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 

Youth Brigade at Music Hall of Williamsburg

You don't exactly write reviews of legendary punk bands like Youth Brigade. When a band which has been around for 30+ years decides to play some shows it's pretty much the same every time:

Q: Are there any original members left? A: Yes! Shawn and Mark Stern are still playing in the band.

Q: Do they actually sound good? A: Yes!

Q: Does the audience still go crazy? A: Yes!

Q: Do you care about anything else? A: No!

Okay, maybe there is one more thing to say. I don't recall ever seeing this band before. They played some new material along with all their classics and I couldn't tell the difference. That is not a bad thing.

Posted: 2/23/2013 at 4:54pm     Tags: Music Hall of Williamsburg  Youth Brigade 

Tim Fite at The Knitting Factory

It is just me or does Tim Fite kind of look like Rodney Dangerfield in that first shot? Seems fitting. Quite a few of Tim Fite's songs are hilarious or just completely ridiculous. He breaks up his set with video interludes which are also pretty funny. Oh, and he looks a bit like Curly in that first shot too.

As funny as he is at times, calling Tim Fite a musical comedian doesn't really cut it. When he puts on an acoustic guitar he does a decent impersonation of a country singer (visually and musically). Then there are his serious songs about poverty and capitalism. Some of them (notably "For-Closure") are pretty powerful. This guy isn't limited to singing either. I assume he plays the instruments on most of his songs (even if they are pre-recorded) because he shows videos during those songs of himself playing those instruments. Sometimes several copies of himself play along on different instruments. On top of that he does the (simple) animation for those video interludes, and he can waltz too. This guy can do everything!

Believe it or not Tim Fite actually had some success as a rapper back around 2001. Clearly he is not one of those people who is trapped by their early work or by thinking that he has one particular style which his work must conform to. He's definitely not trying to replicate his previous successes by creating something similar either. Instead he seems to be one of those rare artists who has interesting ideas first, then picks the right style and medium in which to express them. Catch him live if you want to see something different and new (and entertaining too!)

Posted: 2/22/2013 at 7:09pm     Tags: The Knitting Factory  Tim Fite