Results tagged “livemusic”

Tomorrow night, hippie-folk rocker Mason Jennings will grace the stage at the Somerville Theater with indie songstress Anni Rossi. Shockingly, there are still tickets available, so take advantage of this opportunity. Dubbed “one of the best acoustic-based singer-songwriters you’ve never heard” by Rolling Stone, Jennings most recently released Blood of Man. On this, his eighth album, Jennings takes a new direction by incorporating electric guitar, drums, and distortion. Mason took some time while touring for a phone conversation with Bostonist, talking about our great city, his doodles, and his favorite psychic waitress. He was beyond polite, calling five minutes early and telling his sick interviewer to feel better.

It's getting down into the forties at night, the leaves are coming out, and the time has come to buy your October T pass. Yes, it's officially fall. And there's no better way to ring (or strum) it in than with local folksters The Points North, whose silken sounds range from cool autumn breezes to crunchy acorns underfoot. The band celebrates the release of its new LP, I Saw Across the Sound, with The Needy Visions and Gracious Calamity at First Church (6 Eliot St, Jamaica Plain). The show starts at 8pm, and the $8 admission fee includes a vinyl LP.

Girl in a Coma is a San Antonio–based trio who are inspired by Morrissey and have toured with Cyndi Lauper. They don't sound nearly as 80s as those influences might lead you to expect, though, incorporating more hardcore and rockabilly sounds for a unique sonic milkshake (note-shake?). The group's latest album, Trio B.C., is named for sisters Phanie and Nina Diaz's grandfather's Tejano band, and features cuts produced by Joan Jett. Nina's deep, affected voice together with Jenn Alva's bass and Phanie's drumming create a heavy yet poppy sound. Make your way to Allston on a rainy Sunday night for hot Texas tunes that will warm you up and get you moving.

As we warned yesterday, the somewhat surly singer-songwriter (sorry for the alliteration) Bill Callahan doesn't take kindly to requests. There would be no "Dress Sexy at My Funeral" last night at the Brattle, despite repeated shouts for it. (We like the song, but were mostly disappointed that Callahan never responded "I already do" to any "Dress sexy" requests. Ha! Barefoot, jeans, and button down is sexy to us, apparently. Also, Callahan's hair is getting long these days. We like it.) And an asshole "fan" who called for Callahan to hurry up his tuning—"I have to work tomorrow" is a pretty absurd thing to shout out at a Monday night concert, by the way—were greeted with "Well, you can go." (He didn't. Who would?)

Though The Brother Kite hails from the tiny state of Rhode Island, the band filled the Middle East Upstairs on Monday night with a big sound characterized by guitars, reverb, tambourine, drums, and the haunting voice of lead singer Patrick Boutwell. The band consists of Mark Howard on guitar, keyboard, and vocals; Matt Rozzero on drums and sampler; Andrea Downs on bass guitar; Jon Downs on guitar and vocals; and the aforementioned Boutwell on guitar and lead vocals. Though the band has a heavy guitar presence, plenty of other instruments balance them out, imbuing the songs with a sound that's both exuberant and sorrowful.

      

On Sunday night, the self-proclaimed “biggest midget in the game” took the stage at the Paradise (prior to its recent sale). At 5’1” Louise Harman (a.k.a. British rapper Lady Sovereign), dominated with crass, innovative lyrics in her typical vulgar yet awesome demeanor that included burping and grabbing her chest. All shapes and sizes showed out for the lyricist’s third stop on her North American tour—from Allston/Brighton hipsters to preppy young professionals to 50-something couples (one youthful-looking grandma even mouthed the lyrics to a few songs).

Bostonist had the good fortune to see Canadian blues/rock duo the Pack AD live at PA's Lounge last Wednesday. We were so floored by the experience that a) we missed our bus home to catch the last song and b) it took us a while to write about the show, but we've recovered now and are ready to relate—if we can.

Over the last year and a half, post-rock trio Izzi Creo has packed basements across Allston and Brookline. Tonight, they headline their last show at O’Brien’s Pub. They’re similar to Explosions in the Sky in the way they build instrumental movements from slow, evenly-paced arrangements to thundering climaxes. We’ve seen them move masses of half-drunk hipsters from apathetic head-bobs to full-on moshing in under three minutes, a feat NASA declared impossible after a series of controlled laboratory tests last year. Or something like that. Disappear for the night and let the reverb wash over you. Also, check back within the next few days for an interview with the band dealing with their final days and the intrigue of creative differences.

8pm, $12

Together, rock and hip-hop carry out a tumultuous life in concert with one another. No doubt, hip-hop was born from the Jamaican-influenced style of mixing break-beats - in this case, of funk tracks rather than reggae—in a live setting so the electric-stringed instrumentals could keep a party raging all night. Although the greater umbrella of rock music's influence on hip-hop is dully noted, many attempts to combine both genres have been mixed at best. Yes, there's the famous Run-DMC/Aerosmith collaboration, "Walk This Way," which proved to be a knockout. But what about Limp Bizkit? Surely the former cannot be placed on the same level as the later.

9pm, $9

8:30pm

Attention all singles! Looking for something different to do this Valentine's Day? If you don't mind the early hour, consider making the trip to the WFNX studios for The Sandbox Morning Show's "Sandbox Singles Mixer." Aside from the chance to be part of a live studio broadcast and hang out with our buddies Charlie, Fletcher, & Special Ed, you will also enjoy live music from local Marty O'Malley, catered food from Ivy, and cocktails (A drink at 7 AM? Why not?!)

Waking up to an everyday landscape purified and made strange by snow on the day after seeing DJ Spooky’s Subliminal Strings: Nature Morte musical performance was a perfect reflection of the concert itself. Starting out with a familiar, instrument-based backdrop, Spooky built an electronic scaffolding on top that both complemented the more traditional sounds and allowed them to become even more breathtaking. While built on recognizable notes and tonal systems, the conversational interchange of Spooky’s equipment and the musicians’ instruments created an uncannily attractive yet innovative performance that was perfectly echoed in the unheimliche buildings, streets, and open spaces we all saw this morning.

Fun Fun Fun Fest 2007 Recap from Super!Alright! on Vimeo. Austinist attended a town hall meeting about proposed noise ordinances that could undermine the city's future as the Live Music Capital of the World, and lamented the possible loss of Texas's only feminist bookstore. Throughout the week, they interviewed a bunch of indie fashion designers and D-I-Y websites—Etsy, Ornamental Things, 31 Corn Lane, and Aorta Designs—for the upcoming Stitch Fashion Show. They also did...

Brand Upon the Brain! will screen at the Brattle between June 29 and July 5. Check the calendar for times.

Last week was the ebay developers conference/ebay Live!, the week-long series of events for ebay developers and power sellers, took place in Boston. The usual smatterings of self-promoting conference topics were presented. Widgets and gadgets made some noise (including the new box we've embedded here showing items for sale relating to the search term "Romney") and ebay enthusiasts networked and discussed success in hawking their wares. The real news wasn't the official program ebay lined...

Holy smokes! Giant fish on the MTA, Paris Hilton in jail, then out, then in again, Al Gore, goatses, blumpkins, Matt Damon, and baby art critics! It's been a busy week across the Ist-A-Verse, and here's a smattering of what's been going on. In Gothamist's neck of the woods, they found out that many things are possible: A man caught a 40+ pound fish off the Rockaways and took it home on the subway. Graffiti...

This year will be the first ever wine event at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. A Spring Serata (serata is Italian for "evening" but sounds way fancier in Italian than English) will take place on June 7th at the ISGM. They're setting up tasting stations all over the museum for the grassy, floral, and mineral wines – don't ask us what that means, ask them: A Spring Serata also puts a unique, creative twist on...

He started snapping photos of religious icons while taking his son out for walks in the stroller near their Somerville home. Josh Michtom, an amateur photographer, public defender, and one of Bostonist's own, found the project to be addictive. His iconography of Somerville's Madonna statues (and other religious lawn ornaments) expanded his set of images into a 234 image set on Flickr, and last November the Somerville Madonna shop was born on the Internet. Note cards and 2007 calendars were the big sellers, both featuring images taken by Michtom. Rumor has it that Boutique Fabulous in Inman Square still stocks the note cards if you don't want to buy online.

After a weekend of rain where all we heard was disgruntled Bostonians complaining, because that's what we do best, about the weather we rock into the week. Miraculously the Red Sox managed to play all their games this past weekend making us furiously check the forecast for WBOS' 14th annual EarthFest coming up this weekend. For us it marks the first of many outdoor events that will happen this summer, and it's Memorial Day...

A weekend stand of winning baseball at home when the Sox take it to the Angels followed by the all day boozy spectator sport that is the Boston Marathon it's going to be a long week. Lucky for music fans there's a lot to look forward to and keep you up all night with that lovely ringing in your ears that only comes from live music.

Today the final list of Webby nominees was released. According to the press release:

Hailed as the "Oscars of the Internet" by the New York Times, The Webby Awards is the leading international awards honoring Web sites, online film and video, interactive advertising, and mobile content. The Webby Awards is presented by the International Academy of Digital Arts & Sciences, a 550-person judging academy...

Continue reading "Support the Local Internet: 2007 Webby Awards"

If you look past the fact that the Sox are back at home for their first few games at Fenway this season you'll be able to hear a greater beat on the street. As is often the case there is more good live music going on in town this week than any one person could possibly listen to. Time to clone yourself so you can scoop up a standing room ticket to watch Dice-K...

After the total lunar eclipse spiced up the night sky this past weekend we've got enough of the visuals. This week we're committed not to go see live music but to go hear live music. This week we're welcoming a few new contributors to the list, have a listen, will ya? Monday 3/5 Badly Drawn Boy It's okay to admit to liking British singer-songwriter Damon Gough, aka Badly Drawn Boy. He may write lyrics...

There's something about these little bars. They've got a lot of fight in them and they just won't give in. The Littlest Bar kept on keeping on for months after the initially announced closing date. Tir na nÓg is following suit. First it was February, now it's March. Another month's reprive has been granted and the nÓg will serve up many more pints. There will be another St. Patrick's day to celebrate before the nÓg...

Sunday. Usually, a quiet, contemplative day in the Blogosphere. But not here in the Ist-a-Verse. Nonono! Just look below and see all of the wild and crazy stuff our staffs are up to. In Austin, bands are beginning to confirm for SXSW and the rumor mill is up and running. Good thing, too, because we all know how much Austinites love live performances. Austin also found itself in the national spotlight, with Longhorn Legend...

Yesterday the fanfare that has been the opening celebration for the new ICA building in the Seaport district opened to the general public for a 12 hour free ride in the new space. The news today is that nearly 5,000 people visited the new facility over the course of the day, many of whom had positive things to say about it even after a two hour wait. The museum opened at 9 am and...

There's no good reason to be sitting at home carving pumpkins this week with all the good shows happening around the Hub. Take a moment to put down your $3 carving kit and your pumpkin to sing the pumpkin carving song as you head out to catch some live music. Oh, and if you wear your costume we won't tell. Tuesday, 10/24 Project Move with Elemental Zazen Local hip hop heroes Project Move and...

Bostonist is by no means immune to the pseudo-historical un-period pieces opening this weekend, Marie Antoinette and The Prestige, or to the less new but equally pretty Illusionist (now at our favorite theater for cheap matinees) and Camille (it's like Moulin Rouge, but with character development). But today we'd like to draw your attention to a documentary about an obscure local band called the Pixies and to the abundance of short film collections being offered...