Catherine Feeny

Catherine Feeny is a recent find for me, and she manages to blend a lot of genres that I happen to enjoy - pop, indie, rock, and folk. Some of her songs, like Hurricane Glass are reminiscent of the rock/folk sound you get from early Sheryl Crow, while other songs like I Still Don't Believe You are amazing folk ballads that would make Joni Mitchell proud. If you're into the female singer/songwriter scene like I am, you should check her out.

Hurricane Glass [mp3] (itunes)

I Still Don't Believe You [mp3] (itunes)

Touch Back Down [mp3] (itunes)

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Locksley @ The Knitting Factory

On Saturday I went to see a small free show at The Knitting Factory, where Locksley was apparently taping some type of "get out the vote" like segment for MTV. While they were still wearing their usually tight pants, button up shirts and suspenders, this time they were decked out in red, white and blue instead of black and white. It was kind of nice to see them add a little color to their wardrobe, and they still looked as stylish as ever.

It was a nice, small, intimate show reminiscent of the first time I saw them not quite a year ago at After the Jump, despite the presence of video cameras and Locksley's new-found rock star personas. They've come a long way in that very short time and while they definitely deserve everything they've achieved, I hope that it doesn't start going to their heads. Then again, I guess I'm not surprised they would act like rock stars with the cameras and the screaming high school girls (it was an all ages show). It once again reminded me of a Beatles concert, not to mention people fighting over Jesse's tie that he threw out into the audience at the end.

Anyway, Locksley put on a great show with all their classic catchy pop tunes, despite the teeny tiny stage that left them very little room to move around. They had their usual insane amounts of energy and still managed to jump around plenty. Particularly bass player Jordan, who kept leaping off the drum set and leaning into the audience. But I have to say he went a little too far when he spit out a mouth full of water onto the audience. Gross. I don't care if you're freaking Bob Dylan or some other mega legend - I don't want your spit on me, thanks. I guess I'm just worried that they're getting too rock-starish. They keep adding little gimmicks to their performance, little rock star behaviors like Jesse covering Kai's eyes while he solos or spraying water all over the audience. I don't want them to lose the high energy pop simplicity of their original style that was so much fun to watch and didn't need gimmicks. So Locksley, please don't let the fame go to your heads. You're already a great band without all that flashy rock star behavior. And while I realize that's probably a lot of fun for you, at the very least, please don't spit on your audience, thanks.

More photos:

Why Can't I Be You (Why Not Me) [mp3]

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"The Widespread Reign Of The Great Northwest"

For you Dandy Warhols fans out there - particularly those of you who are dedicated to their laid-back, trippy jam sound - check out The Great Northwest's debut album, "The Widespread Reign of The Great Northwest," out tomorrow. Mixed at The Dandy Warhols' Odditorium, this ambient, chill album is the perfect album to sit back and relax to. Like the Dandy Warhols, they utilize a number of various instruments and sounds, which come together to create something very full and rich. Frontman Brian Coates even has a similar relaxed, airy vocal style to Dandy Warhol's frontman Courtney Taylor-Taylor. I guess my one request would be to speed up the tempo for a song or two so that you can rock out, like you can with a lot of Dandy Warhols songs.


Check out the lead single from the album: Chief John [mp3]

Purchase the album on iTunes

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It's Gonna Be a Good Day

This morning I realized that simply linking Priscilla Ahn's myspace page in yesterday's post was not enough. When I joined Guilt Free Pleasures, I made a mental note to myself to post Priscilla Ahn at least once, if not a billion times. Priscilla Ahn is one of my favorite indie/folk musicians and a great influence in my own musical life. I listen to A Good Day early in morning when I'm driving into the city, and it's the only way I can start my day on the right foot. I can only hope to one day possess a silky-smooth voice that can go anywhere I want it to and put together music that touches the soul and makes your toes tap.

It's gonna be a good day, people. You're getting some Priscilla Ahn.

A Good Day (Morning Song) [mp3] (itunes)

Dream [mp3] (itunes)

Are We Different? [mp3] (itunes unavailable)

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Maria Mena

According to my research, it's been since February since any music blog has posted about Maria Mena, and I find that to be absolutely obscene. I expect she will get some publicity when she releases her 4th album, Cause and Effect, in September, but until then, I feel the need to post some mp3s to hold us all over.

In case you don't know about her, Maria Mena is a Norwegian pop singer with a sweet voice and style. She's like a mix of two of my other guilty pleasures, Mozella and Priscilla Ahn, and she's already made quite a name for herself at the young age of 22. Her music is honest and fresh, and Mena really puts her soul into her songs. Give her a listen on this fine Saturday and enjoy.

Just Hold Me [mp3]

So Sweet [mp3]

Calm Under the Waves [mp3]

Sorry [mp3]

Buy more of Maria Mena's music on itunes

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Chris Hawkes

Chris Hawkes is a Dallas-based acoustic/rock artist who knows the power of meaningful and straight-forward lyrics. With a voice that shimmers on all notes, Hawkes uses his Americana sound to engage the listener in wonderfully structured and soulful songs that, when coupled with honest lyrics, make you think, "yeah, that's it." Great music is supposed to echo the things inside of you that you can't find the words for, to reach out into that void and pluck out the feeling that you couldn't convey to anyone else - it's a rare talent in the music industry, and Chris Hawkes has it.

His vocal range is quite impressive, as can be heard in the song Falling Into Doubt when Hawkes easily graces into falsetto with immaculate control. His sound is also surprisingly excessively mainstream-friendly, especially on songs like Finally Free, so it's no shock that Chris Hawkes has been played on popular music outlets like MTV.

If you admired the quality production of his tracks, you should know that Chris is a recording engineer and producer with his own recording studio, One Road Studio. I've said it before and I'll say it again- music production is key to a great album. Judging by his tracks, Chris is not only a great musician, but a great recording engineer. Doubled together, you end up with a great album.

Bottom line: These songs are dripping in gross amounts of mainstream-potential with a solid core of honest lyrics and pure talent. I'm really shocked that Chris Hawkes isn't more of a household name. Regardless of the type of music you're into, you should add him to your music library, because as acoustic rock goes, this is high quality. Check him out.

Finally Free [mp3] (itunes)
Falling Into Doubt [mp3] (itunes)
Again [mp3] (itunes)

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Georgie James

Have you ever been driving your car home when a song catches your ear, but you're practically there by the time the song comes on, so you pull into and stay in the driveway while you listen to the song for a bit longer?

Georgie James did that for me. The dynamic duo of John Davis and Laura Burhenn focus on melody and harmonies in their songs in a poppy musical structure while maintaining an indie rock sound. Laura has a wonderfully sweet and strong voice that shines on indie-pop songs like Cake Parade while John has a broad range that is better suited for their indie-rock songs like More Lights. In many ways I think of them as a modern Sonny & Cher (especially on Places). Their last CD came out in September of 07, and they are currently taking a break from touring. Back in December, NPR gave Georgie James a challenge: write and record a new song in two days (read more about it here). NPR filmed the process, put it together as a music video, and now it looks like it has received an Emmy nomination. At any rate, if you're looking for a new song this summer to blast out your window, check them out.

Cake Parade [mp3] (itunes)

More Lights [mp3] (itunes)

Places [mp3] (itunes)

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Ben Sollee

When I find that someone has made a letter of their grievances against Kanye, have put it to song, and aren't 50 Cent, I'm obviously amused and intrigued. But then I find out that they play the cello and strum it to make a beat as they're singing how Kanye should use his power "to make some real change- not just advertisements at the mall?" Heck yes. I must share.

Ladies and Gentlemen, I give you Ben Sollee. Classically trained for 24 years, this cello-singer-songwriter merges R&B, folk, alternative, and pop styles with a classical flare. In 2007, NPR labeled him as one of the "Top Ten Unknown Artists Of the Year" (sidenote: I'll be posting about #9 tomorrow). Sollee's voice has a lot of flexibility in it, and somehow it compliments his cello perfectly. His songs are upbeat, optimistic, and full of lets-make-the-world-a-better-place lyrics. Give the songs below a listen and I'm sure that you'll be bursting out with random "Dear Kanye"s in just a few days. Oh, and if you feel inspired, feel free to write your own song to a celebrity of your choice (Will Ferrell, Eddie Murphy, Britney Spears, Jamie-Lynn Spears, etc) and leave a copy of it in the comments section!

Dear Kanye [mp3] (itunes unavailable)

A Change is Gonna Come [mp3] (itunes)

How to See the Sun Rise [mp3] (itunes)

P.S. RIP Estelle Getty. Thanks for being a friend.

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Golem @ Prospect Park

Sunday was a celebration of the Jewish record label J Dub, so I headed over to see Golem, whom I saw last year at After the Jump. I was under the impression that they were going on first, but boy was I wrong. First was a DJ crew called Soulico with some Jewish rappers. They were actually pretty cool, even though very little was in English so I couldn't necessarily understand it. They had insane energy considering the heat and they were a lot of fun. They jumped around a lot and it was kind of fun to just listen to the rhythm of their voices without getting wrapped up in the lyrics. After that, Michael Showalter began MCing (see pictures below), and I have to say, for someone who wrote a movie as genius as Wet Hot American Summer, he's not very funny in person. This is the second time I've seen him (he introduced the movie at McCarren Park Pool) and it was excruciating both times.

Next was a band called Sway Machinery. They were pretty good. The lead singer is kind of crazy, but they were fun to watch and they utilized a lot of different genres of music, and tied it all together with a Jewish sound, which is cool. I'm not sure I would listen to their music on a regular basis but they put on a good performance. I felt bad for them all wearing suits in the heat (which I also didn't think really fit with their music), especially the guy with the giant bass saxophone (see left).

After Sway Machinery was DeLeon. They had a really enjoyable energy, and a few really good tunes. My favorite songs were the ones that they said were 500 years old or so. I think it's neat how they're adapting traditional Sephardic songs. The drummer was an interesting character. He got up and stood on a chair between each song. I believe he also played the drums standing up. And I have to say that the tambourine girl was one of the most animated band members and I enjoyed watching her.

And finally, Golem headlined with their fabulous high energy klezmer punk. They are so dramatic and fun to watch. I must've taken 20 pictures just of singer Aaron Diskin and his amazing facial expressions. Drummer Tim Monaghan also makes some pretty entertaining facial expressions. He literally puts his whole body into his drumming, including his face. I also love the violin player Alicia Jo Rabins, because she is constantly smiling, laughing and just having a good time. Or well, really, I love them all and they all seem to enjoy themselves immensely. They had a big fan base show up and people were dancing in the aisles. Everyone was quite merry.

They also had a guest star - a British punk rock legend whose name I sadly didn't catch... (see right) He was fun though, and it was funny when he was reading the lyrics off a sheet of paper and still messing them up. Accordian player/ frontwoman Annette Ezekial enjoyed mocking him a bit for that, but he laughed it off and just went with it. Golem finished the show with a big grand finale and brought all sorts of people on the stage - probably 30-50 people in all - drummers, horn players, baton twirlers, hoola-hoopers, and dancers. It was a party. A great way to end the show, despite the fact that there was no encore. It made me think of the Dresden Dolls New Year's Eve show and I think Golem and The Luminescent Orchestrii would be the best of friends.

More pictures (and even more HERE):

Warsaw is Khelm [mp3] - Golem - "Fresh Off Boat" (iTunes)

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Minnnesota Monday: Loe & The Nastys @ the Dakota

On Saturday, I was able to catch Loe & the Nastys at a local famous Jazz club in Minneapolis called the Dakota. Since three of the original members went to my college, I had known about them for awhile but hadn't ever seen them perform live. I wasn't able to stay for their whole set, but I was able to catch a good hour and a half of it. The Dakota was much busier than I had expected for 11:30pm, a good sign that the group had a large following, and I ended up seeing lots of people from my old college that I didn't even expect to like anything jazzy. Definitely a good sign.

Their sound is a mix of avant-garde nu-jazz, bossa-nova, and a pinch of humor. Loe's voice is certainly unique with a warm serene tone that easily slides along, and she connects to the audience very well with her delivery and occasional jokes. Andrew, who plays Bass, really knows his instrument and rocks it out on many a song. I wasn't aware that the previous guitarist, Ben, had left the group until I got there that night and spoke with some friends at a nearby table, so I was slightly skeptical of how good the newest addition, Zach, would be. My fears were gone as soon as I listened to Zach's impressive improvisations and admired how well he had mastered the guitar parts for the older songs. Ben, the drummer, never really had his own solo and I thought that was a shame, as he certainly knows what he is doing and it would be nice to see him break out and go wild.

Loe switched from piano to guitar for the songs, and because of this flexibility, there is a wide range of sound that came from this group. I was hoping to hear a bit more jazzy rifts on the piano from Loe, but she kept it sweet and simple. A good time was had by all at the Dakota on saturday, and I couldn't help thinking to myself that if the Dakota wants to keep on bringing in crowds and making money, they'll book Loe & the Nastys more often. They put on a great show and I would highly recommend checking them out.

Bottom line: Loe & the Nastys are a fun nu-jazz group that are easily enjoyed by all age groups. They have some great songs that may soon become classics and their sound is professional, upbeat, complex, simple, and everything jazz should be. Give them a listen and bask in the enjoyment of their sound.

Penny Waltz [mp3]

buy their album on iTunes

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Siren Festival

Yesterday I spent a rather long, hot day at Coney Island for The Village Voice's annual Siren Music Festival. And while the day was long, I'm afraid this review is going to have to be relatively short. It's a busy busy couple of weeks for me right now. And I have to say, I was not as impressed by the line up this year as I was last year. But it was still a good day nonetheless.

Due to some subway trouble (ggrrr to the MTA), the first band I saw was Annuals and I liked them, but I didn't see enough of their set to feel like I can really write anything specific about them. Then I headed to get some food and to cool off in the ocean winds on the beach while I ate. On a side note, don't take your shoes off and walk in the sand at Coney Island. I saw glass sticking up on several occasions.

I headed back to the festival to catch Ra Ra Riot, who I saw last year at After the Jump Festival and really liked. They put on a great show again this year, dancing around and just having a really good time, although I have to say I missed the more intimate, less crowded (and let's not forget air conditioned) setting of Studio B. They seem to get along really well as a band, and their fondness of each other in contagious. They also seem really passionate about their music. I'm excited for their first official full-length album to come out on August 19th.

After Ra Ra Riot I jumped back and forth between Beach House and Islands. Beach House didn't really stick in my memory or catch my attention, but I liked Islands. They were another slightly dancey band with strings... A very good follower for Ra Ra Riot. While I was very far away (trying to stay cool out of the crowd for a while) so I couldn't see all that well, I think one of the members had a garbage can or something metal on their head. It probably was an interesting performance but I mainly stuck to listening and hanging out in the shade. Next I headed over to the Stillwell Stage so I could get a good spot for Broken Social Scene. I managed to catch most of The Helio Sequence while slowly making my way toward the front. They were ok. A little too ambient for my taste.

Last, but certainly not least in my day was Toronto band Broken Social Scene. They were spectacular, though they were lacking in the estrogen department (all of the women that often perform with them - ie Feist - were missing). They pulled one random girl on stage to sing one song with them, which was cool. I was a little jealous, not that I'd have the guts to sing in front of all those people. Anyway, Broken Social Scene had a great energy, despite the fact that the drummer was apparently suffering from heat stroke and frontman Kevin Drew was just getting over a cold/flu type illness. They're a huge band, and people came and went from the stage. It's cool how communal they are, with people rotating from lead rolls a lot and stuff. They had a ton of energy and they are very good at working the crowd. The audience was having a blast. I was very glad to be able to say that I saw them, even if they were missing the female component. They've really got a great collaboration going on.


It was a good day overall, though I would not say it was my favorite Siren Festival (which is too bad because it may be the last one at Coney Island).

Dry Clothes [mp3] - Annuals - "Be He Me" (iTunes)

Each Year [mp3] - Ra Ra Riot - "Ra Ra Riot EP" (iTunes)

Kids Don't Know Shit [mp3] - Islands - "Arm's Way" (iTunes)

Fire Eye'd Boy [mp3] - Broken Social Scene - "Broken Social Scene" (iTunes)

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Greg Laswell

A friend contacted me the other day wondering if I knew anything about the latest from Greg Laswell. Turns out that this past July 8th, Greg Laswell released his most recent album, Three Flights from Alto Nido. Laswell was once described to me as "like Coldplay, but without the pretentiousness," and that is something I still find true today. I also think that he sounds what Coldplay could've been like if they were lead by Andrew Bird - there's a ridiculous and fresh quirk to Laswell's music.

Laswell creates songs that are driven by a melancholy atmosphere coupled with a thriving uplifting beat that captures the listener. He's engaging, fresh, and euphonic. I'm also absolutely in love with the man's artistic style- his photos and music videos are dark and dramatic as well as creative. If someone told me that he was behind the imagery of the movie Big Fish, I wouldn't doubt it. Sing, Theresa Says, from a previous album, is my personal favorite so I'll be posting that alongside two from his newest album.

Sing, Teresa Says [mp3] itunes

The One I Love [mp3] itunes

And Then You [mp3] itunes

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Spoon @ Prospect Park

Last night I made it off of work with just enough to make it to Spoon at Prospect Park. They put on a good show, though once again the all-ages (read: mostly teenage) audience drove me nuts and I retreated to the VIP sections at the side and back (why is it that the VIP sections have a worse veiw? Shouldn't they rope off the front like they do for the free shows?). Anyway, it was a beautiful night and they had a good energy, so all in all it was a good show. They of course played audience favorite I Turn My Camera On and The Underdog, among others. I wanted to beat the rush so I left before the encore finished (I worked a 12 hour day yesterday before I went straight to the show, so forgive me for wanting to get home). I'm so glad I made it though for most of the show. It was a good ending to a long day.

The Underdog [mp3] - "Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga" (iTunes)

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The Breakups

The "Eat Your Heart Out" EP is fun poppy little album by LA-based The Breakups. Full of laid back but catchy numbers, mostly related to relationships and their endings (fitting considering their band name), it's another good, though slightly melancholy, summer soundtrack. There's something unique to their sound, though I can't pinpoint exactly what.

Check it out. You can listen to the entire EP on their myspace.

After the Fact [mp3]

buy the EP on iTunes

On a totally unrelated note, the one year anniversary of Guilt Free Pleasures passed on July 7th without me even noticing. Haha. Oops. Happy belated anniversary...

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Frontier Ruckus

On Saturday night, I went to Living Room to see Michigan band Frontier Ruckus. The 6-piece folky band really blew me away with the beauty of their music, and it made me happy that they utilized a saw and banjo in many of their songs. They were very chill, but you could tell that they loved their music. They also just seemed like a nice bunch, as I had the pleasure of hanging out with some of them before and after the show. They have a new album coming out in the Fall, but here is a sample from their EP in the meantime - which, by the way, has the most unique packaging I've seen, as it comes in an 8.5 x 11 booklet, rather than a jewel case, with lyrics and illustrations done by hand.

Rosemont [mp3]

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Basilica Block Party

Here in Minneapolis, we have this annual music festival called the Basilica Block Party. It takes place at the Basilica of Saint Mary and consists of three total stages that highlight music groups over the course of just 2 days. Most of the Basilica workers are volunteers, and pretty much every stand gives out free samples of something, so at the very least, you'll have a good time collecting stuff (or simply experiencing- I got a free massage).

Unfortch, I was only able to make it to Day 2, so I didn't catch the bands that played the previous day (such as Augustana, OneRepublic, or Ziggy Marley). However, my friends and I did zag about the block party and I managed to hear White Light Riot, Landon Pigg, Test Your Reflex, Missy Higgins and Gin Blossoms, so I'll do my best to cover each one without making this post exceedingly long.


First up, White Light Riot. I was eager to finally hear this band live as I had briefly encountered one of their band members, Joe, at Macalester College, where we both went. I had heard their stuff on their website, thought it was great, and wondered how it would translate in a live setting. It was just as wonderfully rocker-clean as I had hoped. You could actually hear what the music was doing instead of it echoing out into oblivion like I had experienced some rock groups do before. Their sound is vibrant, energetic and reminiscent of Brit-pop with an indie twist, and their songs are laced with little catchy hooks for fans to grab on to. WLR played a decent set of songs and closed on what I would call their most known song, Out of Sight, which I thought was a great song to end on. They drew a crowd of 18-22 year olds and even had some old people dancing. My friend turned to me at one point and said, "They're kinda like OK Go." I'd s ay that's pretty fair, but check them out for yourself:

Out Of Sight by White Light Riot [mp3]

After WLR finished up, my group and I headed over to another stage to check out Landon Pigg. I'm so glad we did. An acoustic guitar sound was just what I needed after my head had been filled with WLR upbeat catchy electric uproar. The first song I heard Landon Pigg singing was a song about love - Landon Pigg said himself that he was riding on the plane and saw an old couple and wondered exactly what is it that makes love last when the beauty has faded away. For the life of me, I can't find the song or what its called, leading me to believe it was something new, but it was great. If anyone who reads this blog was there/ know what song I'm taking about, let me know in the comments section! Although I wasn't able to stay for his whole set, I heard enough to know I liked him. He was like a nice blend of OneRepublic and Greg Laswell. Acoustic guitars well blended with melodious tunes and truthful lyrics.

Falling In Love At A Coffee Shop by Landon Pigg [mp3]

Test Your Reflex is another indie rock band that utilizes effects to make their music sound larger than it really is- there is definitely a shadowy element to it. It's almost as if they've managed to find a way to incorporate the actual essence of drama into their music. They put on a great show and I found myself drawn in simply by the need to watch them. Like their songs, they emit a stylish underground vibe and their songs have a great range from strong and dramatic to popish-danceable. The crowd loved them and although I personally had never heard of them before, most of the people around me were singing along and cheering loudly. Since I'm all about the comparisons lately, I'll say that they sounded like the crazy love child of Switchfoot and Franz Ferdinand. Check out their official website here to check them out further.

It was time for Australian Missy Higgins to take the stage- and did she ever. She was funny, spunky, sweet, personable and generally amazing. By far, Missy drew the biggest crowd of anyone that night. She belted out Secret to start things off and performed well known songs such as Ten Days, Peachy, Where I Stood, and This is How It Goes, while giving little antidotes in between songs. At one point, she had a bit of a keyboard malfunction during Where I Stood and ended up improvising delightful piano tunes as she awaited the tech guys. Her band members were equally wonderful and they often smiled as they reached a part of a song that they obviously enjoyed, which only made me enjoy the concert all the more. Missy's voice is absolutely stunning live- she has fantastic control and unbelievable pitch with every note. Her set was far to short, in my opinion, and after her band walked off the stage a chant of "One More Song!" was raised. Sadly, the Cities97 people (who host the event) came on stage to plug their benefactors and the like so the audience began to dissipate, but still quite happy and

uplifted. Missy came out on the side of the stage behind the fence to chat with some fans and take pictures, and I overheard someone asking her about her story behind the fantastic and easily my favorite song Forgive Me. From what I heard, Missy is quite reluctant to reveal the personal stories behind her songs, but did say she wrote it while in a relationship and it was about fidelity. Again, that's one of the reasons I love Missy Higgin's songs- they are written with full emotion, based on experienced that are too personal to describe unless through song. Her concert was great and I certainly suggest trying to catch her when she comes to your town.

Where I Stood by Missy Higgins [mp3]
Forgive Me by Missy Higgins [mp3]

By the time Gin Blossoms performed, my camera had run out of batteries so I wasn't able to capture them on film. Since they were the last band to play, everyone from the various stages eventually made their way to the Gin Blossoms so it was quite packed. I'm not the biggest Gin Blossoms fan, but the show that they put on was fun and light. It was the kind of concert you could sit on the grass and chat with the person next to you and every now and again stop to listen to the band, which is exactly what I did. When we left, they were finally getting around to their most famous song, Jealousy, and everyone in my group agreed that they really should've played that song closer to the beginning of the set list rather towards the end.

All in all, Day 2 of the Basilica Block Party was most enjoyable. I heard new bands and finally got to see others in concert. If you're ever in Minneapolis during July, I highly recommend you stop by and listen. To check out more pictures from the event, click here.

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"I Didn't Think They'd Actually Be From Brazil"

Last night I went to see Brazilian Girls play a free show at Prospect Park as part of the Celebrate Brooklyn concert series. The Brazilian Girls were great, though I can't say my concert-going experience was all that positive. Like I've always said, the audience can ruin a good concert, and this was one of those situations. The first two bands that played were lame and not even worth mentioning (and they played freaking forever), though I would like to share the fact that apparently Miranda!, the second band that was supposed to play, broke up like on their way to Brooklyn... At least that's what the Celebrate Brooklyn woman said. I find that kind of funny.

Brazilian Girls were awesome. They played for almost an hour and a half (and they got cut off - they were going to perform Jique for their finale but Celebrate Brooklyn shut them down. It was a bummer). Sabine really knows how to work the audience. She even brought a bunch of people up on stage for a brief dance party (see left). She also really knows how to dress - I loved her crazy dress that she was wearing and I wish I had the penache to pull something like that off. It was one of those dresses that you usually only really see on runways, but she pulled it off beautifully. They played a few new songs, which were good. And they played lots of old favorites. Except for Jique, which they started to play as their finale to their encore but then were cut off by the Celebrate Brooklyn people who were basically like "you're out of time." What?! It was ridiculous! They wouldn't let them do one more song? We thought they were kidding at first and were just messing with us. But no.

And now, I apologize, because I must go on a rant about the horrible people sitting behind me at the concert and general concert etiquette. You may find the story amusing, but if you don't want to read it, simply scroll to the bottom for your mp3. So, story: Brazilian Girls are clearly a band that make people want to dance. So naturally, when they went on stage, a lot of people stood up (there are seats at the bandshell). So since the people in front of me were standing, and since I wanted to dance, my friends and I stood up too. It's a concert. That's what people do. But that threw the people sitting behind me (particularly the 4 or 5 girls sitting directly behind us) into a tizzy. People started yelling at us to sit down. One girl tapped me on the shoulder and was so condescending too. I'm normally pretty non-confrontational but I was getting pissed off so I was like "It's a concert. If you want to sit, go to a movie" and the girl goes "This is Celebrate Brooklyn. It's different. People sit down." Excuse me? I have been to many a Celebrate Brooklyn concert and have almost always ended up standing for the final band. When I told her that, she responded "yeah, well I've been coming here my whole life." Ok, that's great but the people in front of me are standing, so therefore you must be wrong. Then they tried to tell us that we had to sit down because elderly people behind us couldn't stand up. Though I was just ignoring them at this point, I was thinking to myself "if they're too old to stand, they shouldn't go to dance music concerts because people usually stand at concerts and that's part of the experience." That might seem insensitive, but really it's not. I'm not going to go to concerts when I'm too old to stand. Or if I do, and I can sit, I'm certainly not going to expect other people to sit down just for me. Especially if it's dance music. If it's the philharmonic or something, that's different. But Brazilian Girls? No sitting during that. I felt especially bad for my very tall friend, who they singled out. The thing that made me the most angry about this was that these girls clearly had no idea who Brazilian Girls were. They just came because it was a free concert and then had to ruin it for those of us who actually like the band. One girl behind me actually said "I didn't think they'd actually be from Brazil. But her accent sounds Brazilian." *Shudders* The ignorance! THE IGNORANCE! Actually, little missy, they're from New York and her accent is a mixture of European accents from the various places she's lived. And those foreign languages she's singing in? None of them are Portuguese! I don't even speak any of them but I could still pick out the French, Spanish and German and tell that they weren't Portuguese (partially because I listen to a lot of CSS, haha). When the girls behind me finally gave up and stood up, it took every fiber in my being not to turn around and yell "SIT DOWN!" But I resisted. Then they proceeded to talk through the entire show, which drove me nuts. It took every other fiber in my being not to turn around and say "if you're not going to watch the show, please go home or at least shut the f*** up so those of us who actually like the band can enjoy the concert." The only other time I have been that pissed at a concert was when those two drunk bitches shoved me at The Kooks concert. Moral of the story, if you go to a concert, you're going to be standing so shut the hell up and watch the show. And just because a concert is free doesn't mean you have to go. If you have no interest in the band, don't go ruin it for their fans. Ok, rant over.

In honor of the song that got cut off:

Jique [mp3] - "Talk to La Bomb" (iTunes)

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St. Vincent @ Castle Clinton

Yesterday was a beautiful day for a concert by the sea and a beautiful day to get out of the office and go wait in line, so I headed down to Battery Park to see St. Vincent perform for free in Castle Clinton. I also got the pleasure of meeting and hanging out with Kate of Julius C while waiting in line for seats, so that was cool. AND I managed to snag a really good seat. Hooray!

Annie Clark and her 6-piece band came out in all white, looking very summery. She looked very cute in her dress with over-sized sunglasses on. The show was great. There were no openers, but St. Vincent played a nice long set (just over an hour, with Annie being adorable and talking to the audience in between a few songs). It was a very laid back, calm show, but it was perfect for the day and the weather. There was a nice sea breeze blowing, and I swear at times the wind swelled with the music (which had a pretty effect on the silver strips hanging from the keyboard).

They played mostly songs off of her album from last year but they also played a few new songs, which was cool to hear. Apparently Annie has been listening to a lot of Prince lately, and so one of the songs was inspired by that. It also made me really happy when she said that she partially named her 2007 album, "Marry Me," after a line from her favorite show (which also happens to be mine), Arrested Development. They played favorites like Marry Me, Paris is Burning and they did Your Lips Are Red for the encore (she prefaced it by saying "so I want to leave you tonight with a nice little song... about murder"). She has great stage presence. It's hard to take your eyes off of her. Although her wild hair was in her face a lot, and I wished we could see more of her face sometimes. But I suppose her wild hair is part of her character.

More pictures here.

Paris is Burning [mp3] - "Marry Me" (iTunes)

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