It’s quite the shame that the day a blizzard decides to hit New York City is one that contains some of the best bills of this season. But that’s life. I urge all of you to get out your knee-length galoshes, bundle in layers of five, and head down to either:
A) Southpaw, B) Bowery Ballroom, C) Mercury Lounge, D) The Delancey, or E) Don Hills. All of these venues have amazing bills, and all are spaced in a way to geographically cover the bases, so to speak. Even Brooklyn’s represented tonight. So if you care to hear intelligent and blistering rock (MAN IN GRAY), pounding punk and screeching vocals (THE FEVER), trippy pop/rock (THE KING OF FRANCE), or bouncing New Wave pop (THE AFFAIR), the City has you taken care of. And if none of these please you enough to get you hopping in galoshes through the snow, THE EVERYOTHERS are playing tonight as well. Still eager to stay inside and sip cocoa? Yeah, I didn’t think so. Get out and rock tonight, true New Yorkers don’t shut down for a little precipitation.

Man In Gray pics by yours truly. Brings back great memories, seeing this band live is a truly an experience.


















MiG – Incommunicado

MiG – Tuesday Night (Live)

MiG – Crawl (Live)

The Fever, a band that gets better with every listen

King of France are playing with Hopewell and The Upwelling. Evidence of their great sense of humor below.






King of France – Just A Body

Hopewell – Calcutta

The Upwelling Website

The Affair - Anything But Disco (You Ruined My Life)

The Everyothers - Can’t Get Around It

Some Notable Extras

Because it just isn’t a good day without some Arcade Fire and Strokes.

The Arcade Fire play KCRW (Live Video stream)

[A poignantly beautiful Strokes song with synthesizers. Used in their DVD release, “In Transit”].

The Strokes – Obstinate

Rock Photo:

[Original Caption]

“Keith Richards takes a break on stage at a New Barbarians show. The New Barbarians were a side project of Keith Richards, Ron Wood (both of the Rolling Stones), and Stanley Clarke, a respected jazz bassist and producer.”

Taken by Henry Diltz in May 1979 for CORBIS.





And I hate modern music/Disco, boogie and pop-S.

There’s some solace in the fact that the last show SEA RAY will ever play is sold out tonight. But it’s still not enough to make this evening a joyous one. Sea Ray were a rare band indeed, one that managed to combine moody cello riffs with upbeat lyrics and atmospheric rock. “Revelry” still gets my heart pumping with its glorious melody and soaring guitars. It still seems like yesterday I was writing about their conquests of the town (2/27/04). It is and will remain a great regret of mine that I was unable to see them in concert. But I hope that tonight’s event at the Mercury Lounge will be a celebration of what was and, hopefully, what is still to come.

In the honest and eloquent words of Anne, Colin, Greg, I-Huei, Jeff and Jordan :

“It's with great sadness and anticipation that we announce our final show: Friday January 21 at NYC's Mercury Lounge…

After nearly eight fantastic years, we've accomplished far more than we ever thought possible and met more great people than we ever expected. We've played in venues we only dreamed of, in cities we'd only read about, and performed alongside bands we've idolized and befriended.

Unfortunately, several factors have led us to the decision that we cannot continue. The biggest difficulty we've failed to overcome is the financial challenge of being in an independent band full-time while maintaining any semblance of a personal life, as well. We're each unwilling to carry on with the band if it's anything less than 100% of our effort, and we're simply unable to do that anymore.

Rest assured that we're parting on good terms and will remain close friends who will most likely collaborate on future projects. It's just that Sea Ray as we know it is now going away.

We're sorry to share this news with you, and if you're anywhere near New York in January, we do sincerely hope you'll come out to the show and let us thank you in person for your support over the years, and also help us celebrate all the amazing times we've been lucky enough to experience with the band.”

[Pictures by the lovely and amazing Jasper Coolidge from jenyk.com, who is and shall remain my NYC photo/music/guru icon].







[And one more from Hee Jin Kang]





Buy their wonderfully rich album, Stars At Noon

Sea Ray – Revelry

Sea Ray – Quiver

Sea Ray are being ushered out in style tonight, with some help from their good friends THE MOBIUS BAND, CHALLENGER (known for their crazy take on Led Zeppelin’s “When The Levee Breaks” with “Goddamn American Dream”), and an original, way-back-in-the-day LARS favorite, SAY HI TO YOUR MOM. Again, the Mercury pulls through with an intrinsically great bill. Get there tonight and buy everyone band member you see drinks and wish them well. I guarantee we’ll hear lots more from these talented musicians. Until then, Manhattan’s music scene has lost a great deal to revel over.

Say Hi To Your Mom – Let’s Talk About Spaceships

Say Hi To Your Mom – Hooplas Involving Circus Trips

Rock Photo:

Not to go Donovan/Nilsson crazy or anything, but here’s a tangential music story for you:

I’m not a regular TV watcher, but when I do watch television, I watch it differently from my friends and family. It’s more like eavesdropping on the television’s programs, if that makes sense. I’m constantly ear-checking what’s playing in the background, and often it’ll get me either really excited (like this story) or really fucking pissed off (like every car/allergy medicine commercial that uses great rock songs for horrible means). That was actually how I first heard “Revelry” on MTV, when the show used the guitar instrumental in the song for 10 seconds in an episode of “Real World” (so I’m not a Masterpiece Theatre regular, so sue me).

Anyways, I was watching some shows last night and came upon one of the best songs of all-time that, up until that point, I had known nothing about. The song? “I Guess The Lord Must Be In New York City” by Harry Nilsson of Midnight Cowboy/”Everybody’s Talkin’” fame. It’s an amazing song and keeps within the same vein of Nilsson’s beautiful echoing guitar-picking and falsetto vocals.

After having listened to this magnificence on repeat for a good hour, I coupled it with some other songs on iTunes, among them Donovan’s great hit, “Jersey Thursday”. Curious to find which LP the song came from, I checked CDnow.com, only to find one of the greatest cover photographs of all-time. I love this photograph, in fact, I can’t stop staring at it. Magnetic. Anyways, this one’s to be included along with a Henry Diltz and a Nilsson cover. Because good things always come in threes.




Donovan at the Hollywood Bowl in 1966. Taken by Henry Diltz for CORBIS.








When I say we'll be cool/I think that you know what I mean-S

Before we get down to the nitty gritty, there are, of course, some things to be discussed. Namely how great the Bowery Presents crew is. Never failing to book great bands, albeit in a mediocre venue (Webster Cavernous Hall), the Bowery staff has done it again with its announcement of the KINGS OF LEON concert on the 23rd of February.

The boys are back, having worked hard on their upcoming follow-up to their ridiculously loaded debut album, Youth & Young Manhood. Titled Aha Shake Heartbreak and featuring a cover straight out of The Eagles’ boardroom [see below] and some new and enticing influences. You certainly can’t take the South out of the Followill brothers, but put them on tour with The Strokes and you’re bound to get some rub-offs. There are some definite Cars guitar styles going down on the new LP, as well as some hand-clapping and metronomic, hip-shaking drumming. Catch a listen on CDnow.com and their website before the LP drops on the 22nd of February.


Tickets for this highly-anticipated show go on sale TODAY, so get ‘em while they’re hot:

Full info:

KINGS OF LEON

Webster Hall
Wednesday, February 23
Doors: 7:30pm
$20 / 16+

Ticketweb phone: 866.468.7619

Bowery Presents Tickets

And catch their new video for the single, “Bucket”:

Bucket

[I don’t know about you, I’m hearing Strokes, Tom Petty, and a bit of Goo Goo Dolls in there, for better or worse… Hmmmm…]





Stabbed With A Vaguely Detached Edge

I, of course, can’t take credit for that great line. No, the credit lies within one of the finest songwriting bands in the City of New York, SPIELERFRAU. The band first caught my ear with their jazzy and ghostly lucid “Bela Lugosi’s Dead” (off of Scripted Banter). Their latest singles, “A Civilized Thing” and “Middlesex” don’t disappoint; both contain the same powerfully morboid styles of Michael Idov and company, and both too share an affinity for the power of well-scripted lyrics. A sample: “And as Piaf croaks Je Ne Regrette Rien/Well I’ve been there too/And I regret tout”. [Note: Drop your freedom fries, take a French lesson and buy Edith Piaf’s records].

Anyways, the band that LARS deems quite talented is showing off the goods tonight at Sin-E with some help from Doveman, The Savage Juliet, and ElodieO (who apparently is a “real” French chanteuse. As opposed to, say, all those fake ones running around Manhattan).

Spielerfrau – A Civilized Thing

Spielerfrau – A Civilized Thing Video

Spielerfrau – Middlesex

Doveman – Boy + Angel

The Savage Juliet – Sweet Benjamin

ElodieO – La Mer [Not to be confused with Charles Trenet’s classic, “La Mer”, which inspired Bobby Darin to write “Beyond The Sea”].






Kinky

I don’t know how much more I can say about THE SEXY MAGAZINES without being accused of running a covert fansite here. Suffice it to say, The Sexy Magazines bring the rock, particularly when they present their monster creation, SHINDIG, with The Art Shop Boys. Last time around, the event was a crazy success, and the band was this close to breaking about a hundred fire codes for crowds. This time around, I can’t even begin to prepare you for the crowd factor, because tonight is brining the otherworldly pairing of The Sexy Magazines with the VERY sexy FIVE O’CLOCK HEROES. I hasten to add that the latter are richly talented rockers, and their “Run To Her” has been ingrained in my head since the first listen. However, spend some one-on-one time with these boys and you’re doomed to become another victim of suave British/Brooklyn charm. Trust me on this one. But do they care about this nonsense? Of course not. They’re here to bring it, slap you silly with their rock. And that's what makes it awesome. Nonchalance is the muu-muu of our generation; everyone’s wearing some.

Joining these two killers are perennial NYC favorites, The GoStation, and a band that calls themselves Stalkers. Between The Killers and these guys, I can’t help but wonder whether I should start a Svengali-move and open a band called The Molesters. Or perhaps The Rapists…

[Photo taken at last Shindig by either Katy Winn or Kelsey Hall].





[Enough bad humor, more music]:

The Sexy Magazines – My Favorite Girl

The Sexy Magazines – Take Some Time

Download ‘Run To Her’ by The Five O’Clock Heroes now

The GoStation – Another Day

Rock Photo:
Lynyrd Skynyrd perform circa 1973-1975. Members are, from left: Allen Collins, Ronnie Van Zant, Gary Rossington, Ed King, Leon Wilkeson.
Taken by Neal Preston for CORBIS.







And if I say to you tomorrow/Take my hand, child, come with me-S.

MY BACK PAGES

So I’ve come up with an apt metaphor for life in upstate New York, a.k.a. home. Time up here is like a pot of honey; it trickles slowly, maddeningly. And then all of the sudden, the latent momentum comes to life and pours all over the place. And you end up spoiling a perfectly good piece of toast. Yes. That is life up here.

So when I say I’m sorry for the lack of updates, I can’t really be faulted for it. To me, it’s still New Year’s Day. And of course, that time void affected my Events Calendar, so sadly I missed updating on such update-worthy events as Cause Co-Motion headlining with Constantines, Ambulance LTD. playing with The Giraffes, and Keren Ann once again gracing our lovely city with her loveliness. For now, my repentance is more links and mp3s. Forgive me.

Harlem Never Sounded So Good
Oh yes, it’s that wonderful time of year. One that is rare but cataclysmic, like an eclipse or Northern Lights sighting. Yes ladies and gentlemen, THE HARLEM SHAKES are back and are playing tonight at Rothko for Vicious, one of my favorite outlets for up-and-coming music. Back again are the songs that make your heart glow and your feet boogie, the ones that arc like a love-worn and time-tested relationship. Rothko won’t know what hit it when the glittering keyboards and deep, sonorous croons come out of the speakers. Yes. The Harlem Shakes are back.

Think that’s it? Think again. Vicious knows how to put together a true bill, and this one’s no different. A band that I have loved for a long time, THE CLOUD ROOM, is finally getting its due with a healthy spot at 9pm. Their songs, especially “Waterfall” and “Devoured In Peace”, create vibrant and deep aural atmospheres with plucked guitars and aching vocals. They’re songs that make you close your eyes and dream, which makes me believe their band name is no 7-beer mistake. See them tonight and realize that bands like The Harlem Shakes are made from the hard work and painstaking craft of the likes of The Cloud Room. And of course, say a little prayer of thanks to the holy triumvirate of Joey, Johnny and Dee Dee that we live in New Rock City.

[Never ones to hide their wit, The Harlem Shakes produce another winner for a show banner.]

The Harlem Shakes – Eighteen
The Harlem Shakes-Disco 5000

[Seriously, is it just me, or do all great bands have significantly great taste in graphic design?]

The Cloud Room-Waterfall
The Cloud Room-Hey Now Now

[Appearing with Aartkica and The Fine Lines, the latter of which you may remember from their fabulous pop song, “Nowthenwheneverok”.]

Aarktica – OJ Gude
The Fine Lines Music Page

In other news, OH MY ROCKNESS is giving away 2 tickets to The Arcade Fire show at Webster Hall. Click the link to enter, or else hock your mom’s jewelry and find a good scalper.

DEATH FROM ABOVE 1979 f’ing rock. In fact, they rock so hardcore, I don’t think you can describe how much they rock without cursing. They’re worthy of expletives. Fucking amazing. Their video for “Romantic Rights” doesn’t fall short: DFA 1979

The slow-down of time has also produced a more mellow iTunes lately in the house of LARS. Instead of old Op. Ivy tapes and Sly & The Family Stone record binges, I’ve now become addicted to these amazings. Well, that and crack.

[And good readers of LARS, if you don’t own and/or pirated these artists/albums by now, I have serious doubts about you.]

Sufjan Stevens – All Good Naysayers, Speak Up! Or Forever Hold Your Peace
Sufjan Stevens – Holland
Sufjan Stevens – Romulus Video
The Arcade Fire – Wake Up
The Arcade Fire – Rebellion (Lies) [Arguably my favorite song, along with Inouk’s “Island”, of the entire year].
Iron & Wine – Jesus The Mexican Boy
The Shins – New Slang Video
März – The River

Also, several Dirty bands you need to become acquainted with:
Dirty On Purpose (old news).
Dirty Lenin. (very Go To Town).
Dirty Rainbow (new news).

And remember, true rock stars donate to charitable organizations:
Listing of charities for Tsunami Relief

Not only a rock photo this time, but also some modern art pieces from the brand spankin’ new MOMA. Because true rock stars also like modern art. Capiche?

“Untitled” by Christian Marclay (1999).


“Burning Wheel” by Damien Hirst.


“Hamburg, Loading Dock” by Emil Nolde (1910).


“Elisabeth II” by Gerhard Richter (1966).


Detail from “Untitled From Black And Red Series” by Joan Miró (1938).


“Weeping Woman” by Pablo Picasso.


Robert Plant and Jimmy Page perform in concert with Led Zeppelin. Taken by Neal Preston circa 1975 for CORBIS.



“Equality,” I spoke the word/As if a wedding vow-S.