Phoenix Release Free Live Album!

Ultimate crossover French indie rockers Phoenix just released a live album from a performance in Sydney today! The recording is great, the setlist is awesome (a bit Wolfgang Amedeus Phoenix heavy, but whatevs) and they included the perfect amount of young, presumably hot Australian girls screaming in the background. For those of us who have been with Phoenix ever since the beginning, when Pitchfork named them the "soft rock strokes," -booooo, P4k, - this little live album is a great victory lap for the band that deserved the success they've found the most. Grab it! Listen to it! Love it!

1901 collaboration video

PHOENIX | MySpace Music Videos

Phoenix - OS|MS

Phoenix - Lasso (Live in Sydney)

Phoenix - 1901 (Live in Sydney)

Snapshots: The Big Pink @ Neumos

I had the chance to see The Big Pink play Neumos last friday!! Here's a couple quick shots of the band I took during the show. They really cooked it up. I, personally, loved last year's A Brief History of Love. Some people don't agree... but they can suck it. In my top ten for emerging bands of 2009 and definitely one of the best shows of 2010, so far! Then again, I was ultimately cross-faded, so take heed. <3

St. Patrick's Day/Kells Aftermath - Stout Pounders

Hey Y'all

Sorry for my extended absence - its been a crazy couple days. Yesterday, especially, as I worked 16 hours shift at Kells, the hands down busiest bar in Seattle, on St. Patrick's Day, bar backing for the main bar. 16 hours with no breaks, on my feet, not having eaten a single thing all day, running back and forth through a totally packed bar, lifting kegs of beer shoulder height, all while wearing dress clothing and a tie. I think I'm going to die now, so I'm going to be a real asshole and just post some of the music played live last night that helped me make it through the night.

The Stout Pounders, a local Seattle Celtic Folk band, rocked the main stage for the a good part of the evening. Their mix of traditional instruments and modern rock swagger was highly reminiscent of the work of The Pouges, and they did a great job getting the afternoon crowd moving. They played an excellent mix of traditional and non-traditional folk music, as well as folk renditions of alternative music such as Nirvana's "Come As You Are" and Flogging Molly's "What's Left On The Flag." I had a chance to meet the lead singer Darin briefly, and he was a characteristic and energetic force for the band.

Stout Pounders - MS|OS

Spillway

Local shows/bands are always hit or miss; most of these shows fall into the latter category. I've seen my fair share of local acts playing mediocre to fairly incompetent shows at a variety of locales (mostly Oly). I've also had my mind blown to pieces by a couple of these acts.

Last night, I'm happy to say, I had my mind ravaged by the sound of Spillway. The band, originally from Dallas, TX, has recently taken up post in Seattle with three of the original members and two locals. I sat through the [mediocre] openers and threw back a couple beers to take in the venue: Cafe Racer, a hipster bar (by all means) characterized by its 'home-like' feel: multiple rooms over a split level, inhabited by a wide range of cliques doing their own thing in each area. The 'stage' was just one of these rooms, but it felt 'garage like.' [It's certainly worth visiting]

I was expecting next to nothing and I received quite the opposite. It took all of ten seconds for me to fall in love with the band and they continued to impress throughout, driving my desire for more. Like a drug, enjoyment only brought more desire and it wasn't long until my subtle sway to the sound gave way to full-on dancing/head-banging action.

This is the best local act I've seen since Starfucker.

Their sound can only be characterized as a landscape: guitars climbing mountaintops; rolling bass and a thumping synth ripping canyons from rock; monstrous drumming pulling the song through swinging tempos; lo-fi vocals pulling a layer of fog to the ground, if only for their twangy peaks to emerge victorious on top. Seriously. I heard tints of bands like Built to Spill, Arcade Fire, Wolf Parade, Okkervil River... Self described as a rock/folk/punk group, Spillway merges a number of influences, obvious or not, into something cohesive that I can honestly call the most unique sound I've heard in a while. Each song has movement to it: varying velocities carry you to the top of a peak and toss you off, effortlessly, seamlessly, to a hole in the ground, pitch black and frightening. With few slip-ups, the band could be called impressive if only for the near-perfect execution of their ideas.

The recordings on the myspace page are a tad dated and I'd say that the sound has changed considerably since their Dallas days. I'm not sure if the lo-fi vocals was intended last night, but you won't hear it in these tracks. The band will be recording in the coming weeks and they've said they'll send me a track or two, so DO look forward to that. I'll be keeping close tabs on this band as they develop.

Also check out their official site and download their first album 'Any Old Place' (It's VERY good). They have their upcoming release listed as 'Stop Dreaming/The Northernmost Fisherman.'

Next show is April 4th at The Comet Tavern w/ Motopony. Who wants to come with?

Spillway (MS) | (OS) - Hair n Bone | UPDATE: *Rise and Rise and Fall* | Fader Parader

A Cross the Universe

I recently had the opportunity to watch the new Justice documentary.

Holy shit balls man. It's short, but just long enough, packed densely with everything you want out of a banger band doc: electro, booze, bus tour with a crazy bus driver, guns, titties, cops, fights, sex, and a crazy tour manager.

The entire film serves as a snapshot of America through the eyes of French people. It epitomizes every American stereotype you can imagine. Moreover, it gives absolute credence to these stereotypes while blurring the line between fiction and reality.



What I got from this film: electro is the new rock and roll. electro is the new religion. Every girl in the world wants to be in your pants if you are a successful electro band.

It's just like the eighties without all the coke.

The filmmaker simply and subtly sets the movie for all of it's points and contrasts making absolutely clear what Justice means to the world, or on a broader scale what electro is doing to the world. Along the way it captures the reality of live Justice shows and what exactly happened on the North American tour. There is really very little live footage in the film, but what is in there is solid gold.



It's obviously highly recommended to everyone. It was the most inspirational film I've seen all year. If you are planning on seeing it than don't read the SPOILERS I'm about to give to everyone who wasn't going to see it.

**********SPOILERS
Watch this movie if you want to see:
*Justice shooting guns
*Justice getting married in las vegas
*A crazy bus driver who's convinced he has the lowest voice ever
*Justice shopping for giant mansions
*A drunk bitch serenading Justice in possibly the most excruciatingly painful piece of footage I've ever seen.
*titties
*Incredibly moving live footage
*Justice getting arrested.

Watch this movie if you don't want to be proud of your country but you want to be proud of your generation.
*************END SPLOITZ

It's hilarious, it's fucking banger, and badass as hell. DO ET.

The DVD is coming out soon and will include a full length live album - nothing necessarily new, but absolutely fresh.

Justice - Phantom 1.5 (live)

JUSTICE - A CROSS THE UNIVERSE (teaser)
by edbangerrecords

Passion Pit at The Middle East

We board the eighty-six bus, transfer at Harvard, ride one stop to Central, and walk to the Middle East. IDs are checked and we walk down the stairs. It's a basement, no windows, walkway along the left side, two bars, and people standing on the floor. The ceiling is ten feet tall, but it reaches over our heads and presses towards the ground. The crowd is anxious. They have come for Les Savy Fav. A band whose wikipedia page is being considered for deletion doesn't interest them, they are indie rockers, hard rockers.

The show is sold out, but the crowd hasn't arrived. People come in, people leave. Jeff Apruzzese, the bassist, makes out with a girl behind the stage. He wears my purple Ben Sherman short-sleaved button-up, and I can't stop watching it. Passion Pit moves to the stage. People clap, they clap and the show begins. We watch Michael Angelakos play his tiny keyboard, his facial hair swaying with the rhythm. Dancing comes slowly, but soon the crowd moves to the left, to the right.



"You're gunna drive me crazy, you're gunna drive me mad"

The boy next to me jumps up and down. His hands are marked with black crosses, between eighteen and twenty-one. This will not be another boring under-appreciated show. This will not be sad. I look at Christine, I smile, we begin to dance. We are Portlandia and Cascadia. The next song is Live to Tell the Tale. It is flawless, of course.



"This is the room where we always dreamed, of grass and splendid evenings"

We fall into movement, crushing the space around us, nodding heads and kneading feet. I start yelling and throwing my arms in circles, Christine smiles and shakes her head, everyone around is my friend. Then I look back and see a roomful of absently standing people just moving to the music, completely missing everything.



"Have you seen me cry, tears like diamonds"

The music scene of Boston is here tonight, they dance with us, they stare and sigh at us, they check the time on their cell phones. "Passion Pit," I yell, "I fucking love you!" Between up and down jumping I see indifference and amusement. There isn't anywhere but the basement, Passion Pit in the basement, and dancing in the basement.


Passion Pit performs here at their home and nobody fucking cares. Maybe it's fitting that they're just another opener in a city of missed opportunities, but what Christine and I had with Passion Pit was beautiful. It was perfect. We dance, dance, danced. I was ready to quit school, to live underground, on a mountain, or next to the road. It didn't matter that everyone around us was a filthy shadow of what we had in Portland. I didn't care that this was one night out of two months. Passion Pit makes me feel good. That's all.

[photos from the flickr stream of marc.espowood]

Passion Pit - Sleepyhead
Passion Pit (MS)

Live Music: Minitel Rose @ Cargo de Nuit (Arles, France)

The lady and I made our way over to Arles last night to catch a glimpse of my new favorite electo pop band (excluding Passion Pit, which is too godly too compare) Minitel Rose. Hailing from Nantes, the band, a trio, is signed to Valerie, the clear leader in new wave 80's electro so far as record labels go (imho). Their name is inspired by a form of pre-internet cybersex, from France in the early 80's. This band is a minitel rose for your ears.

The venue had an incredible setup. Two bars at the back where you walk in, right into a large open space with tall ceilings. Stairs going up to another large area on a balcony. Some tables in back and some benches on the wall. An insane amount of lights and lasers. And a fog machine that didn't fuck around. Overall, the venue was pretty small. Though I don't doubt you could pack A LOT of people in there, the venue had a very comfy feel. cheers.


Cargo de Nuit (Arles, France)

We stood through a pretty decent opener, Delete, that absolutely stank up the stage. Their music production was wonderful, but they were a long way away from good delivery. As much as I love to just stare at four bodies standing there, making music... it just doesn't make for a good show. There was a group of five 12 y/o's that were the only people dancing in the venue; it was just a little embarassing. Nevertheless, the music that came from the band called Delete was a nice band the just chill to. I think they would fall into the genre of electro funk, as the majority of their music was driven entirely by a single emotionless man with a bass guitar. Though, at other times they were certainly on different parts of the map. You can tell that they are a very new band, and I think they have a long way to go. Delete, if you are reading this.... DON'T SING. It's not working with your music for now.


Delete @ Cargo de Nuit (Arles, France)

Minitel Rose was explosive right out of the gate, and the crowd was susceptible to their wiles. They hit the stage like no one's business, and they didn't mess around, opening their concert with two songs from their freshman album <>, including the incredibly catchy "Magic Powder." They threw down some new songs on the crowd, one in particular that had an incredible energy behind it; and energy that could rival, perhaps, the likes of Justice. I'm excited to hear these songs when they're polished and packaged. All three members of the band were crowd pleasers, and did a very good job getting people moving and creating an atmosphere. Their sound was punchy and precise, again, great production here. At one point during the show, the lead singer ripped his keyboard off its stand and played it over his head like he was about to smash it at any second. He didn't smash it, thank god.


Minitel Rose @ Cargo de Nuit (Arles, France)

As they left the stage the crowd erupted in cheers and clapping and stomping and whistling, truly an amazing call for an encore. Five minutes passed, and Minitel Rose did not show their faces. It's kind of a dick thing to pull after such a great show, but honestly, I think the band just ran out of songs. A sad move really. I hope they consider saving one for the encore in the future. The crowd was really dissapointed :-(

Anyways, overall it was a wonderful show. Delete flopped and Minitel Rose more than made up for it. Incredible stage presence mixed with some inredible sound production, NOT TO MENTION fucking sweeeeeeet lights, it all made for an excellent spectacle.

Now listen here...

Delete (MS)
Minitel Rose (MS) - Be With You|Magic Powder