The first taster from the forthcoming new album. Charles Rowell’s psychedelic guitar swirl starts “Crybaby Demon,” immediately followed by an infectiously repetitive bass line and Latin trashcan percussion.The first single from Crocodiles’ forthcoming album “Boys” offers a gaze into the salsa-punk existence the band lived while recording in Mexico City. It is the sound of helado and cervezas; bottles smashing against heads in Cuauhtémoc bat-caves. Brandon Welchez’s sneering vocal floats above, telling the tale of a fallen angel, head still in the clouds, abusive and abused. The flip side is a joyously noisy retelling of Hot Chocolate’s 1975 disco classic “U Sexy Thing” and adds to their ever growing collection of oddball influences.
Posts Tagged ‘Brooklyn’
LADY LAMB the BEEKEEPER – ” Billions Of Eyes “
Posted: February 27, 2015 in MUSICTags: Aly Spaltro, Brooklyn, Indie Folk, Lady Lamb the Beekeeper
Aly Spaltro began playing music in her hometown on the coast of Maine when she was 18 years old, jamming in secret and teaching herself as many instruments as she could get her hands on. When her collection grew too large for her room, she asked her boss at Bart & Greg’s DVD Explosion whether she could keep her new equipment in the store’s basement. “He was the first person that I ever told that I was writing music,” she says, on the phone to discuss After, her new album as Lady Lamb
“I basically asked him if, after my closing shift, I could lock up and then stay and play there after hours, and he was really supportive.”
Every night after 11 o’clock, Aly Spaltro would go down into the basement and start her “nightly routine”: She would take all of the instruments out at once – guitars, bass guitars, banjos – and arrange them around her, picking up whichever one appealed at that moment and recording as she went. “It had a huge influence on how I write music because I could be so loud,” she says. “I feel very fortunate that in those early years, I was able to crank my amp and plug in a mic. I was 18, you know, so I had a lot of feelings.”
Now 25, Aly Spaltro lives in Brooklyn and is preparing to release her second studio LP, a collection of surrealist folk rock that grounds the dream-like imagery of her past work in the hard specifics of concrete events. Although she doesn’t find the city itself particularly inspiring, the new environment left a clear impact on the sound of the record. “I’ve written a handful of softer, quieter songs, just from having to be quiet in an apartment,” she explains. “But then I’d realize, ‘Oh, my voice didn’t have that kind of range or softness to it [before].’ That’s been helpful.”
Nevertheless, After marks a return to the initial creativity Spaltro experienced in her basement practice space all those years ago. Rather than recording the songs live with a band, she tracked the guitars, bass, keys and banjos herself, then brought in string and horn players to add a new layer of instrumentation. The process took about two months. “The big difference with this album is that I went into the studio with a very clear vision of what sounds I was going for,” she says. “Most times I end up doing a lot of subtracting. I’ll make things really, really big and then one of my favorite parts is figuring out what sections need to become minimal again.”
WILSEN – ” Sea To Sea “
Posted: February 19, 2015 in MUSICTags: Brooklyn, Magnolia EP, Wilsen, Wye Oak
Tamsin Wilson’s voice is so intimate that her atmospheric indie pop feels like a long phone call with a significant other. It’s only fitting that she’s caught the attention of Wye Oak, a band known for merging subtle, commanding vocals with powerful instrumentals. The Baltimore duo have given Wilsen’s gentle ballad “Sea To Sea” a churning, electronic makeover. It’s a blissed-out collection of synth textures, but Wilson’s ethereal pipes are the glue that holds it all together.
PARQUET COURTS – ” Live at Palisades Brooklyn ” 9th February 2015
Posted: February 12, 2015 in MUSICTags: Brooklyn, Live, New York Taper, Palisades, Parquet Courts
Parquet Courts, they’ve become more and more assured and impressive. The Brooklyn band — who are now “big” enough to headline many a venue, decided to end their latest stint on the road in the best possible way. The foursome landed this time at Bushwick’s Palisades, a resolutely scrappy DIY venue where the room is spare, the drinks are cheap and the vibe is warm for a two-night stint. This level of ticket sell-out reminded me of the best days of the venue 285 Kent ,
Parquet Courts inspires that kind of loyalty, and deserves to. Their style may be rooted in garage and punk, but they play like serious musicians, shredding their way through material from both of their 2014 records, “Sunbathing Animal” and the newer Album “Content Nausea” (released under the name “Parkay Quarts”). Besides Andrew Savage’s lead vocals that are easy to actually make out , the band’s most notable calling card is their ability to construct earworm riffs that make you remember songs of theirs even if you’ve only heard them once. This set did a fine job of mixing up short masterpieces of the band’s like “Light Up Gold II” and “Careers In Combat” with pieces that give Savage, guitarist Austin Brown, bassist Sean Yeaton and drummer Max Savage a chance to stretch out and show their chops, especially the “Instant Disassembly” that came earlier in the set. At times it felt like the band wasn’t even taking a breath between songs, with the riff of the next number cranking up at the last downbeat of the one before. It made for a kind of momentum that reminded me of Parquet Courts’ current career.
Befitting their love for the hometown crowd, the set we got here was longer than than other recent shows, and included a new song mix, including a cover. At first, the Monday night crowd felt a little sedate, to the point that you can hear a fan screaming “Wake the fuck up!” at least once on this recording. But the only blame for that can go to how densely packed it was in there — sardines can’t dance, either. By mid-set, the true believers had assumed their rightful places up front, and the pogoing and pit were in effect. The band kept joking with the crowd about how any of us got tickets in the first place. But that’s one advantage of having your tour-ending shows at Palisades on a Monday and Tuesday night — you can make a pretty educated guess that the people who choose to be there are the ones that actually give a shit.
The band is off to Australia and New Zealand, and then the festival circuit, in March. At their current pace, they may as well have another album done by summer. Until then, we wish them well. Success sits well with them.
many thanks to the New York Taper,
LVL UP – ” Somebody Kill Me Please “
Posted: February 12, 2015 in MUSICTags: Brooklyn, Compilation, Father Daughter Records, LVL Up
We reached out to Father/Daughter’s Records co-founder, Jessi Frick, to talk about her experience with Record Store Day, and how she’s releasing the next “Faux Real” compilation number two outside of the event. Premiering the first song from the new compilation: It’s from Brooklyn rockers LVL UP, who cover “Somebody Kill Me Please” as originally performed by Adam Sandler (aka Robbie Hart) in the movie “The Wedding Singer”.
SMALL WONDER – ” Wendy “
Posted: February 8, 2015 in MUSICTags: Brooklyn, New York, Small Wonder, Wendy
Small Wonder, is the project of Henry Crawford, who released a wonderful album by the name of “Wendy” early last year. If you missed it, I urge you to go seek out and have a listen and purchase it over at his bandcamp page. You won’t regret it. He Has recently played a solo set as support to the even more wonderful Natalie Prass Although the arrangements were obviously more sparse, he still managed to bring the songs to life all the same.
WOODS – ” Only The Lonely “
Posted: February 5, 2015 in MUSICTags: Brooklyn, With Light and With Love, Woods
Woods are an American folk rock band from Brooklyn, New York City who formed in 2005. The band’s membership now includes singer-guitarist Jeremy Earl, multi-instrumentalist Jarvis Taveniere and drummer Aaron Neveu. To date Woods have released eight albums, the latest being With Light and with Love. reviewed one of their previous albums, Songs of Shame, giving the band its “Best New Music” designation and described the sound as “a distinctive blend of spooky campfire folk, lo-fi rock, homemade tape collages, and other noisy interludes, all anchored by deceptively sturdy melodies. Singer-guitarist and founder Jeremy Earl also runs the rising Brooklyn label Woodsist, for whom the band releases their work.
WOODS – ” Blood Dries Darker “
Posted: February 5, 2015 in WE LOVETags: Austin Psych Fest, Brooklyn, Psychedelic Folk Rock, Woods
Brooklyn based Folk Rock band Woods performing backstage at the Austin Psych Fest , Woods are an American folk rock band from Brooklyn, originally formed in 2005. The band’s membership now includes singer-guitarist Jeremy Earl, multi-instrumentalist Jarvis Taveniere and drummer Aaron Neveu.
Woods have released eight albums, the latest being “With Light and with Love” reviewed one of their previous albums, Songs of Shame, giving the band its “Best New Music” designation and described the sound as “a distinctive blend of spooky campfire folk, lo-fi rock, homemade tape collages, and other noisy interludes, all anchored by deceptively sturdy melodies. Singer-guitarist and founder Jeremy Earl also runs the rising Brooklyn label Woodsist,Records for whom the band releases their work.
LEAPLING – ” Vacant Page “
Posted: February 5, 2015 in MUSICTags: Brooklyn, Exploding in Sounds Records, Leapling
Brooklyn’s Leapling isn’t much for rules, and the band’s debut album “Vacant Page”, (set to be co-released by Exploding In Sound Records and Inflated Records in 2015) is going to prove it. Take the album’s first single, “Crooked,” which it may have an indie-rock framework, but its hip-hop backbone avoids nearly all the tricks traditional rock bands use. The processed drums cut in and out quickly, with cymbal hits decaying as quickly as they emerge. Staccato guitar strikes cut in between this broken groove, allowing vocalist Dan Arnes to use his soulful vocals as the song’s anchor. Leapling builds its identity around this glitchy take on Death Cab For Cutie, even if “Crooked” sees the group willingly throwing a wrench in the machine just to see what will happen.
The LONE BELLOW – ” Then Came The Morning and Fake Roses “
Posted: February 5, 2015 in MUSICTags: Americana, Brooklyn, Country, The Lone Bellow, Then Came The Morning
The Lone Bellow’s second album is a real treat. Call it country; call it gospel-blues, call it rock, call it what you will because `Then Came The Morning’ manages to be all these and more without ever having to strain to be anything other than what it is, and what it is is damned fine music, sung and played with unadulterated passion.
There are thirteen numbers in the set; all as good as one another; not a wasted moment for the discerning listener. That’s a tough call in a World full of good stuff but this extraordinarily talented Brooklyn-based ensemble : Zach Williams, Kanene Donehey and Brian Elmquist, make it all seem so natural and magically inevitable.
Some of the songs sound as old as the hills; instant timeless classics fresh out of the mould. Take a composition like “Marietta’, where three voices intertwine with such unaffected pathos .Get an earful of the tumultuous `Heaven Don’t Call Me Home’ and see if it doesn’t make you want to holler along with them! `Cold As It Is’, too, has the kind rousing riff to make your knees tremble and the touching vocal from Ms Donehey on `Call To War’ will make your heart flutter. The gorgeous `Telluride’, however, is the album’s defining moment and still centre;
a song so beautiful it deserves to have a space of its own in a quiet corner of Heaven.
Take my word for it, `Then Came The Morning’ is one of the finest things you’ll hear this year.
The Fat Angel Sings 