we saw: Marissa Nadler

"I Met You In The Belly of a Whale"
(photo by aprilnine)
The Lutheran Church of the Messiah across from McGolrick Park in Greenpoint is a ghostly, candle lit basement performance state filled with cobwebs and perfect for the gothic folk of Marissa Nadler. Nadler, who is touring in support of her soon-to-be-released Little Hells, a record which finds the Boston based songwriter exploring the sonic textures of her sullen, pastoral folk, played solo on Friday night, ditching her live band for a more intimate performance with just her, her guitar, and the occasional banjo. Friday night's set was a welcome run through of Songs III stands outs like "Sylvia", "Dying Breed" and "Salutations in the Dark", as well as Little Hells highlights "Heart Paper Lover", "Ghosts & Lovers" and "Cobwebs." The especially intimate affair (most of the audience was seated Indian style on the floor) also featured an intensely poignant rendition of Bruce Springsteen's "I'm On Fire". Nadler, who switched between a six string Taylor and a twelve string Martin, was in a jovial mood, laughing about how critics had been labeling "Mistress on a Sunny Day", the Little Hells closer, an "uplifting" tune, something that doesn't really exist in Nadler's canon. The warm, rainy night in Greenpoint ended with Marissa doing a version of "Dead Wives Club" on banjo, an appropriate end to a somber evening with the gothic folk princess.

Marissa Nadler- River of Dirt

we saw: Secret Beirut Concert

"Just Another Night"

Last night Greenpoint luminary Zach Condon treated the neighborhood to a free show from the latest incarnation of Beirut at Coco66 on Greenpoint ave. A sort of warm up/drunken rehearsal show, the bar filled to capacity with ravenous onlookers. Having never seen Beirut live before, nor being the worlds biggest Beirut fan, I thoroughly enjoyed the evening, which saw Zach and his stripped down band take on Flying Club Cup staples like "Nantes" and "Sunday Smile", as well as the always enjoyable Lon Gisland jam "Elephant Gun" and brand spanking new Dark Was the Night contribution "Mimizan."

Apparently, many in attendance thought the show was subpar, and, appropriately, are venting their frustrations in the comment section of Brooklyn Vegan (where else!). Truth be told, I had a great time and thought it was a phenomenal show. Hardly life changing but the vibe was jovial and the band treated the audience to a lengthy show, a lot longer than I expected it to be. Despite the angst expressed by many anonymous commenters, I'd like to thank Zach for treating the kind people of Greenpoint to a drunken night of musical revelry and reminding us that BV commenters are just a bunch of fucking wankers.

Oh, and anybody willing to sell their BAM tickets should get in touch with me. Thx.

Setlist
Nantes
Sunday Smile
The Shrew
Elephant Gun
The Concubine
La Javanaise (Serge Gainsbourg cover)
Postcard from Italy
Akara
Mimizan
After The Curtain
East Harlem
Cherbourg
Cocek

My Night With the Prostitute in Versailles
Wroclia

new: Marissa Nadler

"I Was Dreaming Of The Past"

In keeping with our "highlighting albums we're really excited about" posts for the week, Marissa Nadler upped a few goodies just after the New Year, a sort of "non-denominational holiday gift" of covers, remixes and demos. Like she said before, her new record, Little Hells (3/7/09 Kemado Records) "will not be heard till it is released, at all", but that's just fine considering she's been posting a steady stream of videos and unreleased material on her blog. It's also worth mentioning that Mexican Summer, the vinyl only subscription record label, named after a Nadler song, recently reissued her debut Ballads of Living and Dying. Oh yeah, and if that isn't enough, Marissa will be gracing our lovely neighborhood with her presence on February 27th, when she, along with MV & EE, will play the Lutheran Church of the Messiah located right down the street from Bobka HQ. So yeah, we're pretty excited about that one. 'Til then, stay warm with some of these unreleased gems.

If you happen to be in Paris, you can catch Marissa tonight at Au Presbytère de Saint Eustache.

Marissa Nadler- So Long Theresa
Marissa Nadler- Jealous Guy (John Lennon cover)

local: Julianna Barwick

"Come Around"

Some of the most beautiful new music I've heard this year comes from Julianna Barwick. The Brooklyn based sound collage artist's take on loop based ambiance feels like it was birthed during a year long dream. It is devoid of space and time, and exists in the invisible ether surrounding us. It is both timeless and space-age. Mournful and uplifting, like the dawning of a new day. While it was her remix of Radiohead's "Reckoner" that initially drew me to her, it's her phenomenal Daytrotter session that got me hooked (not a surprise). Highly rec'd seeing Julianna 12/6 at the Cake Shop, where you can pick up a copy of her 13-track, 23 minute record Sanguine. For a taste of Julianna's dreams, check out this set from Greenpoint's Cafe Grumpy, courtesy of Sing Like Buildings.


Julianna Barwick- first song
Julianna Barwick- fifth song

new morning music: Kria Brekkan

"It Sounds Wonderful!"

(Photo from NYC Taper)
I finally got around to listening to NYC Taper's phenomenal recording of Kria Brekkan's semi-recent set at the Lutheran Church of the Messiah in Greenpoint a few months ago. Whoa! I remember the evening feeling as if the basement of the church were some hideaway on the great astral plane and the Taper's recording only cements that feeling. While the set isn't without its warts (chairs moving, blips, clicks, etc), it is an absolutely phenomenal capturing of an extremely intimate moment, one I haven't been quite able to shake since the evening. Kria's eccentric, hushed, utterly ethereal sound scapes are the stuff winter dreams are made of. That said, download this set asap before the chill of winter sets in and you feel like hibernating. It will aid greatly in the process.

PS-NYC Taper's got a new server and downloads are super fast. Highly rec'd snatching as much as possible, ya know, for the future.

Download Kria's set (and more) at NYC Taper.

we saw: Kria Brekan & Olaf Arnalds

Pixie Dust

Todd P sent out an email yesterday that read:

2NITE -> a special beautiful night of quieter sounds w/ Múm alums Kría Brekkan -&- Ólöf Arnalds (both from Iceland) -&- Sam Amidon @ LUTHERAN CHURCH OF THE MESSIAH

Immediately, I knew I was in. Even more so after my delirious eyes realized the Lutheran Church of the Messiah is a few measly steps from my front door. The basement of the Greenpoint church was dark and dank, quite the contrast from the cool evening outside, which seemed to usher in autumn. We arrived at 9 just in time for Kría Brekkan's set of tape looped, piano driven, whimsical dream cycles that flutter in and around your head like specs of gold dust after you've run into a brick wall. Quite refreshing, and entrancing too. Kría wanted the room dark and finagled with the lone flood light that lite the stage. She pushed a table in front of it so its ominous glow was more of a shadow than a spotlight. Her live show was much like I envisioned after hearing the Wildering 7"; gorgeously quiet, as if her music was seeping out from 5,000 years of frozen dreams. Kría often stopped songs claiming she was messing up, or didn't know the words, but she is so beautiful and charming on stage that none of that mattered, as if it should. Music to dream to, most definitely. Even reminded me to get back into William S. Burroughs My Education: A Book of Dreams.

Her former múm partner Ólöf Arnalds set was similar, albeit totally different than Kría's more experimental set. Leaning closer to traditional Icelandic folk than Lau Nau-ish experimentalism, Ólöf stunned the crowd with her voice, which sang like you wish your mother would've sung you to sleep. Of course, Ólöf is a new mom and her son was in the audience, arguably making more noise than the dudes running down the stairs, popping beer bottles and shuttering lenses. All good though, he was just hungry and when Mommy called him on stage for some food, and an acapella lullaby, he seemed to relax. Ólöf ended the evening by bringing VT bred ambient folkie Sam Amidon, whose set we regrettably missed, and Kría back on stage for a string of collaborations that carried me off into a purgatorial state, which I may still be in while writing this. Absolutely beautiful evening from some of Iceland's most provocative, most enchanting songstresses.

Next up, Sigur Ros tonight. Iceland's really taking over.

Kria Brekkan- Gömul vísa um vorið

Ólöf Arnalds performing "Klara"

We saw: Titus Andronic, Yo La Tengo...Last Pool Party

"And The Summer Comes Undone"
(Photo by Forklift)
(Photo by Fakebook)

(Photo by Dese'Rae L. Stage)

Yesterday couldn't have been a better Pool Party. Not only was the weather absolutely impeccable but NJ All Stars (veterans) Yo La Tengo and (rookies) Titus Andronicus brought the sonic heat. Titus was on second, after the horrible Ebony Bones, and tore threw a set of distortion driven, reverb drenched songs that felt more like a call to arms than a rock concert. No surprise considering The Airing Of Grievances is delivered with a sense of urgency that feels more like a desperate plea for life than cry for help. The songs are immediate, biting, caustic and catchy. I really haven't mentioned them on here, although I probably should be considering I own all of their recorded material on vinyl and have spent a good portion of 2K8 freaking out on subways whilst listening to The Airing of Grievances. Head over to Troubleman Unlimited to grab their limited edition vinyl LP before its sold out forever.


(Photo by BitNoots)



(Photo by StevMacs)

If Titus Andronicus didn't blow out your ear drums, then Yo La Tengo were determined to. The NJ vets played an extremely feedback driven set (even for them) that was full of sonic excursions powerful enough to send waves of electricity down your spine. Ira was on. James held down some of the grooviest bass lines I've ever heard (Period.) Georgia coo'd and looked sweet with a guitar. Like Wilco at the Pool a week ago, Yo La rock like serious veterans, a well oiled machine of a band who know each other inside and out, so that seemingly free-form sonic freakouts don't sound as much like experiments in improvisation, but highly constructed fits of noize capable of existing inside the song structure. If the pairing of Yo La and Titus wasn't good enough, the two joined each other on NJ punk pioneers The Misfits "Where Eagles Dare", a great way to end one of the best shows of the summer. Farewell Pool, maybe we'll visit you when you're filled with water. Or, maybe not.

(Photo by AmyeDav)


Yo La Tengo "Pass The Hatchet, I Think I'm Good Kind"