Brooklyn-based Bear in Heaven kicked off the Twin Sister leg of their summer tour last night at T.T. the Bear's in Cambridge. Mountain Man (neither mountains nor men!) opened.
1
Results tagged “livemusic”
Late last week, Lady Gaga slammed the TD Garden with two back to back shows on her epically long Monster Ball Tour. In typical Gaga form, the pop diva alternated between humble BFF cooing, "It's okay to feel insecure," and unbridled rockstar glory--imagine the torrent of applause enveloping her as she froze, head cocked, at the edge of the stage for one, then two silent minutes.
After cancelling a Middle East show with Little Boots, Canadian electro-pop outfit Dragonette are coming through for their Boston fans. They will hit the stage Tuesday April 27th at Great Scott (buy tickets).
Musician Owen Pallett (whom we interviewed about his latest work last week) won some major points with his audience last Tuesday at the Institute of Contemporary Art by dismissing the fact that Pitchfork recently gave his newest album, Heartland, an 8.6 rating.
After seeing Ted Leo again this weekend, our faith in live music was rekindled by a combination of bee pinatas and vegan sweat (not scones). We bring you a few music picks for the week in hopes of getting you back in the show swing yourself. In addition to the indie rock nonsense below, the BSO brings you Ligeti, Shostakovich and Tchaikovsky all week.
Concert review by guest contributor Anthony Baldor
Take Joanna Newsom's chirp-studded melodies and combine it with Björk's dark, cyclical chords and you'll have a close approximation of Ólöf Arnalds, the Icelandic vocalist who recently joined Björk's record label, and played at T.T. the Bear's Friday night.
Oscillating between absorbed, head-down humility and wide-eyed, costumed pageantry (picture a robot suit with voice-processing software) hip hop artist RJD2 played a sold-out show to adoring fans at the Paradise last night.
-thumb-76x76-467149.jpg)
-thumb-76x76-467150.jpg)
-thumb-76x76-467152.jpg)
The floor and balconies were spilling over with fans at the House of Blues this past Sunday, December 13, all excited to listen to young musical sensations The Arctic Monkeys. The sold-out show packed in 2400 fan, literally of “all ages”—from the barely pubescent (accompanied by parents), to older folks (possibly parents) there without kids, to laid-back 20-somethings of the band's own demographic. All were giddy with anticipation for the Brits from Sheffield as the lights went down and the spot lights came on.
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.
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.
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...