Michael Jackson’s Death Officially Ruled Homicide [Rolling Stone]
Official Nirvana Live At Reading CD/DVD Due Out November 3 [Pitchfork]
The Doors’ Final Four New York Concerts To Be Released In Six-Disc Set [Rolling Stone]
Those Metallica Copycats Weezer Get Their Own Web Radio Station [The Tripwire]
Get The Deets On New Beck/Charlotte Gainsbourg Album [Pitchfork]
Blackalicious’ Gift Of Gab To Drop Solo LP, Escape to Mars [Pitchfork]
Watch Live Set From The Dodos [Stereogum]
Listen To Previously Undiscovered Elliott Smith Song, “Grand Mal” [Pitchfork]
And, For Something To Think About After An Unusually Pitchfork-Heavy News Day: Buddyhead Gives Pitchfork’s “Top 500 Tracks Of The 2000s” A 0.0 [Prefix]
compiled by Erin Sheehy
LIVE JOURNAL
JezebelMusic.com @ the Northside Festival | June 11-14, 2009
From June 11-14 The L Magazine’s Northside Festival took over the bars, galleries, and, most importantly (to us anyway) music venues of the “north side” (i.e., Williamsburg and Greenpoint) of Brooklyn. With somewhere around 80 showcases crammed into just three and a half days, the number of musical options was dizzying and, for some, agonizing. One frantic text I received during the weekend read: “Quick, who do you think I should see? Les Sans Culottes (ye ye esque) or Wild Yaks (drunk rock). I’m suffering from crippling indecision!” The sentiment was the same among others – especially when having to choose between the big headliners (Bill Callahan, The Hold Steady, Sunset Rubdown, The Dodos, Asobi Seksu, Bishop Allen) at bigger venues (Music Hall of Williamsburg, Studio B) and lesser-known acts (Pet Ghost Project, Ava Luna, Glass Ghost, Knight School, Browns) at smaller, more intimate spaces (Trophy Bar, Bar Matchless, Coco66, Cameo Gallery). I tended to opt for the latter and was happy I did. I caught some of the liveliest, rawest, most refreshing performances I’ve seen in a while – Drink Up Buttercup banging the shit out of their “smashcans” with maracas and bells, Tune-Yards wailing atop her primitive, soulful, pummeling beats, The Albertans singing sweetly in the sun, during an acoustic sidewalk set, Ghost Gamblers howling out their hearty Americana-cum-country tunes. At our own showcase, I was thoroughly impressed by the total talent that characterized the night. I repeatedly caught myself thinking, “Wow, these guys are good,” and then finding my surprise silly – I had, after all, booked the bands. What was especially notable about the weekend was that nearly every act involved was Brooklyn-based, a testament to the vitality of the current local music scene. The festival had it’s flaws, of course – badgeholders not being admitted to shows, set time screw ups – but, especially given that it was its first year, I would say an overall success.
Below, the reactions and reminiscences of some of our writers and, here, a slideshow capturing some images from the weekend.
[All images copyright 2009 Jen McManus]
Artists pictured (in order of appearance): Patrick Bower and the World Without Magic, Neckbeard Telecaster, The Art of Shooting, Bottle Up and Go, The Press, Ghost Gamblers, Katie Eastburn, Tune-Yards, The Dodos
by Elana Jacobs
JezebelMusic.com Northside Coverage:
Northside Ladies by Erin Sheehy
Tallest Man on Earth by Eva Meszaros
Cymbals Eat Guitars by Max Sebela
1928 Recordings Showcase by Erin Sheehy
Boadrum 9 Not As Cool as 88 Boadrum (Or 77 Boadrum) [Brooklyn Vegan]
Timbaland and Nelly Furtado Sued For Plagiarism [NME]
Buy a Little Good Stuff From Polyvinyl, Get a Lot of Free, Okay Stuff [Idolator]
Battles’ Tycondai Braxton Readies Solo Album, Solo Market [Pitchfork]
Taylor Swift Performing With T-Pain Not as Funny as It Should’ve Been [Idolator]
Pinback Announce Fall Tour [Brooklyn Vegan]
New Flaming Lips Album Gets Named Embryonic [Prefix]
A Place to Bury Strangers and Thee Oh Sees Added to Siren Music Festival [Brooklyn Vegan]
The Dodos Announce New Album, Time to Die (Biggie Reference?) [NME]
Damn Good Rock in Twin Peaks: David Lynch Writes Rock Album [Pitchfork]
compiled by Max Sebela
Weekly Review
To be frank, I am less concerned at the moment with what happened in music this past week, across the land, than what is happening today (right now actually!), right here in Brooklyn. The Northside Festival goes out with a kick-drum-boom bang today with a whole bunch of awesome shows – including, my pick, a daytime fiesta at Studio B with Phil and the Osophers, Laura Gibson, and The Dodos, which will then transform into darktime fiesta with more evening-centric bands Cool Dads, Thank You, Ponytail, and Crystal Stilts. There’s an afternoon show going on at Bruar Falls with Browns, Air Waves, and The Sundelles, which should also be pretty great and a slew of other evening bills that are going to be difficult to choose between (though for many, the Callahan choice – playing at 10:40pm at Music Hall of Williamsburg – will be clear). Anyway, I’m late (or right on time given the requisite 20-minute-late start time for these shows), so gotta get going. And so do you.
by Elana Jacobs
Weekly Review
Last week was the week of the magnanimous major-label musician. Everyone, it seems, is either streaming their album in full online, or giving away their music away entirely. Perhaps they’re following the lead of some and trying to prevent the people from taking piracy into their own hands. Perhaps Busta, Eminem, Amos, and Richie really do care about appeasing their fans. Or perhaps they all got wind of this study.
Last week was also the week of the indie-music marketing mongers. The Dodos’ “Fools” is being used by Miller, Passion Pit is pushing sales for Nike, Stereo Total has a spot in the new laptop ads for Dell, Matt & Kim are selling Bacardi Mojitos, and New Young Pony Club has been enlisted by Nissan. I guess the little guys have been doing their research as well.
It’s a crazy, convoluted sort of capitalism in which commercial artists are handing out their music for free and independent musicians are the ones doing car sales.
Ah, whatever, it’s Sunday. Let’s all go pop open a couple of Miller Chills.
by Elana Jacobs
13-Year-Olds From Indiana Can Be Indie Rockers Too [The Tripwire]
Bid Farewell to Brooklyn Standby Black Betty [Brooklyn Vegan]
TicketsNow Makes Boo Boo, Pisses Off Bruce [Idolator]
Jack White Steps Into Nashville Politics [SPIN]
Kanye Peeved by Twitter Impersonators [Prefix]
ISPA Will Not Police Online Piracy [NME]
Dodos Do Miller Chill [Stereogum]
Preview New Iron and Wine Before It Comes Out Next Week! [Prefix]
compiled by Elana Jacobs
Hardly Art Signs Brooklyn‘s Golden Triangle [Brooklyn Vegan]
Neutral Milk Hotel, Carousels, and Now a School Play [Idolator]
Daft Punk Forays Again into Film [The Tripwire]
Animal Collective Appears Live on Letterman [Prefix]
Van Halen the Video Game! [Billboard]
Flaming Lips Frontman Gets Back to the Books [The Tripwire]
Coldplay Comments on Copyright Case (and a Funny Video) [Idolator]
The Dodos Are Ready To Do It Again [Pitchfork]
compiled by Elana Jacobs
