In my fourth day of CMJ, I made tracks to catch up with 1,2,3, a band from Pittsburgh who were heading into James Iha’s recording studio (complete with Smashing Pumpkins memorabilia), Stratosphere Sound, to lay down a few live tracks as part of the Fred Perry Artists Lounge sessions. They were quite the tight band… playing some classy rock n’ roll. They listened to plenty of Beatles growing up, I’ll tell you that much! Stay tuned for our chat with them!
I headed over to Canal Room next to catch up with our good friends in Cassette Kids, who have relocated to New York to pursue all things musical. Emergency Service were on when I arrived, who incorporated some trumpet and some “ooh ooh oooooh”s with the particularly ‘American’ sound that’s been made famous by bands like Counting Crows, Jack Johnson and Dave Matthews Band. The sort of easy listening – yet still groovy and edgy – tunes that flood the airwaves in this country. And that’s not a bad thing at all. Emergency Service certainly know how to fill the part well.
There was a bit of an 80s feel to the band that followed, Nico’s Gun, but I wasn’t able to hang around for their set. After we’d chatted backstage for a while, Sydney’s Cassette Kids emerged with the feeling they’ve gone back to the basics. Super groovy, a little grungy, dirty, sexy… but still easily radio friendly… Kat and her merry men were hitting all the right notes, moving away from the more polished sounds of their record, and as such even their older material sounded renewed. Though, I have to say, the new stuff were the best moments of the set, and as such I’m pretty excited to hear the new record… stay tuned!
Mr. Dream were next, a local three piece taking on a lo-fi punk rock soung, much in the vein of Les Savy Fav – with a little Dinosaur Jr, Breeders and even Nirvana thrown in for good measure… The band released their debut album Trash Hit earlier this year and I’ve given it a bit of a listen since I saw them live. I have to say, they’re not bad at all. This is a band who know how to write a good tune. And if you knew how rarely I listen to a band after I see them live, you’d understand how much they impressed me.
I made my way next to the Rock Shop in Brooklyn in time to catch Psychic Twin (which was unexpected as they were already due finished… shows running late isn’t always a disadvantage!). They were an entertaining electronic pop duo from Illinois. I believe they were wearing lights on their heads. This is cool.
Adam Arcuragi (pictured above) followed and is accredited with being the founder of the musical genre Death Gospel (whatever that means…?). He opened his set with an acoustic number, featuring lyrics about the boy he’s going to marry… indeed, far from typical lyrics. This was followed by “Oh I See” with five piece behind him, three drummers, a bass guitarist and keyboardist while he remained on acoustic guitar. Adam is an interesting songwriter, who again exists in that Dave Matthews/Counting Crows genre, with a husky voice akin to Ben Harper. Banjo and a slide guitar panel were added throughout the enjoyable set.
In spite of the name suggesting Adam is a solo artist, this is very much an ensemble. The band produced impressively well orchestrated music, to compliment the lyrics and guitar movements of Adam. “You Think This Was Easy” off Adam’s new record featured slight country tinges, with seemingly simplistic lyrics etc, while “Bottom of the Earth” ended his set. I still don’t know what Death Gospel means, but whatever it is, I guess that was it.
Indie electronic pop group +/- (aka Plus/Minus, pictured below) have been floating around for a while now – as evidenced by the large merch pile near the venue entrance. In fact I couldn’t tell you when or how I heard about this New York based band. But after a last minute spot in the gig guide I put everything to the side to check them out. And thankfully so. “Trying a new few songs out… and a new bass guitarist” the four piece (traditionally a three piece) impressed with some lovely, tight tunes – though it was entirely unfamiliar, so unfortunately I can’t really tell you what they played. But I recommend checking them out if you’re a fan of good music. And you’re a fan of good music aren’t you?
When I left the venue I decided to head back into Manhattan to try and get into the Gotye show at Santos Party House. Unfortunately they weren’t letting anyone in without guestlist or a purchased ticket by the time I arrived, so I cut my losses and opted to enjoy the rest of my evening hanging with some Aussie bands at the pub. Because, you know, I was in New York and that’s how I roll.
Photos by Larry Heath
