Concert: Benefit for Jiamini @ The Bell House // 2.24.10

Jonny Leather/Good For You's Good For Me Presents:
A Benefit For Jiamini Scholarship Fund

The Subjects
ARMS
Uninhabitable Mansions
Frances
2.24.10 @ The Bell House
149 7th Street Brooklyn, NY
Doors at 7pm
21+
$10
proceeds will be donated to The Jiamini Scholarship Fund

The Subjects
The Subjects - "Winter Vacation"
"The line I want to use to describe The Subjects is from the exasperated phone call [...]

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You gotta hear this one song. It’ll change your life, I swear: Slowdive - “Crazy For You”

Slowdive - "Crazy For You"
Some songs have the power to transfer listeners to another dimension. "Crazy For You" is an amazing psychedelic drug, able to lift you up into the clouds and carry you into space. Any sense of existing in reality is lost within the first minute. Things become hazy, colorful and beautiful, an [...]

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FEAST ON THIS Free MP3 Recap: January Edition

Every month, I'll collect all of the mp3s given away on this site into one quick post called Feast On This, giving you all one large dosage of new music to feast upon. Enjoy the January edition.
Adrienne Drake - "Lovesick Full Adults" (Bear in Heaven cover)
Oh No Ono - "The Tea Party"
ArpLine - [...]

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Your New Favorite Band: Twin Sister

Twin Sister
From: Brooklyn, NY
RIYL: The Breeders, Wye Oak, Giant Drag
Twin Sister - "Ginger"
When I met Twin Sister at a bar in Brooklyn I had no prior knowledge of their music. At that moment they were friends of friends celebrating some press from Pitchfork. Naturally interested in the band after a few shared drinks, I checked [...]

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Your New Favorite Band: Paul & The Patients

Paul & The Patients
From: Brooklyn, NY
RIYL: The Arctic Monkeys, Billy Idol, Wings
Paul & The Patients may not yet have a full length record, but look closely at their last year and you'll see a prolific songwriter in Paul Holmes. Aside from a 5 song EP released in mid 2009, Paul & The Patients have been [...]

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New Music: Adrienne Drake - “Lovesick Full Adults” (Bear in Heaven cover)

mp3: Adrienne Drake - "Lovesick Full Adults" (Bear in Heaven cover)
At last night's amazing Oh No Ono show at Union Hall (photos to come), I was talking to the guys from Bear In Heaven about the bands who are working on remixingthem, and they started talking about this crazy "Lovesick Teenagers" cover sent to them [...]

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Your New Favorite Band: Oh No Ono

From: Denmark
RIYL: Queen, Mew, Mercury Rev
mp3: Oh No Ono - "The Tea Party"
For the next 2 nights, a band by the name of Oh No Ono will be playing shows in NYC with a bunch of my absolute favorite local bands. Only recently did I become familiar with this band, but my excitement about their [...]

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New Music: ArpLine - “Travel Book”

mp3: ArpLine - "Parts Unknown"
mp3: ArpLine - "Fold Up Like a Piece of Paper"
A month ago I was trusted with an unmastered copy of one of the releases I've been looking most forward to in 2010, ArpLine's debut Travel Book. Told not to leak to anyone, I kept it to myself like it was a [...]

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You gotta hear this one song. It’ll change your life, I swear: Beulah - “Me And Jesus Don’t Talk Anymore”

Beulah - “Me And Jesus Don't Talk Anymore”
mp3: Beulah - “Me And Jesus Don't Talk Anymore”
Beulah's Yoko was and is the ultimate breakup album. It's an indie treasure that goes terribly overlooked and always finds its way into my headphones during the times when music feels most purposeful. Every minute is honest and sincere, both [...]

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Welcome Motel Motel to New York’s Music Elite

mp3: Motel Motel - "Forest" (Daytrotter Session)
I've been pretty vocal over the last couple years about my feelings towards the music of Brooklyn's Motel Motel. They're debut LP presented a very young band combining an overwhelming variety of styles to create an extremely ambitious folk rock record. Clocking in at well over an hour with [...]

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Your New Favorite Band: Malachai

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Malachai

From: Bristol, UK
RIYL: RJD2, The Kinks

Malachai - "Fading World"

Part 60s rock/part trip hop with a whole lot of other styles thrown in, Malachai's debut, The Ugly Side of Love is magical trip not unlike The Avalanches Since I Left You. Every minute seems to jump through time and space. It's not timeless so much as it is timefull.

It starts with a soulful homage to classic 70s film "The Warriors" and heads in about a million different directions over the next 12 tracks, finding its peak at the Zombies-esque "Another Sun" on which record crackle gives it a special nostalgic feel.

New Music: Bluebrain - “Ten By Ten”

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Bluebrain - "Ten By Ten"

Brooklyn's Bluebrain, a duo featuring former members of The Epochs, begins their Monday night residency at Pianos tonight (free show). I'm really digging their catchy cinematic record, Soft Power.

The full album is currently streaming for free at Spinner.com

Video: Christopher Stelling @ Union Hall // 2.3.10

Last Wednesday, I had the extreme pleasure of having Christopher Stelling perform at Union Hall as part of my February edition of my "You New Favorite Bands" showcase series. Cait Davis filmed his whole performance, which you can watch below.

Concert: Benefit for Jiamini @ The Bell House // 2.24.10

022410_bellhouse_72dpi

Jonny Leather/Good For You's Good For Me Presents:

A Benefit For Jiamini Scholarship Fund

The Subjects

ARMS

Uninhabitable Mansions

Frances

2.24.10 @ The Bell House

149 7th Street Brooklyn, NY
Doors at 7pm
21+
$10

proceeds will be donated to The Jiamini Scholarship Fund

subjects_0874

The Subjects

The Subjects - "Winter Vacation"

"The line I want to use to describe The Subjects is from the exasperated phone call scene in 'Back to Future', where Marvin Berry- wth his bloddy, bandaged playing hand - punches his cousin Chuck's phone number and says, "You know that new sound you've been looking for? Well, listen to this..."—Daytrotter

Consequence Of Sound: "... classical work with eccentric pop work that is light and fresh with just enough thud and kick to it."

"...remarkably solid..."—Magnet Magazine

arms_0008

ARMS

ARMS - "Tiger Tamer"

"Arms' music is lo-fi but lovely and very, very good. There's truly not a bad song on here. 'Kids Aflame' rocks, shudders, weeps, and smiles as you reach to hit 'play' again." —The Guardian (UK)

"[Arms] readily demonstrates a knack for the slowly building, triumphant-sounding anthem that's still a little downbeat no matter what." —AllMusic.com

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Uninhabitable Mansions

Uninhabitable Mansions - "Do You Have A Strategy"

At Bowery last Saturday, the Brooklyn art and music collective Uninhabitable Mansions opened for the Antlers and provided the packed house with abundance of talent and songcraft. Drawing members from the bands Au Revoir Simone, Clap Your Hands and Say Yeah, and the late lamented Dirty on Purpose, UM performed a thirty-five minute set of material from their excellent new release Nature Is A Taker. The songs combine elements of indie-pop and shoegaze and highlight the vocal harmonies of Annie Hart and Robbie Guertin, while focusing on the interplay between melodic guitar lines, keyboards and Doug Marvin’s driving drums.—NYC Taper

frances_0026

Frances

Frances - "Cold Water"

“All The While nails its grand aesthetic. It never descends to the pomposity of similar artists like the Divine Comedy, but still forges a friendly marriage between accessibility and mystery. Call it “chamber pop” or just call it like it is: a phenomenal debut album.”—Prefix Magazine 8.5/10

jiamini

Learn More About Jiamini

Together with the New York Times and Thomson Reuters, Jiamini is honored to co-host a panel discussion addressing the role of education in Africa’s long-term development.

Event: Panel discussion
African Experiences: Development through Education

Date: February 16th | 5:30PM - 9:00PM
Panel discussion will begin at 6PM | Cocktail reception to follow

Location: 3 Times Square | 30th floor | New York, NY
7th Ave between 42nd & 43rd Streets

Panel Moderator: Matt Bigg, Atlanta Bureau Chief for Reuters

Panelists

  • Ambassador John Campbell, former U.S. ambassador to Nigeria
  • Dr. Mojubaolu Olufunke Okome (CUNY), Professor of Political Science
  • Mora Mclean, President and CEO of theAfrica-America Institute
  • Reverend Petero Sabune, Chaplain at Sing Sing Correctional Facility

Sponsored by: Thomson Reuters Black Employee Network
The New York Times African Heritage Affinity Group

RSVP Required | This is a free event | Jiamini.org/rsvp.php

You gotta hear this one song. It’ll change your life, I swear: Slowdive - “Crazy For You”

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Slowdive - "Crazy For You"

Some songs have the power to transfer listeners to another dimension. "Crazy For You" is an amazing psychedelic drug, able to lift you up into the clouds and carry you into space. Any sense of existing in reality is lost within the first minute. Things become hazy, colorful and beautiful, an altered-state-of-being that should be embraced. It is everything that shoegaze was and is supposed to be about. As My Bloody Valentine's legacy built up into God-like status, Slowdive's influence and greatness has been under-appreciated.

Video: Ivana XL - “Ex Oh”

New Music: Saharan Gazelle Boy - “Something I Wanna Know About You”

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Saharan Gazelle Boy - "Something I Wanna Know About You"

Last year Capybara's Try Brother was constantly on repeat on my ipod. They were definitely my favorite new band of 2009, and now Capybara member Darin Seal has released a solo record under the name Saharan Gazelle Boy and it continues my obsession with the Capybara gang. A beautiful record with more electronic leanings than Seal's work with Capybara, Airplanes Can't needs to be heard.

Download the full album for only $2 here.

New Music: The Secret History - “Johnny Anorak”

secrethistory

The Secret History - "Johnny Anorak"

The songs of The Secret History recall classic Blondie, with vocalist Lisa Ronson (daughter of legendary Mick Ronson) playing role of Debbie Harry beautifully.

2/14 - The Miss Lonelyheart singalong @ Zebulon Williamsburg Brooklyn
3/18 - Knitting Factory (CD Release Show!) Brooklyn, New York
3/23 - Littlefield (NEW YORK CITY POPFEST 2010) Brooklyn, New York

New Music: Frog Eyes - “A Flower in a Glove”

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Frog Eyes - "A Flower in a Glove"

Make way for another early album of the year contender from Dead Oceans. "Flower in a Glove" is epic in every sense of the word.

Paul's Tomb: A Triumph will be released on April 27th (April 26th in the UK) via Dead Oceans.

Paul's Tomb: A Triumph Tracklisting:

A Flower in a Glove
The Sensitive Girls
Odetta's War
Rebel Horns
Lear, in the Park
Styled by Dr. Roberts
Lear in Love
Violent Psalms
Paul's Tomb

The Residents Will Be In NYC in One Week

residents

The Residents - "Angry Angakok"

The Residents - "Picnic Boy"

With enough NyQuil in my system to take down a small horse, there's no better time than now to bring up the fact that legendary band The Residents will be in New York one week from today at Webster Hall (February 9th).

For anyone unfamiliar with The Residents, your perception of music will change forever once you hear The Residents. They define the words avant-garde, and anytime you ever think you're hearing something totally innovative you can probably look back into The Residents extensive catalog and hear them doing it 20 years earlier. They were Animal Collective more than 20 years earlier, and their costumes were far more interesting than Lady Gaga's.

The Residents on Wikipedia


Live Reviews

Welcome Motel Motel to New York’s Music Elite

mp3: Motel Motel - "Forest" (Daytrotter Session) I've been pretty vocal over the last couple years

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Photography

Photos: Diehard @ Union Hall // 1.30.10

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Your New Favorite Band

Your New Favorite Band: Malachai

Malachai From: Bristol, UK RIYL: RJD2, The Kinks Malachai - "Fading World" Part 60s rock/part trip

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Interviews

Your New Favorite Band: Zambri

Zambri From: New York, NY RIFYL: MGMT, !!!, Yeah Yeah Yeahs Zambri - "W/Somebody (The Model Remix)"

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You gotta hear this one song

You gotta hear this one song. It’ll change your life, I swear: Slowdive - “Crazy For You”

Slowdive - "Crazy For You" Some songs have the power to transfer listeners to another dimension. "C

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