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[Night Out] Kate Boy @ Baby's All Right (11/14/2015)

One Friday night 2 years ago during CMJ I took a chance on a band with an interesting press photo and would forget how exhausted I was the day after because what I had experienced had completely blown me away. Last Saturday at Baby's All Right I was fortunate enough to relive an updated version of that night with Stockholm synth-[now] duo Kate Boy. I'm not sure what it is with NYC promoters and Kate Boy that they have the band go on at ungodly hours. I'm guessing it's to make damn sure that everyone present is there get their #posiparty on? Anyway, this 2nd time around had an additional hurdle that we all had to get past which can only be described as the guy who was next to me ever so eloquently put it: it was hot as BALLS in Baby's that night. I'm talking, like, the first 2 minutes of me snapping pictures I couldn't figure out why everything was coming out looking like garbage until I realized that the lens had fogged up from the rapid change in temperature. It was hottttt.

The equation of sold out show + apparent possibly malfunctioning air conditioner normally = showgoers to rage quit a performance early. Not this crowd.

Since the fateful day that the band upped the first song that they ever wrote together, "Northern Lights," and the internet fell in love with their uniquely vibrant and energetic sound, fans have been hankering for more music, which the band attempted to churn out as quickly as they were able to. With their debut full-length, One, only being out in the universe for a week when we all congregated at Baby's, you could tell that the high of hearing songs like, "Human Engine" or "Lion For Real" for the first time hadn't worn off. If anything, it had people practically vibrating with excitement to see them (myself included). I should also add that as I hinted at earlier, recently the band went from a trio to a duo, so the anticipation to see what the change in lineup would be like added another layer of suspense for the evening.

I'm actually starting to think that the heat source was actually Kate Boy. If you thought they were fire when they were a three-piece, they are a force to be reckoned with as a two-piece. Kate and Marcus clearly took on the extra duties that came when the group went from 3 to 2 head on. The energy they threw into their set was addictive. It was almost as if the warmer the room got the harder everyone would dance. Everyone did the best they could to lose as many layers in an effort to not dance until they quite literally dropped. That said, the second the room realized that the band was over everyone poured out onto the street to cool off. If you looked hard enough you could even see steam rising off a handful of people.

If you have not listened to One yet I worry about your ability to make good decisions. You can also be cool like me and grab it on vinyl.

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[Night Out] BOOTS @ Rough Trade (11/13/2015)

Since the day that Rocko slid "I Run Roulette" in front of me a back in February I had been practically drooling all over myself to experience BOOTS in the flesh. I was basically been counting down the days until the album release party at Rough Trade last Friday. The week that Aquaria dropped it was like going down the side of a mountain on a bike, especially when I got an advance of the album and got to taste what would be washing over me Friday night.

Then, for about a minute that day before we made it to Rough Trade, I briefly considered not going. It was about an hour before I got out of work when Twitter lit up with what was happening in Paris, specifically what transpired at The Bataclan. The hesitation mostly stemmed from trying to decide if it was disrespectful to rock out while there were people suffering on the other side of the ocean. It's hard to know how to proceed in situations like these without feeling like you've either moved on too quickly or conversely letting it take up so much of your head space that the people who did the awful things essentially accomplished what they set out to do. With that in mind, I focused my attention on dedicating my night of dancing to the ones who should have had the freedom to do the same in Paris.

And danced we did.

BOOTS brainchild Jordan Asher and I were clearly on the same page. Prior to performing, he had us collectively send love out to Paris with our fists raised in unison before instructing us to raise our middle fingers to the people in the world that thought they could take our community away from us.

Also, just so we're clear, all my preemptive drooling was not done in vain. Seconds after paying our respects, Asher and his accompanying band launched into a powerful set that immediately annihilated any potential jitters about being at a show in a major city that night and reinforced in all of us the power that we realize in ourselves and each other when we go to shows. The ability to exchange glances with a complete stranger and nod knowing that both of your minds are collectively being blown by what is happening a few feet in front of you. The chance to make friends with fellow showgoers before/after a set because you can infer that you've surrounded yourself with fairly like-minded individuals. These are things that I took for granted until that night when I had to stare fear in the face and quote White Stripes lyrics at it ("there's no home for you here") because it is when people gather together in the name of a single cause that change happens.

I sincerely hope none of you have hesitated for a second about stepping foot inside a venue since last Friday. If my schedule were more open right now I'd be defiantly going to 2 shows a night right now. Music is one of the most powerful forces on the planet because it has the power to bring people from a multitude of backgrounds together and get along, even if it's just for an hour.

On a lighter note, Sprout and I have bragging rights because we were able to snag these at the show:

Yep. I got 2/100 and Sprout got 22/100. It must be said that once you listen to this record on vinyl it will be incredibly hard for you to listen to stream/downloads of it the same way again. Wow. For those of you who weren't able to make it to either release shows (he also did one in LA) you will be able to pick up a vinyl copy on December 4th when the full vinyl run will be available. For now, familiarize yourself with the wonders of Aquaria:

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[Night Out] Son Little @ Baby's All Right (11/09/2015)

Sprout and I had been waiting for this show for quite awhile. Every time the homey Aaron Livingston aka Son Little had come to town the last few times something always came up and we couldn't make it out. That night we were pumped because it had been close to 2 years since last Aaron had made us weak in the knees. Anyone with a brain who has been following him for awhile knows what I'm talking about. From his Icebird project with RJD2 to his recent self-titled full-length that dropped last month, he's just got this voice that can either break your heart or glue it back together within a matter of minutes.

I'm still trying to figure out where the majority of the audience thought they were during his set. Did they think they were they at a networking event? Their favorite brunch spot? The weirdest looking coffee shop on the planet? Either way, they talked.....and talked....and talked....AND TALKED basically throughout the entire set. About what? I have no idea because I was too busy doing my best to focus on experiencing songs from the new album that I hadn't heard live yet but kept getting distracted.

At one point I'll admit I lost my cool and in between songs and sort of yelled to myself hoping people around me would hear, "WOULD YOU ALL JUST SHUT UP PLEASE?" which garnered some shade thrown my way, Apparently the people up in the front were insanely rude as well by Sprout's account of the night, too. In addition to the incessant chattering they made it a point to block her from getting any shots where they were standing directly in front of Aaron taking selfies and the like.

To make matters worse, I found out a few days later that Sprout and I weren't the only ones who felt this way about the show, which makes me all the more frustrated:

Folks, just because bands are on a stage 2 feet higher than you doesn't mean that they can't see and hear every single thing that you're doing. Please be respectful of the time, energy, effort, blood, sweat, tears, and sacrifices that talented individuals have made to try to earn a living off of their craft. I want to believe your parents raised you better than that, but if not, this is your final warning from this Rock Mom.

if you haven't heard Son Little's debut full-length, please spend the next 52 minutes of your life to solve that problem.


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[Night Out] Big Data @ Warsaw (11/08/2015)

It's yah boy Big Data looking bawse as hell at Warsaw (11/08/2015)

So, um, a lot can happen in 7ish months.

Wow. 

I knew that touring pretty much incessantly was going to be good for broadband bud and mastermind behind Big Data, Alan Wilkis, but I did not realize just how fast he would accelerate once it was all set in motion. Inertia is a crazy thing, man. It only took somewhere around 45 seconds of their opening number before I grabbed Sprout's shoulder and disrupted her snapping to exchange delightfully astonished glances and mouth, "OH MY GOD!" to each other. 

When last we met our hero, Wilkis was still feeling out how big to go as a performer, which I know has to be tough considering his backstory hasn't really ever been performance based. What I witnessed on Sunday night was what happens when someone takes the time to actually cut and polish a diamond in the rough. That mofugger **SPARKLED**. It wasn't just his stage presence, which has been updated (nerdy pun intended). *Someone* has also obviously been taking singing lessons because dare I say I didn't miss Jamie Lidell's vocals on "Clean" this time nearly as much as I did back in March. 

Highlight of the night for me was what transpired behind me at what was happening in front of me that inspired me to tweet this: 

Considering his current momentum I just keep wondering to myself if he's ever going to slow down. My guess (and hope if I'm honest) is that he won't. 

You're right, Alan. I didn't know that you were dangerous. 

Catch Big Data on tour with RAC and see what I saw. You can peep dates over on Facebook. 

If you haven't listened to Big Data's debut album, 2.0 you better bump it via the Spotify player below before I shake the stupid outta yah. 

For proof of Big Data's newfound badassery, you can relive our night courtesy of Sprout's snaps below:

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#skoaradio 11/07/2015 liner notes

Really feeling this week's mixtape you guys.

Can't stop. Won't stop. Can't stop working. But it's chill though, the atmosphere I've been launched into has me surrounded by people who are music junkies just like me! In fact, I found Michl courtesy of one of my dope new friends at the office I'm in right now. (Thanks dude!) Sprout and I also hit up Honne on Tuesday this week where we hung out in the dungeon of a basement at Mercury Lounge and chatted with with James and Andy before they got the entire place pregnant. It's good to be busy. Then we had Flagship at Rough Trade on Friday night. Those guys were super great too. Can't wait to interview them and officially usher them into the skoa fam. But yeah, there's a lot going on but the majority of it is awesome. I guess you could say I'm #stressedbutalsoblessed. I hope you enjoyed this week's show. I'd love to hear from you if I just introduced you to your new favorite song (I know I'm kind of obsessing over SOULS right now).

Until next week!

<3

kibbe!

 

And here's the headlines I rushed through that you can read more about (and you should so you're smarter than everyone else):

As always, feel free to snag the Spotify playlist below so you can listen to the sweet jams I picked out for you on the go!

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[Night Out] Flagship @ Rough Trade (11/06/2015)

Flagship fam moments before they rocked our faces off at Rough Trade (11/06/2015)

Southern fried southern pride doesn't even begin to fully express how nice it was to be in the presence of North Carolina's Flagship at Rough Trade on Friday night. Calling the four-piece "southern indie rock" would be a bit of a stretch, but I liken their sound to a southerner moving up north and losing the majority of their accent, save for a few words where you catch a hint of that southern twang here and there. Either way, now all I want is fried chicken, sweet tea, and a Publix sub something fierce. Oh, and to obviously keep their new EP Faded on rotation pretty much indefinitely.

For an opening act they managed to have the audience's attention fairly easily. Someone you know may or may not have been caught clapping and stomping away to their latest single, "I Want You", with a big ol' grin on her face. I suppose the combination of just a salad for dinner and an onslaught of white wine allowed me to forget for a second that I was in Williamsburg where fandom is soooo passé. All that said, after their set ended, we chatted with our new Flagship fam for a bit before I realized that nothing was soaking up the white wine and I was on a fast track to making a fool of myself. 

Y'all need to get on this Flagship EP tho. Yes, I said y'all. See? It comes out sometimes. Shut up. I'm homesick now.

And as usual here are the snaps of our Southern gentlemen from Friday night, courtesy of Sprout:

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[Night Out] Honne @ Mercury Lounge (11/03/2015)

The huggy homies Honne @ Mercury Lounge (11/03/2015) photo credit: @sproutdr

NYers know that Mercury Lounge is essentially the "tipping point" venue for a lot of artists. Usually the trajectory for bands goes something a little like: Cake Shop/Pianos/Arlene's Grocery, Mercury Lounge/Rough Trade, and then the likes of Bowery Ballroom/Music Hall of Williamsburg/Gramercy Theatre, before moving on to the Terminal 5s, Town Halls, United Palace Theatres etc. of the world. Sometimes bands don't graduate to the next level of venues, but then there are other times like Honne on Tuesday night at Mercury Lounge that the energy was so electric that I felt like my hair was going to start standing straight up. It was already common knowledge that after their Merc and Rough Trade gigs this week that they'd be back in March 2016 for a show at Bowery Ballroom, so I think that heightened everyone's overall level of excitement.

To me, there's nothing better than realizing you're watching a pivotal moment for a band where all their hard work is finally about to pay off in a big way. I knew it the second we walked up to Mercury Lounge that night and heard some girls in line ahead of us giggling in excitement because they had seen Andy and James leave the venue a few minutes ago. A lot of times the people seeing shows at Merc are either jaded or too cool to show their level of excitement, but everyone in line was SO. STOKED. TO. BE. SEEING. HONNE. That made me even more excited for my pre-show interview with the band, which was awesome. Sprout and I were immediately greeted with hugs as we all introduced ourselves. Our chat was honestly super great. I can't wait to transcribe it for you all to check out for yourselves. These are some really legit dudes who are worthy of the success that is about to hit them like a semi-truck.

Like I hinted at before, their performance was electrifying. I haven't seen that much dancing in Mercury Lounge in awhile. I'm also fairly convinced that come 9 months from now that there is going to be a baby whose middle name is Honne, Andy, or James, if you catch my drift.

Is it March 11th yet?

If you haven't bumped their latest baby-making jams yet, you most definitely need to check out their new EP Over Lover:

You can also have a look at the photos Sprout took of the night in the slideshow below:

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[Night Out] Blackbird Blackbird @ Brooklyn Bowl (10/24/2015)

Mikey Maramag aka the homey Blackbird Blackbird @ Brooklyn Bowl (10/24/2015)

I honestly couldn't tell you how I came across Blackbird Blackbird. It was such a long time ago now. I just remember the first time I heard "Pure" and I knew what one man band Mikey Maramag was doing was something very special and I'm glad that in the 5 years since I heard that song that I wasn't wrong. Anyway, the planets finally aligned and at long last I go to see my longtime Twitter homey grace us with his presence at Brooklyn Bowl. I've been listening to him for such a long time but it never occurred to me how much is going on when he plays live. It made me respect him even more, honestly. The layers of textures that he's carefully crafted together have always been my favorite thing about his sound and it translated incredibly well live.

I'm bummed that we didn't get to hang as was initially planned, but as they say life is what happens while you're busy making plans. I have no doubt that he'll be back soon enough and maybe next time when I literally bump into Dave 1 while grabbing pre-show tacos that he'll be by my side like a true taco bae does.

If you haven't heard Blackbird Blackbird's latest album, Strawberry Light then you are truly missing out on greatness.

Oh yeah, and have a look around at the photos I snapped at Brooklyn Bowl in the slideshow below:

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