Some things just aren’t meant to last, and so when Oasis ultimately ran out of brotherly love, songwriter and lead guitarist Noel Gallagher angrily went one way while singer Liam Gallagher and guitarists Gem Archer and Andy Bell went another. They added drummer Chris Sharrock to the mix and Beady Eye (above, performing “Bring the Light” for Live from Abbey Road) was formed in 2009. The group put out its first album, Different Gear, Still Speeding, earlier this year, and you can experience their swirling brand of rock and roll in person when they come to Terminal 5 on Friday.
The name Ill Fits seems appropriate for a band with such disparate parts—Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson, Will Berman (of MGMT), Don Devore (of Amazing Baby) and Johnny Hunt (of Foreign Islands)—until you actually hear the five-piece play. The group first came together for some late-night jam sessions, mainly doing covers, but with new material like “Blood & Devotion” (played, above, for Indmusic), it’s easy to see that these guys actually fit together pretty well. See them tomorrow night at Mercury Lounge.
Adam Gardner (vocals and multiple instruments), Ryan Miller (vocals and multiple instruments) and Brian Rosenworcel (drums) met at orientation in August of 1991 prior to their freshman year at Tufts University. Within a couple of months they were playing live as a trio. Two albums followed, but it was Guster’s third disc, Lost and Gone Forever, that gained the band some considerable attention. Since then, Luke Reynolds (multiple instruments and backing vocals) has joined the band and the now four-piece continues to play high-octane live shows filled with upbeat music, which you can experience in person when Guster (above, performing “Do You Love Me” for WXPK FM 107.1 the Peak)—along with Brett Dennen—plays The Wellmont Theatre on Friday and Saturday.
Growing up without a TV on the Lower East Side gave Jeffrey Lewis an early appreciation of music and comic books. And to this day, he’s still active in both. (In fact Lewis, who did his college thesis on the much-lauded ’80s series Watchmen, has his very own comic book, Fuff.) He began writing and performing his own songs as part of the antifolk scene at the Fort at the Sidewalk Café, among the likes of the Moldy Peaches. In perhaps a nod to his interest in both the Grateful Dead and Nirvana, Lewis began deftly mixing folk sensibilities with distorted garage rock. He got out the word by distributing cassettes of his recorded music along with his own comic books. And eventually his sound earned him a deal with London-based Rough Trade Records. The humorous singer-songwriter’s sixth album, A Turn in the Dream-Songs, came out last month, and when Lewis performs live, his shows will often include videos and illustrations to accompany some of the songs. You can see for yourself when Jeffrey Lewis & Junkyard (above, doing “If Life Exists” and “Whistle Past the Graveyard”)—and Diane Cluck and Moldy Peaches guitarist Toby Goodshank—play Mercury Lounge on Friday.
Let’s just say it: Robert Randolph is a virtuoso on the pedal steel guitar. And he and his Family Band have been bringing an exuberant mix of rock, funk, blues, gospel and soul to the masses since 2000. Prior to that many of them only played in church, but once the word got out about this group’s electric shows and joyful sound, led by Randolph’s sacred steel, momentum quickly built. If you’ve ever been to one of their shows, you already know they’re filled with smiles and happy feet. And if you haven’t, you’re in for a real treat because Robert Randolph and the Family Band (above, covering “Voodoo Chile” at the North Sea Jazz Festival in the Netherlands) play Brooklyn Bowl tonight, tomorrow, Friday and Saturday. If you like to have fun, make sure to buy a ticket in advance.
Tinariwen, a collective of musicians, singers and songwriters, was founded in 1979. The original members met in Libyan refugee camps, but the band has been based in Mali since the ’90s. While their sound is different than most that comes from the region—Tinariwen uses drums and electric guitars—as you can imagine, much of the group’s music focuses on exile, politics and repression. Ironically, the 2001 album The Radio Tisdas Sessions was banned in Mali but it earned the band recognition outside the Sahara region for the first time. Their ensuing appearances at international music festivals gained them even more attention. But if you’ve never heard of Tinariwen (above, performing “Amassakoul ’n’ Tenere” and “Chet Boghassa” on Later … with Jools Holland), that’s OK because you can see them on Saturday at Webster Hall.
Four guys in Sacramento, Calif., met one another and began trading songs they’d recorded on their own. They had a lot in common and decided to perform together—like a gang of aliens, or Ganglians. The four-piece deftly mashes together noise rock and blissful tones and has already released two albums, including this year’s Still Living. Check them out, above, playing “Lost Words.”
Samantha Urbani had never been in a band, but she’d always been writing songs with a dreamy dance vibe. So one day she gathered four other multi-instrumentalists just to jam and less than a week later they played their first show. The band, Friends (below, doing “Friend Crush”), began to steadily appear at different Bushwick venues and now they—and Ganglians—play the late show at Mercury Lounge on Saturday night.
For a time, Lykke Li wanted to be a dancer, but while she’d always yearned to be onstage, she ultimately decided dancing wasn’t creative enough and that it involved too much time in a gym/studio. Her path to becoming a singer-songwriter couldn’t have been hurt by the fact that her dad, a multi-instrumentalist, plays world music. Plus, Li’s got eclectic tastes: “I’ve been into everything from Edith Piaf to Joe Strummer to the Velvet Underground to Suicide to A Tribe Called Quest to African music.” And, furthermore, it’s the music that she listens to that shapes her own songs. Her first EP came out in 2007, earning her raves and an Artist to Watch label from Stereogum. An LP filled with electropop and keen hooks, Youth Novels, followed the next year. Wounded Rhymes, recorded in L.A., was released this year and the disc has earned Lykke Li (above, playing “Get Some” on Later … with Jools Holland) even more attention. See her tomorrow night at The Wellmont Theatre.
The indie-pop ensemble Los Campesinos! seems to not take much very seriously, except for their music, which is probably the best way to keep such a sizable extended-band family together while touring overseas. The eight members met at school in Wales and have since made multiple lineup changes over the course of making four official albums, including Hello Sadness, out today. Gareth Campesinos! (you have to love a band whose members change their last names) leads the group with overwhelming energy, bouncing across the stage, going from half chanting, half screaming to whispering skewed pop-culture-referenced lyrics like “I feel like we need more post-coital and less post-rock/ Feels like the buildup takes forever and you never get me off.” Find out how overwhelming the energy gets and how over-the-top infectious the band’s live energy is when Los Campesinos! (above, performing “Romance Is Boring” and “There Are Listed Buildings” for rockfeedback.com) play Music Hall of Williamsburg tomorrow and Thursday. —Jason Dean
Some bands hatch fully formed, some peak early and others steadily improve, like a fine wine. Andy Hull (vocals and rhythm guitar) started writing songs in high school in suburban Atlanta. And while the tunes might not have been fully formed, he began to flesh them out with friends Jonathan Corley (bass) and Jeremiah Edmond (drums). Soon enough, Manchester Orchestra was born. (The name comes from the English city that begat the likes of Oasis, Joy Division and the Smiths.) With Tim Very replacing Edmond and Chris Freeman (keys) and Robert McDowell (lead guitar) joining, the band eventually became a five-piece. The group’s first full-length, I’m Like a Virgin Losing a Child, came out in 2006. And with the release of each successive EP and a LP, including this year’s Simple Math, the band’s storytelling has gotten tighter and its sound has improved. And you can see Manchester Orchestra (above, playing “Virgin” on Late Show with David Letterman) on Sunday at The Wellmont Theatre. Do yourself a favor and don’t miss the opener, White Denim.
Lo-fi singer-songwriter-guitarist Kurt Vile, began collaborating with Adam Granduciel as the War on Drugs in 2003. They self-released an EP in 2005 and soon after the band became a full-time gig. But Vile had other things he wanted to say musically, so he decided to go it alone and put out Constant Hitmaker, a collection of home recordings, in 2009. The disc was well received and his music was compared to Bruce Springsteen’s. Not bad, right? Well since then the Philly musician has put out other stellar albums, including this year’s Smoke Ring for My Halo, featuring pounding drums and plenty of guitars. Vile (above, performing “Jesus Fever”) has been prolific in 2011. In fact a new EP, So Outta Reach, came out just two days ago. And you can celebrate its release when Vile, backed by the Violators, plays Webster Hall tomorrow night.
Troy Andrews is a trombone player from way back. He graduated from the same New Orleans high school music program as Branford and Wynton Marsalis and Harry Connick Jr. Having grown up in a musical family in NOLA’s Treme neighborhood, Andrews, despite only being 25, has already been playing the trombone for 20 years. Getting his start at such a young age earned him the name Trombone Shorty. But it’s Andrews’ talent, not his age (or his height), that’s the reason Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue (above, playing “Do to Me” on Later … with Jools Holland) have toured the world, playing an exhilarating combination of funk, hip-hop, jazz and rock. The band plays Terminal 5 on Friday. But make sure you arrive in time to see the opener, another New Orleans brass-rock outfit, Bonerama (below, doing “The Ocean”), that specializes in New Orleans music and quality classic-rock covers.
The psychedelic band Wooden Shjips consists of singer-guitarist Erik “Ripley” Johnson, drummer Omar Ahsanuddin, bassist-trumpeter Dusty Jermier and organist Nash Whalen. The quartet put out its first LP, the space-rock Wooden Shjips in 2007. Since then, the band has tightened its sound through touring and gone on to release a bunch of EPs, singles and a couple of albums, including this year’s West. And Wooden Shjips (above, performing “Home” for KXLU FM) plays Music Hall of Williamsburg tomorrow night, which works out great because the best way to experience this band is in person. Do it.
Like many before him, Colin Caulfield got his start on the Internet. While still in college, he posted a wide range of covers on YouTube and people began to take notice. One of them was Deerhunter frontman Bradford Cox, who liked Caulfield’s version of “Rainwater Cassette Exchange” better than his own band’s. Eventually Caulfield signed with Frenchkiss Records and last year released the heartfelt EP,Boy, under the name Young Man. The band’s first LP, Ideas of Distance, followed this year. Originally a drummer, Caulfield now sings and plays guitar and performs live with a full band, which you can see when Young Man (above, doing “Just a Growin’” for Daytrotter) plays the early show tomorrow night at Mercury Lounge.
Before there were any distorted-guitar alternative bands in the ’90s—Nirvana included (Kurt Cobain was a notable fan)—there was a post-hardcore noise-rock quintet out of Austin, Texas, called Scratch Acid. Steve Anderson (vocals), Brett Bradford (guitar), David Wm. Sims (guitar), Rey Washam (drums) and David Yow (bass) began playing together in 1982. But something about the lineup was off, so Anderson left the band, Yow became the singer and Sims took over bass duties. Scratch Acid’s self-titled debut EP came out in 1984. The group put out two more albums over the next three years and then broke up in 1987. (Another disc, The Greatest Gift, a compilation album was released in 1991.) Eventually the four members went their separate ways and worked with other bands, including Ministry and the Jesus Lizard. And that would’ve been the end, but the group was invited to be a part of Touch and Go Records’ 25th anniversary and ended up playing several reunion shows in 2006. And that would’ve been the end, but when Jeff Mangum, who’s made a recent comeback of his own, was ask to curate a UK festival, he invited Scratch Acid. Not wanting to just play one show, the band (above, playing “She Said” in 2006) decided to tour across North America, and you can see them on Monday night at Webster Hall.
