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December 15, 2005
Tosca made their first United States appearance last week and took up home at Irving Plaza for the night. The collaboration between Richard Dorfmeister, a legendary DJ from Vienna and Rupert Huber has produced many great ambient/dub/soul/funk albums including, “Chocolate Elvis,” “Fuck Dub” and “Opera. Dorfmeister is renowned for his works with Peter Kruder, going under the short K&D, and has put out many albums in has many fans throughout the world. Tosca’s albums have been mellower in nature and the show started with a piano piece that lasted over half an hour before Dorfmeister came out on stage. He played a dub-infused house set that was fun to listen and dance to. I met a few friends there and we held down the upstairs dancing the night away. Some fans were disappointed with the set, expecting more of Tosca’s music and something a little more unique than the disco-80’s funk set. Irving Plaza doesn’t have great sound and is usually host to more live performances, although Tosca was joined by a live reggae singer and another MC to give more of an performance feel that is often lost when there is just a live DJ spinning. As in most cases, I walked in blind on a recommendation and had a fun time dancing with the international scene.
Tags:
irving plaza, richard dofrmeister, rupert huber, tosca
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Posted on 12/15/2005
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December 14, 2005
Just a few years ago Zach Schwartz was down on his luck. The internet business was not working out so he decided to pursue his musical dreams. Hailing from San Francisco, Zach headed over to the East coast and recorded a solo album, Out of the Shadows, that Sub Pop picked up and has been getting rave reviews ever since. Upon returning to California, Zach changed his last name to Rogue and started a new band Rogue Wave. Their harmonious rock has a definite west Coast flavor, yet has been recorded in New York and retains some of the grittiness of the streets. Now coming to Bowery Ballroom to support their newest album, Descended Like Vultures, Rogue Wave had the daunting task of following up their first album. The reviews have been more mixed and as I stood in the front waiting for them to set up, a couple next to me started yelling, “Zach!” Rogue looked surprise to see them and I asked them if they were his groupies. Turns out they're old friends of his and had flown into New York to see the Nutcracker, (it appears his friend stayed successful with the internet business) and coincidently found out Rogue Wave was playing. I had only heard one song, the one that starts off their homepage. The drummer and the bassist held down the beat of the performance and the other member of this four-piece switched off between guitar and keyboards, while Zach played guitar and sang. The crowd was pretty into it and I enjoyed listening to the pop songs of these San Francisco dreamers. He played the first song of his encore solo, showing his origins as a solo artist and the crowd was calling to hear more. Catch Rogue Wave next time they make it across the vast United States.
Tags:
bowery ballroom, rogue wave
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Posted on 12/14/2005
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December 11, 2005
The Subways is an apt name for a band playing in New York City. Young, energetic, and fast paced, this power trio hails from England and I was able to be there for their first Manhattan appearance at the Lower East Side venue, Rothko. Playing songs of their debut album, “Young for Eternity,” coming to a store near you this February, the band was psyched by their first trip to the city. The first thing I noticed was how young they were and how England keeps on popping out these fresh kids playing rock n' roll. Anchored by a strong drummer the songs that stuck out in memory were their first single, “Rock N' Roll Queen,” and a soft sweet song turned hard called “Mary,” the usual topic of girls and boys being discussed. At one point of the show, Lunn climbed on top of one of the speakers and began clapping urging the crowd to do the same. Don't be fooled by the innocent look of the bassist Charlotte Cooper. Once the music started, she turned into a head-banging fury that would make Ozzy proud. The crowd was a little too cool to groove as always here and Lunn told the audience that he knew that New York has the spirit. Already receiving a lot of press out in England, check out The Subways the next time they make the journey across the Atlantic. Special thanks to Mick Lewis from The Big Takeover for the photo.
Tags:
rothko, the subways
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Posted on 12/11/2005
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December 09, 2005
The recent Honey Bros. club gig was set up at Go-Go with the Honey Brothers was set up by a combination of various sponsors. Their drummer, Adrian Grenier, stars in the popular HBO series Entourage and the band has recently sold out a Bowery show and is playing there again soon. A promise of free drink, live music took me to Chelsea t to check them out. I walked in through the red velvet ropes with my friend Mike, took a seat at a reserved table next to the stage, reserved for me I assumed, and waited for the show to begin. Grenier had a whistle around his neck, blowing sharply calling his fellow Honey Brothers to stage, the shrill sound reminding me of a drummer I know who used to bring a whistle to his shows, and whenever he would blow it he would scream, “Penalty.” The drummer is the anchor of the band and perhaps once could think of him as the referee of the beat of the band, keeping his players in line. The band played a short set, complete with go-go dancers on stag. Afterwards I asked a random girl what she thought of the show. She offered me an empty honey bottle, a souvenir for the night and said, “They reminded me of a band that my friend was a part of in college.”
Tags:
go go, honey bros
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Posted on 12/9/2005
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