The Phenomenal Handclap Band Played Santos

Kenya stopped by The Phenomenal Handclap Band show at Santos last week.
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The Phenomenal Handclap Band
Record Release @ Santos Party House
6/25/09

Cluster fuck at the door over RSVP reduce priced admission vs. actual free comps aside - added to the one hour delay on the door opening - getting in was worth the wait. First time at Santos. But when I saw the Greek columns, neon lighting and heard the techno beat thumping out of the sound system, I thought I'd walked into the wrong place. It was interesting. I half expected people to be handing out glow sticks and blowing bubbles. But the place was filled with preppies and hipster kids. Sort of good-naturedly bumping their heads along in time and tapping their Chuck-clad feet.

We all knew by then, of course that this was the day a legend died and I was half expecting an all night MJ tribute via mixed and mashed Jackson classics. What I got was an eclectic combination of dance beat boogie I'd never heard mixed in such a way I didn't quite know how to respond to. Featured DJs Tim Sweeney, Mike Simonetti, Tim Love Lee, Smallchange, and Amir were responsible for this. One of them spun "The Way You Make Me Feel" and that got the crowd jumping and singing.

Well, after what seemed like five hours to me, TPHB finally emerged from behind a black curtain engulfed in a modest cloud of smoke. Dressed to the nines in hippie-hipster garb complete with tambourines, long hair and bell bottoms - they got right down to it. The set was phenomenal, yeah. The sound was fantastic. Santos has wonderful acoustics in that place. Keyboard, bass, guitar, drums - put through the paces. Solos out of this world like you couldn't believe. How cliche and silly would it be for me to say I wanted it to be Woodstock in there? They were the perfect blend of dance rock, funk, soul and disco. Some slow, some earth-shatteringly fast paced, they plowed through jams like "Testimony" "Baby" and "15 to 20".

The band called for a moment of silence for Michael, which would have been a complete respectful success if some asshat hadn't shouted "Fuck Michael Jackson" into it. The offender was hissed into submission and the show went on.

The actual complete make-up of TPHB is something like 20+ with contributions on the album being made by members of rock ensembles the likes of TV On The Radio, Mooney Suzuki, and The Dap Kings, to name a few. The self titled debut album is chock full of funk meets psychedelic rock cuts like "You'll Disappear" and "All of the Above". The band is currently on tour in the UK, which include a number of popular festivals such as Wireless, O2 and Latitude. The Brits will probably eat it up because they love anything different (read: refreshing) from that post punk brit rock they're used to over there.

Cheers and good luck to The Phenomenal Handclap Band.

Tonight: Overbored Fundraiser w/ Team Robes, Ninjasonik, Boogie Boarder, & More

I'm moving today so you'll have to hit this one without me. Nonetheless this is certain to be one hell of a party. A bunch of good bands plus food, booze, and ice cream.

Tonight: Wild Yaks; Radio America & Dynasty Electric Loft Party

The original plan for tonight was another installment on The Non-Worker Party. But then that went to shit and we had to cancel. Then I heard that So So Glos and Wild Yaks were playing at The Jungle so that made me less bummed about having to cancel our party because those are pretty much my two favorite Brooklyn bands. Then I got word that, while that party is still happening, So So Glos and Wild Yaks won't be playing. FUCK! Then Tom tells me the loft party Radio America was supposed to play last Friday got moved to this Friday. So cool, there's a party tonight! It's at the Dynasty Electric loft.

So here's the plan tonight. First I'm heading to the Wild Yaks show on Hope. I hear that The Goddamn Rattlesnake might be playing too. Then I'm heading over to the Newsonic Loft for Radio America and Dynasty Electric. Also notable tonight is show at Shea Stadium that my homeboy Fanelli from The Shapes put together. There's going to be a NinjaSonik show at Europa and a Bikes In The Kitchen party at The Jungle (that's the one Yaks and Glos were supposed to play).

RIP: Michael, Ed, & Farrah

What a bummer these last few days have been. First Ed McMahon takes the bus and then Farrah. Just when you think it can't get any worse Michael Jackson suddenly drops dead. WTF? All deaths are tragic but at least these three made the most of their time here and will be remembered for a long time.

Anyone else kinda creeped out by the fact that Farrah, a 70's TV star, died just before one of the all-time legendary musicians, Michael Jackson? Sound familiar? Ritter/Cash - 70's TV star, legendary musician. Creepy.

RIP

Free Virgin Fest This Year

Last year I got some free passes to Virgin Fest so I took the bus down to Baltimore and checked it out. Despite my general disdain for festivals I have to say that Virgin was pretty fun. Great bands, excellent and varied food choices, big beers, and the best part was it was relatively cheap - aside from the ticket. Well this year that all changes because they're letting everyone in for free. You still need to grab a no fee ticket from TicketMaster on July 26th, 10AM.

The ticketing page is pretty confusing and I'm not sure why anyone would spend $30 on a free ticket and a shitty Virgin Fest t-shirt, but it's an option. My guess is they dedicated a bunch of tickets to each tier so when the free tickets run out you'll be forced to buy a dumb t-shirt package to get in. Still though, $30 ain't too bad for a festival.

On that note, the bands playing are not nearly as good as last time (NIN, STP, Kanye, Stooges). The free show features Blink-182, Weezer, Franz Ferdinand, Public Enemy, Jet, The Bravery, etc. Lots of bands people used to give a shit about but not so much these days. But I guess we can't complain about free, huh? There are noticeably less bands listed this year so I'm guessing they nixed the second stage, unless they're still adding to the bill.

Link:
Virgin Mobile FreeFest

Burger King Wants To Fuck Your Mouth With Seven Inches Of Meat

Burger King is apparently letting 15-year old stoners run their ad campaigns these days. I wonder if they'll be running these ads in Kansas?

Link:
Gawker

MP3:
Caught With The Meat In Your Mouth - Dead Boys (via TopekaDIY)

**Update: Be sure to check out BestWeekEver for their 10 slogans less dirty then "It'll Blow Your Mind Away", including "100% Pure Dickmeat".

Fun with PhotoShop

New Releases: Alexisonfire, Deer Tick, Mars Volta

Well, today is a pretty good day for music. Usually I don't even pay attention to what new albums come out but there's actually more then one worth getting this time.

I'm most excited to hear the new Alexisonfire album although the new songs on MySpace are a bit disappointing. For some reason George now sounds like Wade, which isn't really a good thing. Luckily, Dallas still has the best voice in music and more or less saves any songs that are otherwise boring. Again though, I don't have the album yet, nor have I heard it, so I'm not judging just yet.

Deer Tick is also releasing a new album. Honestly I thought this album came out months ago. The press releases for it started flowing in back in like March so I just assumed it was out. Either way Deer Tick is fucking awesome so pick it up.

Last but - well maybe, least is Mars Volta. All the talk about an At The Drive-In reunion has kinda made people forget that Mars Volta has a new album. Well, this one I have heard and it's good, not great, but worth getting for sure. It's nothing out of the ordinary for MV but it's a bit more mellow which frankly I'm happy about, I can do without all the proggy guitar shit.

The Last Rated-X Ever

On Saturday I hosted the last Rated-X ever. I used to be a regular in the Scenic days in the East Village. When it moved to Luke & Leroy and then Don Hill's I stopped going as often but when I did I always had a great time. The last Rated-X was one of the best in recent memory. I saw a whole bunch of people who I haven't seen in awhile. It was great to catch up and see familiar faces. To say Rated-X went out with a bang would be an understatement.

Word is that there will still be an occasional Rated-X but I'm not sure where, hopefully it moves back to the East side. Anyway, I'll stop right here because Igor from Driven By Boredom posted some pics and a great little write up about the night.

Link:
DBB, Rated-X

Theo & Michael T

Tonight: I'm Hosting The Last Rated-X Ever; Wild Yaks @ Union Pool

I start the night at Union Pool for a Wild Yaks show. They're headlining so go and show some support for our favorite Brooklyn band. After that we jump on the L and head over to Don Hill's for the last Rated-X/Panty Party ever. Somehow I ended up as one of the hosts, which is pretty cool. So there it is, Saturday is good - fuck the rain.

If you want to save a few bucks RSVP on Going for reduced admission for Rated-X

Link:
RSVP for Rated-X

Tonight: The Beets, No Bunny, & More; Bushwick Kegger

I still have not made it out to Bruar Falls yet but they've been putting some solid shows together, which ain't easy. Tonight The Beets, No Bunny, Hunx & His Punx, German Measles, and Baby Shakes are playing. Elsewhere in Brooklyn, there's some kegger at some random residence with some random bands. Now it doesn't sound so hot but those parties usually end up being the best.

The Low Anthem Played Bowery Ballroom

BSC contributor Kenya stopped by Bowery Ballroom the other day to check out The Low Anthem on Monday.
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After garnering much praise on their handmade independent release, The Low Anthem released their Nonesuch debut, Oh My God, Charlie Darwin, with new track listing and remastering by Bob Ludwig. The Rhode Island trio met at Brown and play a multitude of unusual instruments. Among the 27 on the record (recorded on Block Island) are zither, pump organ, Tibetan singing bowl, and an oil drum. They've been on tour with Ray Lamontagne, Elvis Perkins, and Josh Ritter, performed at Bonnaroo and will be at the Austin City Limits festival, among others this summer.

They started the set out by playing "Cage the Songbird". Well, they started out by offering members of the audience some left over steamed dumplings after admitting a fear of seeing empty space in front of them when they took the stage. But they came on to raucous applause and the pleasant surprise of seeing the place nearly packed. The ballroom was full of people who were obviously very comfortable with standing still, as this particular brand of gospel tinged folk encouraged swaying in place.

Low Anthem just got back from Bonnaroo. They hardly seemed fussed. Instead, they were relaxed and unhurried. In fine form, they breezed through their set of old familiar tunes, collaborations and covers at shows end with ease. It was a fantastic way to kick off the re-release of their album. Its very possible that while singing, the soul crawling out of Ben Miller's vocal chords forced my eyeballs to pop out of my head. If they've heard it, they've heard it a few times. They must be tired of the comparison. Bob. Fucking. Dylan. I feel like Bob Dylan has an academy somewhere and these are his graduates.

On stage, they were surrounded by the many tools they used to invoke Darwin and bring it to life. Each band member playing musical chairs throughout the set. They rarely made use of the drums but didn't need to. Ben Miller and Jeff Prystowsky, both classical composers, shaped and molded each tune in such a way that allowed for immense diversity in the way they recorded and performed them. Which makes for an album that is distinctive and never boring.

The show made me feel like I was at home in Arkansas drinking lemonade in the back yard and listening to the crickets and watching the fireflies dance around. The Bowery was so quiet at times during the set (save for the band's harmonies), if you closed your eyes you'd literally be somewhere else. One could see why this band was the perfect fit for Tennessee-based Bonnaroo festival. Imagine being in a tent and letting "To Ohio" wash over you.

Timid, down-to-earth, talented and gracious, the members of Low Anthem deserve their critical acclaim. They showed the audience - mostly veteran fans who'd been with the band since the first imaginings of some of Darwin's tracks - their appreciation.

Tonight: Free Show, Team Robespierre & Cerebral Ballzy @ The Charleston

Holy fuck nuts! Yeah, that was completely necessary. You see Team Robespierre and Cerebral Ballzy are playing a free show tonight at The Charleston on Bedford. There are a few factors that will make this one for the books.

1) Team Robes & Ballzy! I mean, they're two of the craziest live bands in Brooklyn.
2) The Charleston is one of the last bastions of punk rock in Williamsburg. All the old crazies still frequent this joint. Add two high energy bands to that and you have a party.
3) It starts LATE, like 11 or midnight. For a Wednesday show that's pretty crazy. This means that by the time Ballzy goes on everyone is going to be shit faced and out of control. This is good!

Team Robespierre
w/ Cerebral Ballzy
@ The Charleston (Right by the Bedford L)
11PM
FREE