May 2011
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B.O.M.B. Fest Day 1: The Guru / Titus Andronicus /...
After Wavves’ less-than-stellar set, Connecticut’s The Guru were perfectly situated to steal the mid-afternoon show. Readers of this blog know that I believe in this young, up and coming band wholeheartedly, so seeing them play on such a large stage with such a high end sound system and setup made me really happy. That said, regardless of my personal association with the band, I was...
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B.O.M.B. Fest Day 1: Midi & The Modern Dance /...
The first band I saw upon arriving at B.O.M.B. Fest on Saturday was Midi & The Modern Dance, a Connecticut-based band that I’ve been obsessing over for the past five months or so. Having seen Omeed Goodarzi, the band’s frontman (pictured above in the red shirt), perform twice by himself, I was excited to see the band in full for the first time. They took the stage at 11:40 to a...
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i don't clean. i'm not clean. ok? →
toolshedsandhottubs:
I think something some people need to understand about music but the punk scene especially is that people in bands are not rock stars. in a lot of cases, bands are formed because there are a group of socially awkward kids who need an outlet. when you talk to your favorite singer/guitarist/etc after the show, i wouldn’t expect much. i don’t really like the fandom that is...
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Day One of B.O.M.B. Fest was fantastic. Full posts with pictures about each of the bands I saw will be made along with posts about tomorrow’s bands on Monday.
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Headed off to B.O.M.B. Fest!
See you there!
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Left of the Dial: 6-8 PM on WNHU →
Click the link above to listen to my radio show “Left of the Dial” live right now on WNHU here in Connecticut. I’ll be playing songs that I’ve been listening to a lot during this past week, with a specific focus on B.O.M.B. Fest artists, since the festival comes to Hartford this weekend. I’ll be broadcasting until 8 PM eastern. Tune in!
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Lewis and his Blog mentioned on The Feast! →
In preparation for Connecticut’s premier music festival B.O.M.B. Fest this weekend, the Connecticut-focused culture website The Feast has been interviewing people associated with the festival, including Manic Productions mastermind Mark Nussbaum and official B.O.M.B. Fest MC Robbie DeRosa. Most recently, they sat down with Kyle McEvoy, a guitarist from The Guru, whose forthcoming record...
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Special Announcement: "Left of the Dial" + RED... →
Hey everybody!
As I’m sure you know, in addition to this blog, I run a radio show on WNHU called “Left of the Dial” every friday from 6 to 8 PM. Two weeks from now, on June 10th, I’m having a very special show! Alex and Palko from the Red Rash Collective are stopping by to talk with me about their work in the Collective, the DIY scene in the tri-state area, and the music...
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Sebadoh "Bakesale" Reissue Details Announced →
When I saw Sebadoh back in March on their “Bakesale/Harmacy Reissue” Tour, singer/songwriter Lou Barlow explained the lack of, well, a Bakesale / Harmacy reissue, by blaming it on the band’s long-running record label Sub Pop. It seems that Sub Pop has finally gotten the ball rolling on reissuing at least one of those two albums, in this case the band’s 1994 lo-fi classic...
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Download the New Algernon Cadwallader Album Now →
The Pennsylvanian emo-revival proginators Algernon Cadwallader (pictured above at the final My Heart to Joy show earlier in May) are following up their 2008 Some Kind of Cadwallader debut LP with a new album, 2011’s Parrot Flies. The album just leaked, and can be downloaded at the above link. Here’s the colorful artwork below:
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WatchSong of the Day Number 162
The Helveticas - “She Killed Me”
The Helveticas are an indie pop band from Connecticut who play incredibly catchy music with soulful undercurrents. I hate to use the word “chill” these days to describe music, but that’s perhaps the perfect description for some of their music, exemplified by the song “She Killed Me”, which...
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ATTENTION: BANDS + Labels
If you’re interested in getting your music publicized on this blog, please send me links to your music in my ask box. Download links are preferred. Free music gets priority, but ultimately coverage depends on whether I’m into the music or not. I look forward to hearing more of your music!
-Chris
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The Guru - Native Sun (2011)
You wouldn’t necessarily realize it from listening to their music, but The Guru are a remarkably young group of people. Of the band’s four members, three are still in high school (although not for long), while one is currently in college. Kyle McEvoy, who plays guitar, is only sixteen years old. And yet, for such young people, the four guys (Ed Godin, Dan George, Colin Sullivan, and...
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Omeed Goodarzi - “Your Hand’s In...
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The Feast Interviews Manic Productions' Mark... →
As many of you know, Manic Productions is the premier indie rock/punk show booking and promoting agency in Connecticut. In this interview, the Connecticut culture website The Feast sat down with the agency’s founder Mark Nussbaum, one of the nicest guys in the world, to talk about B.O.M.B. Fest, which comes to Hartford this weekend. This is essential reading for anyone who’s...
alimurray asked: Hello Chris,
I just wanted to say that I randomly came across your blog and I really love it You have great taste. I loved your Mark Kozelek blog. I've decided to 'follow' you. I hope you don't mind.
Hope you're well
-Ali
I just wanted to say that I randomly came across your blog and I really love it You have great taste. I loved your Mark Kozelek blog. I've decided to 'follow' you. I hope you don't mind.
Hope you're well
-Ali
Native Sun by The Guru on Sex Cave Records →
The Guru’s new album set for release on June 11th will be released through Sex Cave Records. The full length, Native Sun, will be a run of 500 CDs on Sex Cave Records. June 11th is going to be a release show for The Guru at The Space in Hamden CT. Expect more details as we get closer to that date. All of us are super stoked to put out this masterpiece. This thang sounds good, no joke. If you...
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Stream the "Our Band Could Be Your Life" Tribute... →
(via NPR Music)
NPR Music recorded the amazing Our Band Could Be Your Life 10th anniversary tribute show last night at the Bowery Ballroom in New York City, and now the whole show has been put up on their site for streaming. The show featured fourteen modern indie rock bands performing the songs of the thirteen 1980s college rock and punk bands profiled in Michael Azerrad’s Our Band...
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WatchSong of the Day Number 160
Arcade Fire - “Speaking In Tongues” (Featuring David Byrne)
The ascending indie rock giants Arcade Fire are still on the ascent, it seems. In order to capitalize on the band’s crossover success, their label Merge Records is reissuing their 2010 album The Suburbs on August 2nd as a deluxe edition package. The deluxe edition, which will feature the...
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WatchListen: Low - Tiny Desk Concert (Live at NPR Music)
In their latest act of promotion for their stunning new album C’mon, the Duluth, Minnesota slowcore act stopped by NPR Music yesterday to perform a Tiny Desk Concert in Bob Boilen’s office at the NPR Music headquarters. They performed three songs from the album, including the gorgeous opener “Try To Sleep.” The minimalist...
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Song of the Day Number 159
James Blake -...
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Left of the Dial Radio Playlist - 5/20/11
I had so much fun during last nights Left of the Dial radio show on WNHU! I played a lot of music from bands who are playing B.O.M.B. Fest in Hartford next weekend, along with some old (and not so old) favorites of mine. The full playlist is below, complete with youtube links to each song (when available). Remember to tune in next Friday, where I’ll be getting everyone psyched up for...
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Left of the Dial on WNHU: 6-8 PM Eastern →
Hey everyone,
I’m DJing again tonight for my weekly radio show Left of the Dial on WNHU. Tonight I’m going to be playing a lot of music from bands that are playing at this year’s B.O.M.B. Fest, which comes to Hartford on Memorial Day weekend and features the likes of Titus Andronicus, Wavves, Man Man, Free Energy, Real Estate and Best Coast, excellent local bands Midi &...
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“He’s a fucking genius. I’d never seen nor heard of him in my life,...”
– Rick Ross on Bon Iver’s Justin Vernon
(via Pitchfork)
In case you haven’t checked yet, I reviewed Bon Iver’s new self-titled album HERE.
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pre-postmortem asked: Is it hard for you to enjoy music?
I'm only wondering, because it seems difficult to listen to so many different bands just for the sake of keeping your followers on tumblr and listeners on your radio show satisfied, and still manage to gain pleasure from taking a mariad of music all at once.
So, what I'm really asking is that if listening to music has become more of a...
I'm only wondering, because it seems difficult to listen to so many different bands just for the sake of keeping your followers on tumblr and listeners on your radio show satisfied, and still manage to gain pleasure from taking a mariad of music all at once.
So, what I'm really asking is that if listening to music has become more of a...
Anonymous asked: Between this and your personal blog, I'm just wondering how much bigger your head can get.
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Anonymous asked: the sheer amount of music you listen to intimidates me
Anonymous asked: Have you ever thought of putting some old music on your playlist? By old I mean stuff from the 70's, 80's, 90's.
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I’m currently putting together the playlist for my weekly radio show Left of the Dial, which airs live tomorrow on WNHU. The show begins at 6 PM eastern time and goes until 8.
What do you want to hear?
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WatchVideo: My Heart to Joy live at Madison Arts Barn, Madison CT - 5.14.11
For anyone who is, like me, still reeling from how fantastic My Heart to Joy’s last show ever was, this artfully shot monochrome video is a great way to relive the excitement of that night. The video captures a decent portion of the Connecticut emo revival band’s final set. I also recommend this to anyone who...
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Bon Iver - Bon Iver (2011)
As some of you may know, Bon Iver’s forthcoming self-titled album leaked last night more than a month in advance. Bon Iver, the new album from Justin Vernon’s haunting indie folk project of the same name, will be officially released on June 21st.
The album represents a significant sonic evolution for Vernon, whose 2007 breakthrough debut record under the Bon Iver name was an...
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More Bands Added to Red Rash Collective
redrashcollective:
We just added some new bands to our roster! EVERYONE, PLEASE, GO DOWNLOAD/BUY SOME MUSIC FROM THEM! THE RASH RECOMMENDS IT!
Old Gray (NH)
http://oldgray.bandcamp.com/
Beach Sleepers (NH) http://beachsleepers.bandcamp.com
The Ferns (CT) http://thefernsband.bandcamp.com/
Old Yeller (CT) http://oldyellertheband.bandcamp.com/
Young Mountain (NH)...
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New 1994!/AlgernonCadwallader/Snowing/BoysandSex... →
Click through to purchase to the brand new four-way split 7” record from emo punks 1994!, Algernon Cadwallader, Snowing, and Boys and Sex (pictured above). The digital version of the record can also be (legally) downloaded for free HERE. Snowing and Algernon both played their respective song from this 7” at the My Heart to Joy show on Saturday, and they both sounded great.
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WatchVideo: My Heart to Joy - “All of Life is Coming Home” (Live at Madison Arts Barn - 4.14.11)
This was the last song in My Heart to Joy’s incredible set at the Madison Arts Barn last night. Rest in peace. Check out the video for an amazing performance, and to see me jump up on stage and subsequently get pushed back off the stage by My Heart to Joy’s singer Ryan Nelson.
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Razor Article Number Two: In Which I Write About...
This is my second piece that I’ve written for my school’s newspaper The Razor. You can read it here, well before the publication date, in all its unedited glory.
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On April 25th, the New York Times published an article about a study conducted by Nathan DeWall and a team of other psychologists that found that the lyrics of...
