I’ll freely admit to my obsessive-compulsive tendencies, and their manifestation in my ticket purchasing habits are only further enabled by Tourfilter and my proximity to music venues in Central Square, Cambridge, like TT the Bear’s Place and the Middle East. But I seem to have taken them to their logical extreme when I went to buy Sloan tickets for their June 18th show – check out the numbers in the upper-right corners.
Harvard Square’s Mayfair was delayed to this Sunday, May 11th, because of the nasty weather in Cambridge last weekend. So you didn’t miss your chance to see Hallelujah the Hills or Girls Guns and Glory (4 pm and 3 pm, respectively, on the main stage). Lots more music (Action Verbs gets the z=z ‘best name’ prize) as well as dance, film, kids’ stuff, and other goodies. Full details, including set times, here.
[Middle East Downstairs, Cambridge, MA; April 21, 2008]
I heart Dan Bejar. Backed by an able four-piece (plus his own guitar), he put on a relatively brief but typically intense show at the Middle East last night. Much as I liked Trouble in Dreams, I really enjoy the way Bejar’s voice sounds when it is freed of the studio – his albums are so carefully produced that it’s more than usually appealing to hear the sonic variations of the live performance. While I was a little sad not to hear some of my faves from Destroyer’s Rubies (such as “European Oils”), it was a good show overall.
Previously: Got a question for Dan Bejar?; Release notes: Destroyer, Trouble in Dreams
[Middle East Downstairs, Cambridge, MA; April 16, 2008]
Ezra Furman and his band, the Harpoons, tie together down-home style tunes with angst-y, sarcastic Midwesterner lyrics. They performed an energetic 45-minute set at the Middle East on Wednesday night, opening for Cloud Cult. Give them a few more months and the concerts will be singalongs, I think – I’m sure I’m not the only person who bought the CD and has started learning the witty lyrics. I also suspect that twenty-year-old Furman – possessed as he is of a shy charisma – will be the target of many smitten fourteen-year-old girls (and boys) in the near future. (It’s not captured very well in my photo, I admit, but try this promo photo). And besides, how could you not like a band that passes out York peppermint patties to all their loyal fans?
MP3: Ezra Furman and the Harpoons – My Soul Has Escaped My Body
Remember all those times you heard that a band you like played in your town only after the concert? Tourfilter is what you use to make sure this doesn’t happen.
All you do is register, and then enter a list of artists you want to see. Tourfilter scrapes online concert listings for your city and, when it finds a match to a band on your list, sends you an e-mail with the information. The website is reminiscent of Craigslist, with a minimalist aesthetic and a simple, user-friendly interface. That’s pretty much it. It’s brilliant.
For a slightly less minimalist experience, check out the Tourfilter night at River Gods, in Cambridge, MA. Chris and his guest DJs play songs from artists that are going to be performing in the area soon. While you are listening to the songs (and snarfing River Gods’ wonderful fries with aioli), you can text for details on the artist, date and venue, and sometimes other fun info too.
Next Tourfilter night at River Gods: Thursday, April 17th, 9 pm (normally the third Thursday of the month)
Tourfilter on Facebook (login required)
[Middle East Upstairs, Cambridge, MA; March 22, 2008]
Montreal-based Miracle Fortress played a sold-out show at the Middle East Upstairs, opening for fellow Canadian scenesters The Most Serene Republic. Based on their single ‘Hold Your Secrets to Your Heart,’ I expected them to be quite a bit more ethereal than they were, especially given their fairly dreamy start – frontman Graham Van Pelt began with a solo piece. Instead, driven by Jordan Robson-Cramer’s propulsive drumming, they turned out to rock quite a bit. Their set was mostly drawn from their first full-length release, Five Roses (which, if you grew up in Canada, doesn’t evoke music so much as it does baking), as well as some new material.
[embedded YouTube video; if you can’t see it, click here]
[Middle East Upstairs, Cambridge, MA; March 21, 2008]
I wrote about Holy Fuck the last time I saw them – they are utterly phenomenal live. You can look at the clips on YouTube, but they don’t really capture the experience (that’s why that’s a video above, not a live clip). Unfortunately, they are wrapping up their North American tour – but if you happen to live in the UK or Ireland, you should definitely try to catch one of their shows.
And I’ve decided that Rachael Ray can’t be all bad if she’s a fan.
Boston-area’s The Main Drag played last night with Freezepop and The Information and they were phenomenal (actually, all the bands were terrific). They first impinged on my consciousness in late 2006, when they won the Salon Song Search with “A Jagged Gorgeous Winter.” (Boston was well represented, with another local band, Hallelujah the Hills, taking third place). The Main Drag’s second album, Yours As Fast As Mine, came out last year – I can only presume that they spent their $5000 in contest money wisely. ‘Jagged’ and ‘gorgeous’ are both excellent descriptors of their string-laden songs.
[Middle East Upstairs, Cambridge MA; February 29, 2008]
Toronto-based trio Born Ruffians played at the Middle East Upstairs on Friday night. They were astonishingly tight, especially considering that it was only the second night of their tour. Luke LaLonde’s jagged, warbling vocals were ably backed by both bassist Mitch DeRosier and Steve Hamelin, the drummer, leading to an almost 50s vibe, with barbershop-quartet-style harmonies. The cheerful-sounding music belies dismal lyrics, however, like these from “Badonkadonkey”: The disappearing kindness/that I show for you, I know/the loving that you gave to me/was wasted too. Their new album, Red, Yellow and Blue, is slated for release on on Tuesday, March 4th (I nabbed a physical CD – complete with lyrics sheet – at their concert).
Link to MP3 download page: Born Ruffians – Badonkadonkey
Dan Deacon brought his Ultimate Reality Tour to MassArt on Thursday night, for a pretty low-key show, as this signage on a nearby bus shelter sugests. The video art was fun, especially for aficionados of Arnold Schwarzenegger movies (we clocked all three Terminators, Predator, Total Recall, Junior, and Kindergarten Cop). Unfortunately, Deacon’s headlining gig was a bit of a disappointment; the sound wasn’t amazing, and it was cut short by a Silly String-confiscating campus cop. The fun surprise of the night were openers Big Digits, whose dance-oriented electro filled the Pozen Auditorium with a pulsating mass of sweaty art-school kids.
Incidentally, Dan Deacon’s favourite blue concert shirt is starting to look pretty threadbare; if anyone knows where to get another teal shirt with a psychedelic colourburst of tropical birds on the front, maybe he’d be willing to trade in the original.
[Roxy, Boston, MA; December 1, 2007]
Ted Leo and the Pharmacists are amazingly fun live, and I’ve seen them several times in the last year or so. Ted Leo writes and sings tightly constructed songs, with literate and interesting lyrics, and the Pharmacists are an excellent set of musicians. But the real joy of a Ted Leo concert is in the way he talks to and interacts with the crowd. On Saturday night at the Roxy, he announced, “That was the most inarticulate forty-five seconds of heckling I’ve ever heard,” and proceeded to do his impression of what it sounded like from the stage, acting out the competing hecklers in Charlie-Brown-grownups-style voices. It was pointed and hilarious. I’ll keep an eye out for audio or video from the Saturday show, but in the meantime, here’s a video clip from Ted Leo’s previous Boston concert, in which he tells a story about visiting his hometown.
MP3: Ted Leo and the Pharmacists – Where Have All the Rude Boys Gone?
[Middle East Upstairs, Cambridge, MA; November 29, 2007]
Holy Fuck lived up to their name at their show last night. Their music is like the bastard lovechild of Battles and Dan Deacon – while less virtuosic than the former and less straight-out batshit than the latter, they possess a tremendous anarcho-punk energy. And they were clearly really, really having fun onstage. Plus they were handing out free 7″ singles – a split disc, with a Celebration remix of their song “Frenchy’s” on one side, and their remix of a Celebration song on the other. If you’re not lucky enough to catch their act and pick up your own copy of the vinyl at one of their shows, you can download both MP3s here.
Image: Holy Fuck in Philadelphia PA, May 2007. Photo by Oliver J. Lopena, reposted here under its Creative Commons license.
[Great Scott, Allston, MA; November 15, 2007]
The Pipettes are my guilty pleasure. They sing these sweet, catchy songs that almost exclusively about, as they freely admit, love and dancing. And they are this total retro throwback to the girl groups of the 60s, which I’m not particularly into. But somehow, they manage to produce wonderfully infectious indie-pop songs that I love. And, not surprisingly, the Pipettes (with a short ‘i’ if you are from the UK, it seems, but us North American scientists definitely go with the long vowel) put on a great live show, complete with matching outfits and synchronized dance moves. Their band, Cassette, did an excellent job of backing them up, but they aren’t really the point – they were as nondescript, in their grey, British-public-school-boy vests, as the Pipettes were flamboyant – and they are barely visible on stage. With their charming lyrics and memorable tunes, the Pipettes are a nice antidote to the mopey, dark music that I normally listen to.
This MP3 is for Kate, who was curious that I knew all the lyrics to the song they described as ‘a bit naughty.’
[Great Scott, Allston, MA; November 15, 2007]
Back in the realm of the dark and mopey, the big surprise of the night was Nicole Atkins and the Sea, who opened for the Pipettes. Aside from also singing songs about love and also being a retro throwback (we decided on ‘Blondie crossed with Edith Piaf if they were performing in the 50s’), Atkins’s moody music couldn’t be much more different from the Pipettes cheery vocals. But she has a phenomenal voice and is a stunning live performer. They are scheduled to be on Conan O’Brien next week, if the writer’s strike ends – it’s worth crossing your fingers for.
[Paradise, Boston; November 12, 2007]
They absolutely rock live. You should go see them. That is all.
[Middle East Upstairs, Cambridge; November 6, 2007]
Sea Wolf played an modest little show at the Middle East Upstairs last night (no pics, sorry – there wasn’t enough stage light for my poor little camera, and I didn’t want to ruin the atmosphere by using a flash). Despite the intimate setting, they didn’t sound quite as warm live as they do on their full-length CD, Leaves in the River. Alex Church, the principal (singer, songwriter and lead guitar) rocked out quite a bit more than I expected – not quite devil-horns level, I’ll admit, but there was some rockin’, especially on “Black Dirt.” And I particularly liked the old-skool Moog-y keys of Lisa Fendelander.
[Middle East Downstairs, Cambridge; October 26, 2007]
Pansy Division totally rocked out at the Middle East Downstairs. I think they are the perfect pop-punk songwriters, and their hilarious and/or touching lyrics are just an added bonus. I was delighted to hear that they are working on a new album, and they played some new songs, including one that Jon Ginoli introduced by saying, “You have to be a certain age to write a song like this.” Someone in the audience yelled out, “Twenty-eight!” Ginoli gently disagreed with the audience member before revealing the title, “Twenty Years of Cock.” I’m really looking forward to the new album, not least because it means they will tour again soon.
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