Central Village

Something's going on at the Cake Shop

Last night Scott and I briefly went over to Crash Mansion to try and catch a bit of Asobi Seksu in between Beans and Devendra's sets at Bowery.  Unfortunately, CM was running late, and we had to head back before the band got on.  It's too bad, cause they're amazing, but I don't think I've seen them since the first Movable Hype almost a year ago.  Oh well.  They'll be around.

Anyway, point is, I overheard bits and pieces of this conversation while at the bar over there. (waiting to get a can of Natty Light, no less!  Quite a throwback...) This guy was saying something about the Cake Shop at 9:00 on Friday.  Secret show.  He claimed basically he and the band were the only people who knew, but he was dying to tell people.  Assumed that word would get around by the time of the show anyway.

He WAS talking very loudly at a crowded bar filled with people who were in town for the sole reason of seeing live music, so maybe he was just the manager of 8-Bit or Parker & Lily (Going on at 8:45 and 9:30 at the Cake shop Friday night, respectively) hoping some idiot like me was in earshot and would spread the word to get people to the show.

I didn't really think too much of it at the time, but then I got up this morning and saw Dave post the following...

Maybe the dude was on to something.  Maybe he was telling his friend to get there by 9 or you'll have no chance of getting in.  Who knows.  Developing...

There are a million things I was supposed to do today...

So effectively, CMJ starts today for me with Devendra Banhart at Virgin Megastore at 6, followed by Brooklyn Vegan Presents: @ Tonic at 8.  Cloud Cult is one of my favorite bands in the world right now and their newest album is a strong contender for best of the year.  I don't know when exactly they go on, but get there early anyway to catch a couple comedy sets by Aziz, as well as Dave Deporis and Doveman.  I posted lots of CC MP3's a while back, but here is one more off their website from an earlier album.

Cloud Cult - Breakfast With My Shadow

Prolly gonna be tough to keep regular posts up this week since I'll be out and away from my computer for most of the time, but if there's any breaking news or noteworthy developments I come across, I'll be sure to throw something up.  I'll do a big recap when it's all over.

My CMJ Schedule

So here's my plan for the week.  More of a best case scenario rather than a strict schedule.  I'd like to make it to as much as I can, but I'm not, for example, gonna force myself to stay up till 2:45 for a band like Levy.  If I'm out and looking for something to do tho, it'll be good to know the option is available.  Click on the links below to hear the MP3 from the band (when available).  The stars beside the band's name indicate the recommended(*) and highly recommended (**) shows.  I will be updating this throughout the week.  Suggestions are welcome.

Tuesday, September 13th
Virgin Megastore
Devendra Banhart (6:00)
Tonic 8:00 (Brooklyn Vegan)
*Aziz Ansari - "The MIA Story"(video)
Dave Deportis
Doveman
**Cloud Cult - Breakfast With my Shadow

Wednesday, September 14th
Cake Shop
Hopewell - Calcutta (4:00)
Bowery Ballroom
King of France (7:30)
Pela (8:30)
*The Cribs - Hey Scenesters (9:30)
Beans with Holy Fuck (10:30)
CB's 313 Gallery
Eiffel Tower (11:15)
*R.U.O.K. - Arms Length (12:15am)
Mercury Lounge
John Vanderslice - Exodus Damage (1:00am)
Cake Shop
Two Gallants (late)

Thursday, September 15th
KEXP @ Museum of TV and Radio
**Prayers and Tears of Arthur Digby Sellers - Concerning Lessons Learned from the Aliens (10:00am)
**Cloud Cult - Million Things (2:00pm)
Pianos
*The Changes - When I Awake (3:30)
Fader House
Army/Navy (4:00)
Pianos
Split over Drapes - This is How Much (5:00)
Bowery Ballroom
The New Pornographers - Sing Me Spanish Techno (7:15)
Central Park Summerstage
**The Arcade Fire (8:55)
Scenic
*The Joggers -White Madam (10:00)
Dios (11:00)
*Tom Vek - I Aint Saying My Goodbyes (12:00am)
CB's Downstairs Lounge
*The Pale Pacific - Tied to a Million Things (12:30am)
Pianos
The Morning After Girls (1:15am)
Cake Shop
The Rakes (2:00am)
Pianos
Levy (2:45am)

Friday, September 16th
Alice Tulley Hall
The Sun (12:45pm)
Pianos
**Voxtrot - Wrecking Force (2:45)
**The Prayers and Tears of Arthur Digby Sellers - On the Occasion of a Departure (live) (3:30)
Fader House
Test-Icicles (4:40)
Tribeca Rock Club (Loose Record)
**Voxtrot  (5:00)
*Chin Up Chin Up (6:00)
Bar 13
Youth Group - Shadowland (8:00)
 Northsix
*Neon Blonde - Headlines (10:15)
169 Bar
**Smallspace - Right Here (12:00am)
SOB's
!!! (1:00am)

Saturday, September 17th
Fader House
Celebration (2:40)
Rothko
**Voxtrot (3:00)
Fader House
*We are Scientists (4:40)
Cake Shop
*The Joggers - Ziggurat Traffic (5:00)
Fader House
*Silversun Pickups (6:40)
'Suprise Guests' (7:20)
Scenic
*We Are Scientists (9:00)
Living Things (10:00)
Bowery
Rouge Wave (11:00)
**Wolf Parade - Dear Sons and Daughters of Hungry Ghosts (12:00am)
OR (Since above is sold out)
Pianos
Viva K (12:30am)
OR (Since I may miss a chunk of his set on Thursday)
Tribeca Grand
*Tom Vek (12:00am)
Mercury Lounge
The Upwelling (1:30am)
Crash Mansion (WOXY)
Amusement Parks on Fire (2:00am)
*The Cribs (3:00am)

Oh my...

Uh oh.  Bad news from The National's show in Northampton.  This is totally what I was afraid of.  Matt Berninger has a lot of pain a long of tour ahead of him. Hope the rest of it goes alright.  This is one of the best bands in America!  I urge you not to skip them if you're going to one of these upcoming shows! (via Spinachdip)

If that's the way it is...

Peace out Trey (again).  You did the right thing in the end.  Family first.  Money ain't a thing.  Blah blah blah.  Am SO excited it's back tho.  It took me almost 55 minutes into the episode to really realize I was actually watching a new OC episode.  THIS IS A BIG DEAL.  It was so good tho.  Seems like all the loose ends were more or less tied from last year.  And I'll happily take the fresh start over any lingering effects from season 2.  Check out Spinach Dip for, as with last year, what I expect to be an on point recap (once he gets around to writing it up).

Loved the song at the end.  The Engineers remix of Bloc Party's Blue Light.  Way back last November when I first got a hold of Silent Alarm, Blue Light was the first track that stuck with me (see last paragraph).  And again, out of all the songs off the new Remix album, this track is probably the smoothest.  Not that I don't enjoy most of these remixes, but the fact is that the original songs are pretty perfect as is.  Remixes can take a song in a different direction, but in the end, they will always be held up to the originals, and it's pretty tough to out do what they already had.  The Blue Light remix seems to hold it's own tho.  Have a listen.

Bloc Party - Blue Light (Engineers 'Anti-Gravity' Mix)

and for the hell of it, the breathtaking acoustic version of Plans...

Bloc Party - Plans (acoustic)

A Beautiful Mess...

So I got this Joggers CD a while ago.  Don't know them, never bothered listening, didn't really give it a second thought.  Then I saw the new three-headed Stereogum collective mention it yesterday, so I threw it on my computer and give it a shot. 

Holy shit.

At just a first listen, it may be the freshest and most exciting album I've heard in a very very long time.  I absolutely love it.  Don't even know how to describe what I'm hearing.  It sounds so sloppy and hastily thrown together, but every song comes together perfectly.  It's got a Libertines type attitude.  A less cheeky Art Brut?  I dunno.  Something like that.

I'm gonna go ahead and say it.  And I know that I haven't been with it long or anything...but this is one of the best albums I've heard this year.  I think one of the major appeals is that's it's SO close to the worst music I've ever heard, but every time it teeters on the edge, some wicked hook pulls it back.  It's perpetually dangerous like that. And it works for me, tho I can totally see people hating it.

They're in town for CMJ, playing with Tom Vek at Scenic on the 15th.  It may be tough to get down there by 10:00 to see them after Arcade Fire, but I'm gonna try my best.

I'm having a hard time picking one song off this to post, so I'll go with the album's opening track.  Jim Stereogum put up a song yesterday too. Listen and love.

The Joggers - Ziggurat Traffic

Here and There

My Uncle Dan is a journalist and he has been down in Louisiana for the last week or so covering the Hurricane aftermath.  He has two excellent pieces in this week's New Yorker.  Porch Duty is one of the most fascinating stories I've read from down there.  On the Roof is simply terrifying.  I can't even imagine...

Interpol is playing Webster Hall on Oct 2nd?  Okay.  Not sure if I get it, but I'm not complaining.  Tickets go on sale Sept 23rd, so hopefully everyone will forget about it by then and the show won't sell out in 2 seconds. (Thx BV)

That's all.  I'm very busy today.

Secret Show Speculation

So, with CMJ coming up, there are two big question marks still up there.  The "Special Guest" at Bowery on Sept. 16th will be a Saddle Creek band.  Brooklyn Vegan speculates Cursive, but for the hell of it, why not Bright Eyes?  There are no other bands on that show who really warrant a Bowery Showcase, IMO.  Is Cursive big enough for Bowery in the first place?  Let alone as an unnamed headliner?  I dont think so.

The more interesting yet less talked about mystery is the curious 'Country Egg Bandit' playing at Mercury Lounge Friday night.  Originally listed as a 'Special Guest', they are now called this.  A quick google search proves that these guys don't exist outside of CMJ.  Interesting.  Any guesses?  How about The Arcade Fire?  Sure they have to be in California the next day, but wouldn't it be fitting to have them return to the scene of where their rise began?  Especially while sharing the bill with the heir to the Pitchfork/CMJ fueled 'hype crown', Clap Your Hands Say Yeah?  They certainly wouldn't be where they are now without CMJ, so it could be seen as a thank you of sorts.

I dunno.  Something's definitely up with this for sure.  Anyone have any better ideas?
(Pic via Stereogum)

Monday Morning Emotion (Tho I'm told today isn't actually Monday...)

Over the weekend a couple of friends kept bringing up this commercial for this band called Bayside that they saw on Fuse.  Hearing nothing but this 15 second spot was enough for them to wanna go see the band at the Nokia Theatre in November open for Hawthorne Heights.  And I think they were serious...

I found this E-card on their website that more or less takes the same concept of the TV spot.  It's great.  So ridiculously over the top and emotional.  I love it.

Check it out

The intro to their website is nearly as good.  I almost wish the album hadn't come out set, so I could watch these and get pumped for the release date.

Here's the whole song from the e-card, if anybody out there shares my guilty pleasures.  That key change at the 2:50 mark just twists the knife...

Bayside - Tortures of the Damned

UPDATE: Wow.  Just realized today isn't actually Monday...making the title of my post factually incorrect.  Daily Refill sets me straight.  I JUST figured out what she meant.  3 hours later.  Oops.

...Or is it just another Holocaust-type scam?

It was very refreshing to hear Kanye say what he said last night, but I just cannot stop watching the video (via Stereogum).  High comedy.  Mike Myers' delayed deadpan "Exqueezeme?" reaction to the final comment is absolutely priceless.  The best part is that he's been though this kind of thing before...

I hear Heather Locklear was unavailable for comment...

Anyone have a video of the "Amazing Time Savers" sketch?   I remember watching this, either when it was new or on reruns.  Absolutely classic.  I'd love to see it again.  Life truly imitates art.