, they spent a majority of their time conducting the sold-out audience like it was another instrument, luring everyone to clap, jump, sing and lose their shit at all the appropriate moments.

Although a mere night away from New Year’s Eve, everyone came ready to party, including Hütz, who sloshed away at a bottle of red wine, swinging it back and forth during choruses and splashing the front row like a drunken Ukrainian sea captain. The show ended with a formidable five-song encore. Hütz invited the audience to an after-party elsewhere and reminded everyone that they would be playing another show at Terminal 5 the following night. The band then proceeded to barrel through one final song, “Sacred Darling.” As hard as you think you may have partied these past few days, I can guarantee this band partied harder. —Dan Rickershauser

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A Brief Look Back at 2011

January 2nd, 2012

My Top Five Favorite Shows of the Year

1. Jeff Mangum, Town Hall, October 29
I never imagined I’d get to see Jeff Mangum in concert. Neutral Milk Hotel, his iconic pysch-folk band, shut it down years ago and he disappeared with them. But this year, Mangum performed a few shows across the country and his Town Hall date was my favorite show of 2011. From the boisterous sing-along of “The King of Carrot Flowers” to the reverent silence that followed each song, it was both memorable and chilling.

2. Sharon Van Etten, Music Hall of Williamsburg, April 16
It was a rainy April night and I had little motivation to trek to Williamsburg. Luckily, I sucked it up and went. Sharon Van Etten stunned me like few other performers have this year. Her melancholy love songs, devastatingly beautiful, permanently impacted the audience. Or, at least this humble observer.

3. Deerhoof, Music Hall of Williamsburg, September 20
Deerhoof left me speechless. I struggled to write my review, because, hours afterward, adrenaline still coursed through my veins. Greg Saunier, the band’s drummer and founder, is a show within a show. His dynamic logic-defying drum play is easily worth the price of admission. I’m still trying to twist my mind around this concert.

4. Flying Lotus, The Bowery Ballroom, June 20
This year I was most excited to see Brainfeeder’s showcase at the Bowery Ballroom. The label, started by innovative producer Flying Lotus, houses some of my favorite artists, including Teebs, Thundercat and Flying Lotus himself. For his set, Flying Lotus was accompanied by Thundercat, the bass phenom whose 2011 album, The Golden Age of Apocalypse, is one not to sleep on, and jazz-keyboard prodigy Austin Peralta. The whole night was a pleasure and I look forward to Brainfeeder’s output in 2012.

5. Levon Helm Band, SummerStage, July 18
In the pouring rain, I sang “The Weight” with Levon Helm. How can you top that? —Jared Levy

My Top Five Shows When the Crowd Really Clicked with the Band

Every once in a while an audience seems to be especially dialed in a little bit extra, elevating the show.
1. Middle Brothers/Dawes/Deer Tick/Matt Vasquez, The Bowery Ballroom, March 6
2. LCD Soundsystem, Madison Square Garden, April 2
3. John Vanderslice, Mercury Lounge, May 12
4. Black Taxi and Bright Light Social Hour, Mercury Lounge, October 1
5. J. Roddy Walston and the Business, Mercury Lounge, December 1 —A. Stein

My Top Five Shows of the Year

1. Levon Helm’s Midnight Ramble with Dawes and Jimmy Vivino, December 3
With a great cast of characters onstage and in the audience, this has got to be the No. 1 night of the 365—from Dawes and Jackson Browne’s version of “Take It Easy” to Jimmy Vivino and Garth Hudson leading a Band set to Donald Fagen and Danny Louis spearheading the funkiest “Shakedown Street” I’ve ever heard. Plus, Levon Helm!

2. Middle Brother/Deer Tick/ Dawes/Matt Vasquez, Music Hall, March 5
Understandably, the frontmen from three bands don’t often team up to put out an album, but still, why don’t more bands tour like this? It couldn’t possibly have been more fun.

3. My Morning Jacket, VH1 Storytellers Taping, February 24
My friend and I had just said how happy we were to be safely seated in the second row, away from the cameras, when two women from production bounced two guys in the front row and put us in their spot, three feet from Jim James. While it was amazing to see MMJ in such an intimate space, at one point when I opened my eyes to find a camera pointed right at my face, just inches away, I became totally self-conscience, like Jack Donaghy trying to figure out how to hold a coffee cup. But eventually everything faded away, and on the beautiful “Wonderful (How I Feel)” all I could hear was James’s foot softly keeping the beat.

4. Portugal. The Man, Terminal 5, October 20
I first saw these guys play a tent at Bonnaroo several years ago, and each time since, they seem to have gained something, whether it’s an improved stage presence or another fantastic album. But it all came together during this packed CMJ show, complete with spacey jams and stellar covers.

5. Rosehill Drive, Mercury Lounge, April 23
I love loud guitar rock, so I was pretty disappointed when power-rock trio Rosehill Drive just disappeared. I hadn’t seen them in nearly two years when they just as suddenly reappeared, this time as a four-piece, but no less ready to rock. —R. Zizmor

My Top Five Favorite Bands I Saw for the First Time This Year

1. Gary Clark Jr., Mercury Lounge, December 13
2. Alabama Shakes, The Bowery Ballroom, October 20
3. The Head and the Heart, Mercury Lounge, May 17
4. Punch Brothers, The Bowery Ballroom, January 15
5. Young the Giant, IFC Crossroads House, March 17 —R.Z.

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