24 posts tagged “cmj”

Surfer Blood has been one of the most talked about bands since last week’s CMJ Music Conference in New York City so I solicited our Music Librarian and DJ Eric J Lawrence to tell us a bit about them since he’s been giving them some spins.

From EJL:

To be honest,  I don’t know much about Surfer Blood myself (besides their being from West Palm Beach, Florida), but after first hearing their track “Swim (To Reach the End)” a couple of months back, they quickly jumped onto my “favorite songs of the year” list.

The sound is big & epic, kind of like former Floridians Lansing-Dreiden or a decidedly American version of Doves, with a triumphant guitar riff, pounding drums, and heavily-reverbed vocals that sound like they were shouted from atop some wind-blown cliff overlooking the ocean at sunset.  Between the throbbing verses & choruses, there’s an Afropop guitar break that fits right in with the current predilection for indie rockers to throw a little juju rhythms into the mix.  It’s a savvy and uber-catchy combination that makes me excited to hear more from this now-hotly-tipped band.

While CMJers had what seemed like dozens of opportunities to witness Surfer Blood’s live set over the course of the fest, Angelenos such as myself will have to wait until after Thanksgiving (November 27, to be exact), when they will perform at the Echo.  Their debut album, Astro Coast, comes out via Kanine Records on January 19, 2010.

Eric J. Lawrence
 

KCRW's Music Library Assistant Nassir is reporting back with musings from this year’s CMJ Music Conference. The standout bands at CMJ are often the bands that will be making their Morning Becomes Eclectic debuts in the coming months.

Here are his Top 5 bands – in no particular order
 
1)Nathaniel Rateliff and the Wheel
If You Like: Bon Iver, Paulo Nutini, Bill Callahan/Leonard Cohen, Glen Hansard (Swell Season)
From - Denver, CO
Label - Rounder (Just Announced)
Release - Out Spring '10
http://www.myspace.com/thewheel

Nathaniel Rateliff and the Wheel @ Music Hall of Williamsburg2

2)Real Estate
If You Like: nostalgic lo-fi, suburban beach pop; Kurt Vile
From  - New Jersey, NY
Label - Woodsist
Release - (Out Nov. '10)
http://www.myspace.com/letsrockthebeach

Real Estate @ Pianos

3)FOUND
If You Like: Travis, Hot Chip, Black Ghosts
From - Edinburgh, Scotland
Label - Unsigned
http://www.myspace.com/foundtheband

FOUND @ Bandshell Park (Kidrockers Party)

4)Golden Silvers
If You Like: Joe Strummer reincarnated with indie electro-pop
From : London, England
Label - XL
Release - True Romance (Sample/Purchase)
http://www.myspace.com/thegoldensilvers

5) Think About Life
If You Like: Friendly Fires, TV on the Radio, Bloc Party, Architecture in Helsinki
From - Montreal, Canada
Label - Alien8
Release - Family (Sample/Purchase)
http://www.myspace.com/thinkaboutlife
 

Think About Life @ Music Hall fo Williamsburg

LA’s own Fool’s Gold also made a splash, check them out THIS Thursday, October 29 at 11:15am with Jason Bentley.

KCRW's Music Library Assistant Nassir is reporting back with musings from this year’s CMJ Music Conference. The standout bands at CMJ are often the bands that will be making their Morning Becomes Eclectic debuts in the coming months, like School of Seven Bells and Passion Pit did last year.

From Nassir:

Unlike my first day of CMJ which was well thought out, Day 2 had no agenda and I hoped to pleasantly collide with something good. I first saw Brooklyn's Zaza at the Cake Shop for the Terrorbird showcase. The trio's shoegaze impressed many in the basement, including LA's very own Warpaint, who were on deck to go next. Zaza have just been signed to Kanine Records, who has been very active in signing many of the finest artists at the festival this year, including buzzed artists Surfer Blood, The Depreciation Guild, and local LA faves, Princeton, who are currently touring with Art Brut. Afterwards, I check out one of my favorite new artists this year, New Jersey's Real Estate. No need to get the government involved to help bail out this Real Estate. They are amazing live and will prove to be a permanent fixture in psychedelic indie rock property.

I then went over to the Babelgum/Hype Machine party at the basement of the Santos Party House to catch charismatic young electro-soul emcee Theophilus London. He was captivating on stage, supplemented by sharp production work  -- including a remix of Amadou and Mariam's "Sabali" and Jack Penate's "Pull My Heart Away." Both are available for streaming on his MySpace page. Midnight Juggernauts, the headliner of the show, were pretty explosive, showcasing a lot of their new material.

If I were to pick another label that is poised for a huge run this year, I'd go with IAMSOUND. I finished the evening at their showcase at the Bowery Poetry Club. Openers New Villager  produce very catchy pop with a great vocal range, comparable to Tunde Adebimpe (TV on the Radio).  The rest of IAMSOUND’s hot new signings followed -- with Apache Beat, a five piece NY dark art-rock outfit in the vein of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, who will be featured in their debut release in 2010. Following them were Brooklyn experimental punk rockers Suckers, similar in style to the shower of shouters Wolf Parade. The last two acts, however, totally stole the show. London's Golden Silvers won the gold and silver prize for best new act at CMJ thus far. The showcase rightfully finished with LA's own Fool's Gold. They were in such a groove that they played only a handful of epic jams for over one hour, the last of the bunch culminating in a march through the crowd and onto the streets. This was the final show of their first tour before they return home to LA and will be featured on KCRW's Sounds Around Town and Morning Becomes Eclectic on October 29.    

Stay tuned to at least one more update on my hunt for what's next.

KCRW's Music Library Assistant Nassir is reporting back with musings from this year’s CMJ Music Conference. The standout bands at CMJ are often the bands that will be making their Morning Becomes Eclectic debuts in the coming months, like School of Seven Bells and Passion Pit did last year.

From Nassir:

Unlike the past few years, this year's CMJ music marathon seems to have less of the established bands and brands. The biggest band at the marathon appears to be the long-awaited return of the UK act Broadcast, who's touring with the Atlas Sound. Otherwise, the field is wide open to the 1200+ young, talented acts that serve the heart of the festival's purpose, enlightening the future collegiate tastemakers as to what's coming soon to a venue near you. Among the most anticipated are Australia's Midnight Juggernauts, the UK's The XX and hometown heroes The Antlers, as well as the east coast debut of Belgium's Aeroplane.

In addition to the official activities, there are numerous free day parties all over the city curated by the top NY music movers and shakers -- from bloggers to labels and bookers and so forth.  

Started Day One at the Cake Shop, which is a great little cafe/record store in the heart of NY's lower east side. Downstairs in the basement they had a clutch lineup of bands curated by one of the top music blogs, aptly titled, Pop Tarts Suck Toasted. I was impressed by the opener, Brooklyn's Dinosaur Feathers, who had nice high-pitched harmonies -- sort of like the indie-pop version of the Fleet Foxes. Next, I walked a wopping 20 yards to go to the Sneak Attack Media/Music Slut day party at Pianos. Upstairs, I saw the highly touted Javelin, a boom box-fueled crunk tropicalia duo who played a plethora of electronics and samples in front of a projection of lost and found garage sale footage mashing up anything from the Revenge of the Nerds to Shaq's rapping debut in the early 90's.  Downstairs I hit up the dance hall and heard the easy snappin' indie-reggae of Sean Bones, formerly of the group Sam Champion. You might have seen his starring role in the acclaimed film, "Wat Do Dem" co-starring Norah Jones.

In the evening, I bounced to Brooklyn for the Brooklyn Vegan showcase at the Music Hall of Williamsburg for stellar headliners The Antlers, Fanfarlo, and Laura Marling. The lesser known talents included the awesome Montreal band Think About Life, a meeting of the minds of Architecture in Helsinki/Bloc Party/Friendly Fires/TV on the Radio. The lead singer seemed a little awkward with his banter between tracks but it was easily forgiven for their dancetastic tunes, dominating all the inertia in the music hall and delighting the small crowd of early-comers. I went downstairs to the bar between bands and ended up meeting the members of Denver's Nathaniel Rateliff and The Wheel, possibly one of the most anticipated acts I had heard about in my research. Nathaniel's songs are simply sweet and earnest folk songs, conjuring my other faves Bon Iver and Paulo Nutini, the latter of which he has opened for. This night was also a celebration of their new signing by A&R chief Dave Godowsky of Rounder Records so look for a debut release in Spring '10.

It was a difficult decision but I opted out of the great headliners to catch a set from HIGHLIFE at the recently opened Knitting Factory in Brooklyn. This is a project from Wahs Salguod and features vocal assistance from Mira Billotte (White Magic). "F Kenya RIP" -- available for streaming on their myspace page – was reason enough to catch this show. It is one of the most beautiful tracks of the year.

Last destination was to the Cameo Gallery to see 8-bit beasts Anamanaguchi. The showcase was curated by Popgun Booking. Anamanaguchi were very impressive, playing music out of a re-programmed sound card in a Donkey Kong cartridge to produce the best of a growing pattern of the many backing tracks I've heard throughout the day. Darwin Deez had the pleasure of closing the evening and he did a great job despite a diminished crowd. For fans of Throw Me the Statue or danceable Death Cab for Cutie.

I'm getting sick now, but if my ears have anything to say about it I might have to extend my stay, especially after a little bird named Rachel Reynolds hipped me to the Fader Party this Saturday with Mark Ronson. Regardless, count on more where this came from the next couple days from my tales at CMJ.

Nass

Today’s Top Tune happens to be from a band we featured last year as part of our CMJ coverage, The Subjects. The Subjects are made up of teachers -- and some of their former students. From their controversial beginnings and their debut release, they've come along way to nail the harmonious pop featured on their new EP and Today's Top Tune “Winter Vacation.”  You can stream it online but you should absolutely sign up for the podcast if you haven’t already. A free song…every weekday…curated by KCRW…delivered to your musical mailbox! What’s not to love?

On the topic of CMJ, the annual music conference is about to kick off in New York City with the usual variety of day shows, official shows and after parties. It truly is a week-long musical bonanza. I’ll sitting it out this year however Nassir, our music library assistant, will be keeping his eye out for great new talent and reporting back with updates from the East Coast.

RR

p.s.: If you dig The Subjects and live in LA, they’ll be playing the Echo TUESDAY night (10/20)

What a week! I probably saw an average of 10 bands a day while in NYC for the festival. My favorite bands were, for the most part, bands I was somewhat familiar with, including Takka Takka, Miniature Tigers, Rumble Strips, Women, Princeton and the Boat People.

There were some suprises though - DRI sounded unlike anything I heard at the festival and was one of the few female artists I came across. The Subjects are based in Brooklyn and have elements of the Kinks. They are currently working on new material and I look forward to hearing what they come up with. Secret Life of Sofia also caught my ear and they were the very first band I saw at the festival. If you want to check out these artists for yourself, check out the video on our CMJ page - KCRW.com/CMJ

Some of these bands played double digit shows while in town but if you come all the way from Canada for your first NYC trip (like Women) you might as well make the most of it and I thank them for it!

RR

My late afternoon music watching began with Marnie Stern. Stereogum.com music writer Amrit Singh says her album will likely make his top ten list this year – those are big words! She is pretty and blond but you’re not looking at anything but her hands – she is an INCREDIBLE guitar player.

Our CMJ Artist Lounge showcase was solid, starting with the Rumble Strips. This UK band counts Mark Ronson among their biggest fans and he is producing their next album this month. They played a new song and, from the sound of it, they already have a hit single. I really loved these guys and they couldn’t be nicer.

Women, from Alberta, Canada, followed with a mostly instrumental set. Their set required an active listener to fully appreciate the guitar interplay and intricacies of what they were creating. Their last song was a highlight, escalating slowly but intensely and then gently dissolving into drums and then silence.

Takka Takka played 4 shows on Wednesday but singer Gabe says this was the most fun. He’s got an honest voice and some David Byrne-like shoulder shaking moves.  The guitar work was beautiful and all their songs are unique but feel connected, which is something I really lke.

Rounding out the night was the Dexter Romweber duo. Or, as someone called them last night, the first White Stripes. Apparently Dexter’s earlier band, Flat Duo Jets, had a huge influence on Jack White and, in his new incarnation, he is playing with none other than his sister Sara. And she KILLED the drums. It sounded like a combination of Frankie Valli, Dick Dale and Reverend Horton Heat and it was really different and refreshing.   

RR

Within two minutes of cruising into my first showcase (arranged by Pop Tarts Suck Toasted blogger Patrick) I saw a guy with a bagel in one hand and beer in the other – now that is the way to kick off CMJ here in NYC! 

Last year, it took a little while to find some quality bands but this year, I saw them right off the bat – the first was Secret Life of Sofia, a Brooklyn band with three-part harmonies and a darkness and depth that is dynamic instead of depressing. When I saw New York Times music writer Jon Pareles in the room for Emmy the Great (a showcase sponsored by the Music Slut blog), I knew I had stumbled onto something interesting. She sang sweetly and her lyrics were interesting enough that I wanted to know the real stories behind them. I stayed on for Said the Whale, a Canadian band that was quite impressive – indie rock without the typical trappings on indie rock.

After a quick caffeine fix, I stumbled upon Princeton, who we met up with as part of our CMJ preview. Their drummer had taken the train and was running late so they used a drum machine – the show must go on, right? Still, they did a new song AND a cover of “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun.” Of all the shows I’ve seen so far, this is the one where the crowd was literally begging them to keep going after they stopped. The Kivel twins, Matt and Jesse, bantered and argued like brothers do, but it was all part of the fun (and the drummer made it for the last half.)

I had the pleasure of interviewing Cheeseburger (like the Sex Pistols on the Sunset Strip with a bit of AC/DC – at least three people got thrown out for unruly behavior during their show), Atlanta’s Gringo Star, and Miniature Tigers, who were super lovely and have a great new album. Brooklyn’s Vivian Girls headlined the CMJ Artist Lounge KCRW is co-sponsoring, mixing 60’s girl group styles and punk.  Overall, a solid day with much more to come.

My jet lag is starting to take it’s toll so that’s it for now!

RR    

With tons of bands flooding into NYC for CMJ next week, setting a show schedule is a difficult task. In hopes of making that a bit easier, I’m am including recommendations from an assortment of hosts!

KCRW Music Librarian and DJ Eric J Lawrence listens to most of the CDs sent to the station so he has a trained ear. Here are his faves at the festival:

Alina Simone
An Horse
Arbouretum
Benji Cossa
Black Hollies
Boat People
Brooke Waggoner
Deerhoof
Dunge
Elk City
Eux Autres
Florence and the Machine
Fujiya & Miyagi
Hopewell
Imaginary Johnny
Immaculate Machine
James Jackson Toth
Jay reatard
Juliana Hatfield
Jungle Brothers
Lykki Li
Marco Benevento
Novillero
Ruby Suns
sBACH
School of Seven Bells
Sebastian Grainger
Sunny Day in Glosgow
Talkdemonic
The Blue Van
The Dreadful Yawns
The Music Tapes
The Teenage prayers
The Whitsundays
 
Recommendations from GARY CALAMAR

Brighton, MA
Fujiya & Miyagi
Gang Gang Dance
Gliss
City and Color
Jay Reatard
Lykke Li
The Pack AD

JASON ELDREDGE Picks

Friendly Fires
Fujiya & Miyagi
Kid Sister
Matthew Dear
Neon Neon
Radio Luxembourg
The Mae Shi
The Virgins

ARIANA MORGENSTERN produces Morning Becomes Eclectic and here are her choices:

Ane Brun
Florence and the Machine
James Jackson Toth
King Kahn and the BBQ Show
Theresa Andersson
Titan
Wye Oak

GARTH  TRINIDAD keeps it simple…

Cool Kids
Zimbabwe Legit

Anthony Valadez picks his favorites:

Appolo Heights
Black Milk
Blu
Delta Spirit
El Debarge
Kidz in the Hall
People Under the Stairs
School of Seven Bells
Talib Kweli

And lastly here’s a hodge podge of bands getting airplay on various KCRW music shows:

Blind Pilot
Boat People
Broken Social Scene
Dears
Deerhoof
Delta Spirit
Florence and the Machine
Friendly Fires
Fujiya & Miyagi
Hockey
Lykke Li
Matthew Dear
Miniature Tigers
Natalie Walker
Octopus Project
Other Lives
Passenger
Princeton
Scissors for Lefty
Scouting for Girls
Silent Years
Takka Takka
Talib Kweli
The Blue Van
The Broken West
The Dears
The Virgins
Theresa Andersson
Violens
Virgins
Walter Meego
 

This morning I got an email from the manager for The Rumble Strips, who are playing the CMJ Artist Lounge KCRW is co-sponsoring. I didn’t know much about them but after a listen on MySpace, I was intrigued. A rock band with horns always gets my attention.  

 
Turns out, the UK group was not only in the U.S. but headed to LA. After a quick chat with their tour manager, I convinced them to drop by KCRW on their way up from San Diego! The guys came down to the basement, got a cup of tea (appropriate, isn’t it), played a song and then we gave them directions to the beach. Watch it all HERE on our CMJ page and go check them out at Spaceland tonight (Wed) if you are out on the town.

RR