Northside Festival Preview, Part the First (Probably)

Bands I Kind of Know

I got an email last week notifying me that I've been approved to cover Brooklyn's Northside Festival this weekend. I'll be focusing on the Music portion of the festival which also features Film and Innovation subheadings. The festival shares a format with other events like South By Southwest or CMJ. That is, lots and lots of bands are spread out across lots and lots of different venues. In this case, approximately 400 bands perform at spots across the Williamsburg and Greenpoint neighborhoods of Brooklyn. This should be interesting. Since it's the weekend and weekends are always pretty full around here; I'll be shuttling back and forth, helping out CoolMom during the early part of the day, covering the festival in the afternoon and evening.

I'm always looking for new material, so I've decided to try and discover some new things -- either by checking out bands I've never heard of or by seeing bands live for the first time. That means that I likely won't be spending time with my beloved Titus Andronicus on Thursday night, but I'm sure I'll get another chance. I'll also likely skip the biggest shows like those from CHVRCHES, Sharon Van Etten, Thee Oh Sees, or a band finally getting their big moment, The War on Drugs. That may change; but, honestly, never having done this before, I'm not even sure if my badge would get me into those.

In this first preview, I'll mention some of the bands I'm more familiar with and that I'll try to catch provided it works with my schedule. Speaking of schedules, the festival has a nice scheduling website where you can search by band, venue, whatever to see where and when everything is happening.

So in no particular order (OK, it's kind of alphabetical; but it goes off on some tangents)...

Baked

So, right off the bat, I break both of my resolutions by letting you know about a band I've both heard of and seen live. Baked opened for Titus Andronicus just a few weeks ago at Asbury Lanes. At that show, my perception of them was psychedelic shoegaze. That changed a bit after they released debut single "Mick Jagger" from their upcoming LP Debt. The elements are still there, but it's got a little more, I don't know, polish that makes me interested in hearing what they've got in store on their record.

This is Sunday night, so it may be a little hard for me to catch Baked's actual set, but playing earlier is...

Ovlov

I reviewed Ovlov's am at the end of last year, and it made it as a late edition to my favorites of 2013. Drawing on some of my favorite sounds -- My Bloody Valentine, The Pixies, Dinosaur Jr. -- Ovlov have had me scoping the Interwebs for a nearby live set that I could attend for a while. I may just make this a Father's Day present to myself.

Both bands will be playing as part of a loaded bill at Sunday's Exploding In Sound Showcase at Baby's All Right.

Beach Fossils

Appearing at the Captured Tracks Showcase on Friday at Warsaw, Beach Fossils -- once the solo, bedroom project of Dustin Payseur -- will be delivering their reverb-y, 80s-inspired post punk as a full band. Joining Beach Fossils on that bill will be...

Craft Spells

Craft Spells latest LP, Nausea, is out today; and frontman / mastermind Justin Vallesteros shares a sonic aesthetic with labelmates Wild Nothing. While Nausea is the product of a full band, some of the lyrics about loneliness and isolation give it a very bedroom-y feel.

Another act on that bill is...

Donovan Blanc

Born of New Jersey lo-fi pop group Honeydrum, Donovan Blanc release their debut self-titled LP for Captured Tracks on June 24th. There's a sheen to the duo's new material that strips away some of the beat-up old audiocassette patina of Honeydrum; but the ability to craft an airy pop song remains.

Bent Shapes

Boston DIY punks, Bent Shapes, are at Glasslands on Sunday night with two CoolDad Music favorites (violating the rules again)...

Swearin'

Swearin's two LPs cover some of my most beloved sounds, rooted in 1990s lo-fi, while...

Radiator Hospital

Sam Cook-Parrott's Radiator Hospital is all over the map, but the band's already extensive output is impressive both in its size and its ability to stick in your brain.

Big Ups

The post-hardcore quartet, fronted by Joe Galarraga, brought the rage and the railing against society on their less than 30 minute 18 Hours of Static. They play an early-ish set at Baby's All Right followed by a late-night performance at Silent Barn, both on Thursday.

Clouder

I mentioned this Brooklyn band's EP, Sister Raygun, earlier this year. Frontman Eric Gilstrap gives Clouder's blend of punk, pop, and surf that extra something. The band play three shows at the festival: Friday at The Flat, a day show on Saturday at Baby's All Right, and a Saturday night show at Bar Matchless.

Also appearing at that Bar Matchless show is...

The Meaning of Life

Christian Gallardo's guitar and Marta DeLeon's vocals made 2012's Yo La Tengo-inspired, David Lynchian Play Fuego a nice discovery for me. In addition to the show with Clouder, The Meaning of Life also do a show Thursday night at The Grand Victory and a daytime Saturday show at Muchmore's.

Fort Lean

Fort Lean are playing what is probably one of the "bigger" shows for VH1 with Kevin Morby of Woods at The Knitting Factory Brooklyn. Yes I've seen them twice already. Yes their upbeat indie pop is very good.

Herzog

I reviewed the latest release by this Cleveland band for Speak Into My Good Eye. Produced by Kevin S. McMahon (Titus Andronicus, Diarrhea Planet), Boys is a collection of meditations on growing from boys to men drenched in fuzzed out, monster-sized guitar hooks. Herzog play Thursday night at the Carpark / Kanine Showcase at Cameo Gallery.

Owel

NJ's atmospheric Owel come highly-recommended by our own Scotch LaRock. That should be enough for you. They play Thursday at The Grand Victory with the aforementioned The Meaning of Life.

The Venetia Fair

Boston's eclectic The Venetia Fair play two shows. The band will bring the chaotic sounds of 2013's Every Sick, Disgusting Thought We've Got In Our Brain to Bar Matchless on Thursday night and to a Saturday afternoon show at Spike Hill.

Whew. Not even sure yet how I'm going to structure my schedule. I'm pretty sure that seeing all of these will be next to impossible, but I'll do my best. To be continued...