Nude Beach at The Knitting Factory

It happened in Brooklyn: a band called Nude Beach played a show with a band called The Babies and the concert wasn't sponsored by Coppertone. What a missed opportunity! Seriously, Jack Daniels and the L Magazine were behind it and somehow some local bike builders and Transportation Alternatives were involved. Also the sort of thing which only happens in Brooklyn. And possibly Portland.

Both bands are good energetic rock bands. Nude Beach are the heavier of the two, vaguely punk but not really all that loud or imposing. They remind me of Elvis Costello and the Attractions more than anything else, a bit more 70s than a standard pop-punk band. I have to say though that their drummer was really pounding away back there. He actually knocked over one of his snares in the middle of the set ("Did you break it?" "Don't worry, it's the house kit.")

Posted: 3/7/2013 at 10:11pm     Tags: Jack Daniels  L Magazine  Nude Beach  The Knitting Factory 

Raccoon Fighter at Glasslands Gallery

Raccoon Fighter have something of a split personality. Most of the time they have a big, flashy sound with a bit of sheen. Songs like Slave Dancer and No Lover remind me of some of the more punk glam bands, say The Stooges or the New York Dolls. Obviously the band itself is not the least bit glamorous, and they're not really punk either. Their music is too much fun to be punk. It's just sort of a clean and catchy rock-n-roll style.

The thing is, they also have a distinct garage-rock style which emerges on songs like Butcherette and The Upbeat. On these songs they sound heavier, sloppier and a bit more serious. These songs stand out because they sound so different, which I suppose adds a nice bit of contrast to the set.

I wonder how a band can end up with two really distinct styles like that. Could the band have two songwriters? Could they be evolving out of their early garage style into a more confident sound? I don't know but I'm not all that concerned. If you enjoy rock music you'll like both.

Posted: 3/5/2013 at 6:31pm     Tags: Glasslands Gallery  Raccoon Fighter 

The Hollows at The Knitting Factory

Somewhere in NYC there is a band playing every variant of country, indie folk-rock, kinda-sorta-americana, neu folk, folk classic, etc. The Hollows are certainly members of that manifold musical family. They are distinctly rooted in folk and americana, have banjo and mandolin players in the band, and sing about drinking whiskey and wine. On the other hand they have a rock-n-roll side, use an electronic keyboard, and apparently drink PBR. That last one may have been the venue's fault.

They're also hard to pin down because their songs are so varied. At least four of The Hollows sang lead at some point and they sound quite different from one another. The band switched instruments a few times as well. Yes, that is their keyboardist playing guitar towards the end. He's also one of their three harmonica players. Supposedly everyone in the band is a songwriter too.

Some of those songs got the audience dancing, but mostly the women in the audience. Not sure why it happened that way and I'm not complaining. It was just a little weird that during their more energetic songs I had to dodge and weave among two dozen dancers who were spinning and swinging and having a blast, and they just happened to be almost all women. No doubt the six fellows in The Hollows are terribly concerned by how popular they are with the ladies and will work to rectify the situation posthaste!

Posted: 3/2/2013 at 1:50pm     Tags: The Hollows  The Knitting Factory 

Acid Baby Jesus at Cake Shop

Sometimes you can tell when a band is still hung over from last night. Acid Baby Jesus played the Bell House on Friday and some of them clearly hadn't recovered by Saturday. This was a sloppy, sloppy show which partly redeemed itself by getting pretty weird towards the end.

Acid Baby Jesus are one of those lo-fi γκαρ?ζ ροκ bands. Yep, they're from Greece (look for the setlist in the photos - it's in Greek) and I don't think it's too much of a stretch to call them the Greek Black Lips. They have a raw but compelling musical style which sounds a lot like the early Black Lips, crazy on-stage antics, and even a singer/bassist who looks like Jared Swilley. Even if this particular show didn't sound so great their recordings are really good.

One thing they don't seem to have yet is the reputation, at least here in the US, for wild live shows. One guy from the audience was going nuts in front of the stage during their set but that's it. Until the whole audience knows that it's okay to get nuts most of them won't do it. Of course it takes time to build up that reputation. So do me a favor: listen to their record, enjoy these photos of a band burying their bassist under a pile of mic and cymbal stands, and think about how cool this will be once everyone in the audience agrees to go temporarily insane together.

Posted: 2/24/2013 at 12:58pm     Tags: Acid Baby Jesus  Cake Shop 

Cockney Rejects at Music Hall of Williamsburg

Why do I get the feeling that my review of Cockney Rejects will be an awful lot like my review of Youth Brigade? Let's see, 30+ years as a band, two original members left (and they're brothers). They still sound good and the audience still goes nuts. I suppose that's why they were playing the same show. It was a damn good show.

Posted: 2/23/2013 at 7:48pm     Tags: Cockney Rejects  Music Hall of Williamsburg