Show Review: The Thermals - Brooklyn Bowl NYC (4/20 & 4/21)

The Thermals via Portland Oregon are one of my favorite bands of all time. I've seen these cats three or four times in NYC and twice in Philly. I initially saw them on MT2 Subterranean back in the day in their video for How We Know from the album Fuckin-A. I was immediately hooked. I started seeking them out live after I picked up The Body, The Blood, The Machine (one of the top albums of all time in my opinion). As a guitar/drum/bass three piece their shows are loud and energetic = fun rock. With Hutch Harris (lead vocals/guitar) and Kathy Foster (bass/backing vocals) at the helm since day one they seem to have a Spinal Tap-esque rotation of different drummers over their career but the latest guy seems to be here to stay as he's been along for the last two tours. He loves the crowd and has a shit-eating-grin as he pounds away. Their albums are a good mix of punk and pop with lyrics that can make you think...but not too much. Dark humor is the best way to describe them especially on their last record Now We Can See. The lyrics on BBM are a playful stab at Christianity that should be viewed as just that...playful...whether your Christian, Agnostic or Atheist. Now lets talk about the shows...

Brooklyn Bowl (http://www.brooklynbowl.com/) which opened its doors in Williamsburg last year is a place I've never been to. I lived in Williamsburg back in 2000 on Bedford and South 2nd street as it was just beginning its hipster/gentrification build. There were minimal bars/clubs/restaurants/people. I feel like an old timer when I go there now as its 1000x more vibrant. Like the East Village on ritalin. Abandoned warehouses have been replaced by clothing/art/restaurant/loft installations. Not to mention the modern condos that litter the neighborhood (much to my dismay).

Brooklyn Bowl is a bowling alley/bar/restaurant/music venue which is pretty freakin cool. The space is unique to say the least. It looks like a refurbished brick warehouse (no windows) that may have been used prior by the Brooklyn Brewery which it backs into off of Wythe Ave and north 11th street. The space is completely open so if you are lucky to reserve an overpriced lane around 10pm then you'll also get to check out some live music behind you. Still trying to figure the whole situation out.

The first night I went with my friend Tracy and her boyfriend. The second night I went with a few friends (Amanda & Ridge) and my girlfriend Tracy (pictured here). Go figure.

The venue about the size of Irving Plaza in NY or The Troc in Philly but slightly smaller with no balcony. The first night was sold out but there was room to move. I caught the tail end of the first opener (The Coathangers...I think). They were God awful. A bunch of wannabe riot grrrls with no musical talent. just screaming and drumming and keyboards while pissing the crowd off between songs. That's my assessment. The second opener Past Lives was a different story. As they began playing I thought the lead singer and a few of his bandmates looked familiar as well as the sound. Turns out they are 70% of the recently broken up band The Blood Brothers. I'm a HUGE Blood Brothers fan. I believe two of the BBs including the lead vocalist teamed up with former Pretty Girls Make Graves members to form Jaguar Love while the remaining members including the backing vocalist formed Past Lives. Similar sound as the BBs but way more structured/melodic. Extremely great live on both nights. I have to pick up their record ASAP. Here are some pics (click to enlarge).

The Thermals took the stage the first night and just killed it. I was in the back of the venue and the sound was still incredible (despite the stage adjacent to a bowling alley). Like a nerd I tried to capture notes on the set list during the shows using my blackberry calendar (proooobably should of used the "memo pad" application...idiot). My blackberry subsequently died this past weekend so I'll have to go by memory. Here is the set list from the 4/18 show in Boston at The Middle East which gives you an idea. They pretty much played the same tracks on both nights but in a different order. (Bold = NEW!)

1. Now We Can See

2. We Were Sick

3. I Let It Go

4. When I Died

5. It's Trivia

6. How We Know

7. St. Rosa and the Swallows

8. Only For You

9. I Don't Believe You

10. A Passing Feeling

11. Back to Gray

12. Separate

13. Here's Your Future

14. I Might Need You to Kill

15. Test Pattern

16. When I Was Afraid

17. An Ear for Baby

18. A Pillar of Salt

19. No Culture Icons 

20. Returning to the Fold

 

The band sounded great as always. The crowd sucked on the first night per NYC standard (people talking/yelling over the music, motionless, young girls texting and looking around everywhere but the stage). The crowd was a little more lively the second night. That assessment could be skewed as I was way upfront for the 2nd night and closer to "the action". Tracy is a peanut as is my friend Amanda so getting close to the stage was priority #1...less tall dudes to look around. I'm a big freak so if they made a adult-sized Baby Bjorn I would accommodate. They played a healthy mix of tracks from old albums (How We Know, No Culture Icons, Our Trip) as well as newer favorites (Here's Your Future, Now We Can See, A Pillar of Salt, We Were Sick, St Rosa & The Swallows, When I Died, Returning To The Fold).

However on both nights they played three or four brand new songs which were SOOOOOO GOOD (no Canada unfortunately). Usually I get a little skeptical when bands test out new tracks on the road but I was pleasantly surprised (mainly cause I cant sing along/bob my head from memory). Very melodic lead riffs with some heavy/fast bass lines as well. The also played the track Separate off of their Record Store Day split 7inch with The Cribs. The new tracks sounded like a perfect hybrid of song structure from the last two albums. That said I am mega psyched for their new album which will come out later this year.

Here is a video I captured of one of the new songs on the second night. Blogger couldn't upload directly so I had to create a YouTube account (whether I create a CugeRock YouTube channel remains to be seen).

I don't think this track was played in Boston judging from the set list above. I remember they played I Don't Believe You and Separate in NY and Only For You just doesn't seem right given the chorus (Power Lies? Power Lines?). The video quality is great but the audio seems to cut out every time I zoom or "woo"...sorry.

All and all both shows were incredible as usual. A mix of old, recent and brand new tracks. They encored with Returning To The Fold on night one and Our Trip on night two (which was awesome).  If you ever get a chance to see this band in your city please please please do so. You will be fully satisfied with a meal of pure rock goodness?

New Blur Single - "Fool's Day" (Record Store Day 7-inch)

Not bad. Not bad at all. This is the first new song from Blur in 7 years! Fools Day was the single they released as a 7" in the UK for "record store day" that sold out almost immediately. I was bummed but (thanks to a heads up from my buddy Steve) I found out the band wanted everyone to have access to the single so they just released a free download. Go to http://www.blur.co.uk/ to get the free download (MP3 or WAV).

Blur frontman Damon Albarn was interviewed recently and said that they aren't planning on touring again or recording a new album any time soon given the lack of material and all of the work he is doing with Gorillaz (plus the 1000 other side-projects he is involved in). However, he did say that Blur will record some more singles to be released in the near future. I'll take it. It's so good to hear a new song from one of my favorite bands of all time (I know...I say that to all of the bands). Enjoy.

Village Voice 10th Annual SIREN FESTIVAL (7/17/10) : Line-Up Announced

http://siren.villagevoice.com/2010/


Umm Ted Leo + Surfer Blood = I'll see you in Coney Island on 7/17.

Matt & Kim should be solid live as well...although I was hoping to see them for the first time in a smaller venue like The Troc or Bowery Ballroom rather then an outdoor show. Wait...whats that? It's still free? Yes...yes I will shaddup. I'm not a huge fan of indie press darlings Pains of Being Pure at Heart but seeing them live should be interesting.

I've been to almost all of the Siren Festivals since its inception in 2001. If you can shake off your hangover from the night before and brave the long subway ride and the heat...every year its hot as all hell.....then this is an experience you need to have. The sound always sucks but its Coney Island for gods sake. Beers on the boardwalk, corndogs, THE CYCLONE, vomiting from the beer, corndogs and Cyclone. Man I love Coney Island...however I'm really nervous to see what they've done with some of the old time amusements to make way for the "revitalization" of the area. I'm glad they kept The Cyclone...hell of a ride. You feel like a kid afterwards exclaiming "lets do it again! Again!"...then you puke.

Some of the more notable bands that come to my mind from the past Siren Festivals I've attended include Sleater Kinney, Quasi, The Shins, Liars, Trail of Dead (drunk per usual), Superchunk, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Q and Not U, Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, Rainer Maria, We Are Scientists...off the top of my head. The top slots/headliners we usually didn't stick around for because (A) we were exhausted and (B) you don't want to hang out in Coney Island after the sun goes down. "Dicey"

NEW INTERPOL TRACK: "LIGHTS"

Dark and mysterious. Classic Interpol. Enclosed is a widget in which you have to confirm you are over 18 and provide your email address to have the download sent to you. Open up the zip file and it will be automatically added to your iTunes library. The song is decent but nothing revolutionary. Regardless I love it as I have always loved this band. Anything new is exciting. Paul Banks (aka Julian Plenti) recent solo album is not to shabby either. It could almost be a sub-par 4th Interpol album. The new Interpol album is slated to come out at some point this year but the band is being...well...dark and mysterious about a release date/touring. I'll keep you posted. Thanks for the heads up on this Mr Faust.

Extreme Makeover: CugeRock Edition

Hey y'all. I apologize for the lag in posts. I've been redesigning CugeRock over the past month and finally forked up the cash to register the custom domain name of http://www.cugerock.com/. The site is still serviced via Blogger so it will be pretty seamless if you are a "follower" and if you visit the old http://www.cugerock.blogspot.com/ address you will automatically be redirected to Cugerock.com. Let me know what you think of the look/feel/attitude (going "global" son).

I'll have some new posts in the coming weeks. Might have some show reviews as I will be pulling a "double-header" in checking out one of my favorite bands, The Thermals, in Brooklyn (Bklyn Bowl) tonight and tomorrow night then checking out Quasi at Johnny Brenda's in Philly on Friday. I also picked up the new Ted Leo and Miles Kurosky albums (which are SOLID) so I will try to get those reviews up as well.

Enjoy the spring weather kiddos (excluding Icelanders).

ALBUM REVIEW: SURFER BLOOD - ASTRO COAST

Um...wow. I can honestly say that I haven't heard an album this good in a loooooong time. I think everyone will have different (albeit positive across the board) interpretations of FL band Surfer Blood and their influences in making Astro Coast. I have read many positive comments about this album from my friends and over the interwebs/blogosphere. I did see a high rating on Pitchfork but didn't read the review as I wanted a completely unbiased/untainted Cugerock perspective on this one.

From the first track Floating Vibes I was immediately transported back into to early 90's. I thought "hmm...Sonic Youth? Dinosaur Jr?". That's not to say their sound isn't unique or dated. I believe Astro Coast is a pioneering record but certain chord progressions and song structures overall remind me of tracks from indie bands I was listening to in high-school/early college. There are songs like Slow Jabroni that start out broken and slow then (around the 3:40 mark) transform into a heavenly/mesmerizing/bob-your-head-slowly straight rock jam that tend to remind me of tracks indicative of early indie albums. So freaking good no matter how you categorize. However there are some more recent influences that can be heard as well.

There's some Sonic Youth, Sugar, Shins, Hum, Autolux, Archers of Loaf, Cribs, Superchunk, Cursive...hell even some quick Vampire Weekend (Take it Easy) and Fugazi (intro to Anchorage) sounding portions that are in there. Again, this is my interpretation. There are so many I cannot pinpoint. I welcome comments (as always) in regards to to some bands I haven't thought of. I feel like I'm missing a few.

Vocally they are relatively unchallenged but for some reason I hear a Tim Kasher (Cursive) or Ryan Jarman (The Cribs) similarity in a lot of the songs. Specifically with Swim that screamed "Ryan Jarman" and Harmonix that could have been a track on any Cursive record (skewing towards the more recent). The lyrics themselves are solid. They aren't too complex and have certain lines that jump out at you....specifically on Anchorage, Twin Peaks and Catholic Pagans.

I also will NOT note some of my "favorite tracks" as every single song is amazing from #1 to #10. I've had this album on repeat for weeks now. Please, please pick up this record.

BOLD STATEMENT ALERT! There are a ton of new albums that have come out and are scheduled to come out in 2010 however I do not see Surfer Blood Astro Coast leaving my #1 album of the year designation any time soon. Prove me wrong Thermals, Band of Horses, New Pornographers, Interpol, B&S etc....

BONUS CONTENT:

Live performances (via their MySpace page)


Video for Swim

Show Review: F**ked-Up & Kurt Vile - The Middle East, Cambridge, MA (2/20/10)

"You reminded me, that I would never be 22" is a lyric from a Promise Ring song (Make Me a Mixtape). One can interpret that line however they want. It never really had any significance to me until I started to ascend into my late twenties. I saw it as meaning...basically...there are experiences you have in your present life that would have been much easier had you were facing them at a younger age OR some present experiences will take you back to a time where you had a little less "weight" on your life. It can be nostalgic and good but strangely depressing sometimes. Ha! There are songs and movies and people that serve as reminder of that. Seeing a Fucked Up show recently in Boston was one of those moments...and it was just what I needed.

I went to the show with my cousin Danny who lives in Boston and a buddy of his. Danny's "show buddy" as we like to call it (Chris Budz & Cathy are my Philly equivalents as Scotty, Horton & Tarik are my NYC compadres...and Danny most times). The show was at the Middle East club in Cambridge Mass which is just over the river from the city of Boston. I'm not sure if it is zoned as Boston proper but I'll just refer to it as Boston to make things easier (less letters to type). Cambridge is the home of Harvard and a Saucony outlet store (cheap Jazz kicks). When I saw on Fucked-Ups tour schedule in the fall that they were playing a Saturday at the Middle East (which I've never been to) and with Kurt Vile (who I don't know much about other than he is from my hometown) I knew we had to make this happen. Seeing as I hadn't visited Danny in 5 years it made it all the more pressing.

Now I've seen Fucked-Up before in Philly at the "intimate" Northern Liberties Club - Kung Fu Necktie. I wont rehash the experience but check the link from a prior post - http://cugerock.blogspot.com/2009/01/fucked-up-pissed-jeans-kung-fu-necktie.html

The Middle East is a significantly larger club than KFN. That said I thought there was no way I would see lead vocalist Damian "Pink Eyes" Abraham take the "liberties" with the space/crowd/mic-cord that I saw in Philly. I was pleasantly mistaken. More about that later.

While we were checking coats (so punk rock) I noticed Damian just hanging out by the merch table. I had a few beers in me so I thought I would go talk to him. I introduced myself, gushed like I was meeting the hardcore equivalent of the Jonas Brothers and he was mega cool and very appreciative. I then asked him if he remembered the KFN show last year, more specifically, when he poured hot candlewax on is fat chubby chest while standing on top of the bar. His reply (laughing) "Hahah ooooh yeah...it didn't hurt that bad cause I was sweating so much". True Champion.

Kurt Vile opened up to a crowd that was literally shaking in anticipation for Fucked Up. I've never heard his music before but read up that it was alt-rock/folk-ish. To anyone who didn't know that FU & Kurt were Matador labelmates then this would have been viewed as an odd paring. He played ok. He had no drummer and just a rhythm guitarist to join him. His voice is solid and the tracks he played were pretty good. I'd mos def like to catch him again with a full backing band. The crowd was very respectful despite the headliner. Any women that were currently at the venue were long gone after he finished. I honestly could count the number of girls present for FU on one hand...and one of them is in the band.

So Fucked Up takes the stage. I think they opened with Son the Father but who the hell knows. The loud opening chords just placed the whole place on fire. The "pit" immediately formed and expanded, with the edge a few people in front of us. We all had our forearms out to block any stray moshers. We were Id say 1/3 of the way back from the stage-left (close to the bar). I couldn't locate the set list online but here is one from 6 days later at a Toronto show:

1.Son the Father
2.Magic Word
3.David Comes to Life
4.Days of Last
5.Golden Seal
6.Crusades
7.The Two Snakes
8.Crooked Head
9.No Epiphany
10.Black Albino Bones
11.Twice Born
12.Baiting the Public
13.The Chemistry of Common Life
14.Bodies (Sex Pistols cover)
15.Police

Since before the last show I had only heard the latest FU full length, Chemistry of Common Life, I made sure I bought the singles collection recently released (Couple Tracks 2002-2009).

Basically a compilation of 7-inches. If you want a taste of how good this compilation is then I suggest you download Black Hats. So good I kept yelling it out to Damian in hopes that they'd play it...no dice.

Fucked Up is unique as they are by all means a "modern-hardcore" outfit, yet the music has more rhythm/layers to it which isn't hardcore standard (remember when Helmet came on the scene?). Maybe that is why FU are Pitchfork darlings but I think its more of the band make-up, Damian's personality on/off stage and his willingness to collaborate with just about anyone. Oh and they won Canada's Polaris Music Prize.

The crowd was going absolutely nuts including myself. I didn't think it was physically possible for Damian to get off-stage and into the crowd. I even said to Danny "There's nooooo way he can get on top of either bars" (there was one a few steps up stage-right and one on the floor a few feet from us). Minutes after I make this prediction I look on stage and he's no where to be found (still screaming lyrics mind you) but I look left and sure enough he's on top of the bar, then back on stage, then back on the bar, then on the floor where we were (patrons supporting the mic-cord over their heads), then up on the bar (next to a disco ball oddly enough - here is what I captured from my Blackberry shit-camera)

...then he jumped off and fell down on the floor in front of us so we picked his sweaty ass up. The whole time the band continues to look forward and belt off the music like "ho-hum...classic Damian". Might I also add that the band was SO TIGHT (Danny can back me up on this). The only distortion I sensed was in Damian's voice ...which was normal.

Towards the end, the energy was so intense and the pit was so close a drunken voice inside me said..."you gotta get in the pit old man"...then I said to the guys "I'm going in!". I'm a big dude but I was getting knocked around like a skinny straightedge vegan, swirling around in a sweaty mass of positive manergy eventually getting feet from the stage and screaming lyrics and pumping my fist.

To cap it off they encored with a Sex-Pistols cover Bodies with a surprise appearance from none other than TED LEO!!! As if the night couldn't get any better then Ted freakin Leo jumps up on stage to sing Sex Pistols!!! With Fucked Up?!!!! (visualize Scanners head explosion).

Easily one of the greatest shows I've ever seen. Such a positive show which reminds me why I love music so much and how live music can be so therapeutic in so many ways. Not one douchebag in the crowd. All participants were just amped on a Saturday night to see one of the most energetic live band performances out there.

After the show the band was hanging out by the merch table so I went over and made a point to tell them how ridiculously awesome the show was. Kurt Vile was also hanging out. I shook his hand and said "Im from Philly dude" or something to that drunken effect. He gave me a "right on" and looked scared as I was glassy-eyed and sweaty.

The Aftermath: The next day, not only was I hungover but my voice was shot from screaming and my muscles ached from "dancing". Soooooooo worth it. As I noted prior, this show reminded me that I would definitely never be 22 again...but a decade older...I can still slam with the best of em. Age is merely a number my friends. Thanks Advil.

CUGEROCK BONUS: To get an idea of the live Fucked-Up show experience, here is a short film from Ray Concepcion which completely captures the spectators view. A "couple tracks". Enjoy.

Every Man for Himself and God Against All: Fucked Up from Ray Concepcion on Vimeo.

SimpsRock

Excellent feature.

http://tinyurl.com/ykbhc8s

Best performance:





Best Quote:

"Hullabalooza isn't about freaks; it's about music, and advertisement, and youth-oriented product positioning." --Sonic Youth's Kim Gordon

THE CUGEROCK TOP 15 ALBUMS OF 2009!!!

2009....what a great year for music despite a shit-year for our country. One helps the other I guess.

Here are my top album picks for 2009. Not as obscure as pitchfork (no pun intended given my top pick)...I go by what Ive continually had in my playlists across the year or what Ive picked up recently that I'm "beating to death". Hipster media darlings don't always make for repetition on the street, in the car or at home over time.

1. Camera Obscura - My Maudlin Career: Late pickup but I cant stop listening...incredible album. I loved their last one and this one "kills-it". Best of '09 by far.

2. Phoenix - Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix: See my post on 6/11/09. Media blitzkrieg but a rock-solid showing from my favorite Frenchmen. Relatively on par with Its Never Been Like That which is one of my top albums of all time.

3. The Thermals - Now We Can See: Saw them a few times over 2009 and they continue to sustain themselves through their records and live performances as one of my favorite bands of all time .

4. Dinosaur Jr. - Farm: Saw them live recently with Sonic Youth which didn't blow me away per usual (see my post from 5/7/09) but this album is so strong. Takes me back to the Without A Sound/Where You Been/Hand It Over days.

5. Grizzly Bear - Veckatimest: Great work boys. Album is solid. Thanks for the reco Stricklands.

6. Animal Collective - Merriweather Post Pavilion: See my post on 2/4/09 - Takes a bit to get used to but the sound is so unique its like no album Ive ever heard. Start off with the singles and you'll warm up to the full album.

7. Sonic Youth - The Eternal: See my post on 9/4/09. Unreal how these legends continue to raise the bar of rock year by year. Most evident in their live shows...just saw them on 11/21/09 in NYC with DJr...blown away.

8. The Von Bondies - Love, Hate and Then There's You: See my post on 3/26/09. Sleeper hit of '09 for me.

9. Superchunk - Leaves In The Gutter EP: See my post on 5/22/09. Its like they were cryogenicaly frozen for a decade. Awesome.

10. Real Estate - Real Estate: Recent pickup (per a Facebook reco from my old college buddy Carl) that oddly matches all of the reviews of being Beach-Boys esque, "dream-pop" etc. Solid.

11. Built To Spill - There Is No Enemy: See my post on 11/18/09.

12. Matt & Kim - Grand: Album and subsequent videos make me miss my younger NYC days.

13. Lamb of God - Wrath: NSFE. You want to let off some steam (aka - smash something) buy this album (ladies...might want to side-step)

14. The Doves - Kingdom of Rust: These brits continue to make solid rock records. Id say this album is parallel to Last Broadcast which was my inaugural Doves listening experience.

15. Silversun Pickups - Swoon: Got bad reviews from the music press but I think their sophomore record is pretty rockin yet different from Carnavas.

In conclusion...

I still have a few to listen to per the top '09 lists Ive been receiving from my friends including these Dirty Projectors I keep hearing so much about. Been a little preoccupied the past few months.

There's so many albums dropping in early 2010 so this year should start off "correct" then climax when I see the first NYC Pavement reunion show in Sept (suckaz!). Then we got Halloween, my birthday, turkeyday and the return of crappy-sappy holiday jewelery commercials.

See you in "Oh-Ten" kiddos. -TC

DUST OFF YOUR DEVIL-HORNS COMPADRES!!

Well...(sigh)...looks like I'm going to "summer" in Poland & the Czech Republic come 2010.

Holy...

http://tinyurl.com/yey48d9

This divine intervention of metal (ironic choice of words as most of these bands are affiliated with Satan) better come state-side or I will threaten to get my 7th grade metal band Solitaire back together and we will "counter-tour". Then it will be metal up YOUR ass Lars.