CMJ Day Three: Quickie Recap

The weather's taking a turn for the worse, my head is still all sorts of groggy... and I'm about to go do it all again.

Yesterday's keyword was "proximity," as in the spacial closeness that connected the Brooklyn Vegan day show at Piano's with the Tee Pee Records event at Cake Shop. Though Hull disappointingly cancelled their set at the latter, I was able to check out FL's Surfer Blood instead. Sounding like the little cousins of Happy Hollow-era Cursive with a hint of Vampire Weekend, the baby band did well with their catchy indie rock cocktail.

After that, I bounced over to Tee Pee and caught Naam, whose intense stoner brown sound threatened to split my hungover skull in half, but luckily both day parties had plenty of Vitamin Water to give away and soon all was right (and loud!) with the world.

Shortly after, I found myself back at Pianos to see—actually, since it was so packed and I'm so short, it was more like hear—the much-hyped Duchess Says, who completely blew me away with their heavy, almost gabba-electronic sound and whirling, multifarious vocals. Go check 'em out, as Nebula, who were busy trying to turn back the clock to the '70s next door, had nothing on them.

Finally, it was time for Priestess before heading out to Skateboard Marketing's showcase for Texas Hippie Coalition. Not sure how these guys got their name, as they looked like a biker gang (replete with matching black leather vests), but the imposing group did their best Pantera tribute, complete with shout-outs to the late, great Dimebag Darrell.

That's it for now... heading out to the Relapse showcase later. Not sure what's on the agenda for tomorrow, but it's altogether possible that CMJ will be ignored in favor of this intriguing Dumpling Festival on the LES.

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Saul Williams @ CMJ

Sometimes it's better to forgo the unknown and stick with a sure bet; and last night's programming at CMJ inspired just that. Though there were a few bands I was curious to see (like Bang Bang Eche and Atlas Sound), I decided instead to go see Saul Williams headline the Afropunk showcase at Gramercy Theatre.

For those of you not in the know, Saul Williams is a brilliantly prolific singer, musician and poet who embraces electronica, hip-hop, spoken word and rock—then douses it with a glittery aesthetic that David Bowie would be proud of.

Last night's performance did not dissapoint. Though there was some confusion about the start time, Williams wound up performing for more than two hours as the audience literally would not let him stop. The result? We were treated to a broad range of his discography, including heavy helpings of his acclaimed collaboration with Nine Inch Nails' Trent Reznor, The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of Niggy Tardust! As demand for more grew, Williams even premiered a new, never-before-heard track that remained in the vain of his bass-heavy, electro-industrial rap style.

When the show actually did end—after what seemed like two encores—Williams jumped into the audience and proceeded to hug the remaining faithful, as if we were in a receiving line.

Look up Saul Williams, you won't regret it.



As for me, I'm off for a full day of shows today. If you're in NYC, stop by Cake Shop for Tee Pee Records' free day show, featuring stoner favorites Hull, Naam, Nebula and Priestess. You may even get some free Colt 45 for your efforts. It starts at noon and goes until 6 pm.

Until tomorrow...

Stoned & Droned: Witch and Earthless Live

It's odd hearing people break out into applause over a drummer's sound check. But I guess when that drummer is slacker legend J Mascis, all bets are off. Which would also justify the amount of paparazzi-like sleuths who snuck in snapshots of the gray-haired Dinosaur Jr. founder as he set up his kit. Then again, maybe all the attention was appropriate since tonight's bill of Mascis' Witch, plus Earthless and Children was completely drummer-centric.



Though I neglected Children due to a Lost-induced time suck, I managed to get my ass to the Music Hall of Williamsburg in time to see the brilliant stoner psychedelia of Earthless. The instrumental trio were a joy to watch, and it's no wonder why they placed drummer Mario Rubalcaba's kit dead center on the stage. Even with his minimalist, rose-glitter setup, the guy rocks like Animal, and sets the tone for Earthless' sunny but trippy freeform sound. Earthless inspired tons of head-bopping and hippie dancing in the process; easily reminding me that these guys are pure West Coast flower power. I look forward to seeing them again at High Times' Doobie Awards (and putting Rubalcaba on my make out list).



Headliners Witch took a very different approach. Sounding like a modern day Grand Funk Railroad with punk sensibilities, the newjack heshers ripped through tracks from both their self-titled debut as well as their brand-new opus, Paralyzed. More thunderous and dirty than Earthless, Witch are the perfect band to grind to—which would also explain the tons of skateboards I saw at the gig. Overall, it was a great night of stoner rock with nary a boring moment. Light 'em if you got 'em—and be sure to check out Earthless next month if you're in Austin.

For more crappy pix, click HERE.