The New Alternative Music Festival at Asbury Park's Convention Hall, Night 2, 9/17/16

Downtown Boys closed out the New Alternative Music Festival at Convention Hall.

You Can't Start a Fire without a Spark

Strangely, given how much I enjoy eating, I usually forget to eat during shows. I get kind of wrapped up in what's going on, and I don't make time to have dinner or whatever. Friday night was no different; so, after Screaming Females' set, I made my way over to Cookman Avenue to get a Korean burrito.

Asbury Park is actually a pretty small community; and, on a busy Friday night, you're likely to run into someone you know. I bumped into Gentleman Jim Norton outside of House of Independents, and we ended up chatting for a while as we've been known to do. When I finally made it to Mogo for some food, Renee Maskin (more on Renee in the next post) walked in; and we lingered over burritos discussing all manner of things. All of this is to say that it was pretty frigging late (or early, depending on your perspective) when I got home. I woke up the next morning and squeezed in a little photo editing before heading back to Convention Hall for Day 2 of Don Giovanni Records' New Alternative Music Festival.

Vagabon were just finishing up as I walked inside, and Jamie Kilstein and The Agenda were up next. Kilstein made it a point to acknowledge the importance of what the festival represented while delivering a politically charged and hilariously funny set.

Vagabon

Jamie Kilstein and The Agenda

Upset were next. Founded by Ali Koehler, formerly of NJ's Vivian Girls, the band are based in LA and rarely make it out this way. The lineup has changed since I last saw them a couple of years ago, and the focus has shifted from Koehler to be more evenly distributed among the rest of the band. Upset still feature the legendary Patty Schemel (Hole, Death Valley Girls, Sharkmuffin [on Chartreuse], and more), and one of the big thrills of the festival for me was awkwardly saying hello to her over at the merch table. The new, more democratic Upset were great; and I look forward to their new music.

Upset

Other standout early sets for me were those turned in by Philadelphia duo Trophy Wife, San Jose's Try the Pie, Baltimore's Outer Spaces (whose A Shedding Snake will be very high on my personal year-end list for what that's worth), and Dyke Drama (the solo project of G.L.O.S.S.'s Sadie Switchblade). Anti-folk hero Jeffrey Lewis took us into what would have been the dinner break had I remembered to eat.

Outer Spaces

Throughout the day, I saw the members of P.S. Eliot and Screaming Females among the crowd enjoying all of the bands. It's a testament to the community that surrounds Don Giovanni Records that headliners from the previous day would clear their schedules to stick around for Day 2 of the festival.

Things then really ramped up with evening sets from Mal Blum, Aye Nako, Sex Stains, Rye Coalition, Laura Stevenson, Girlpool, and Downtown Boys. Mal Blum was as charming as ever, easily chatting with the crowd between their upbeat, singable songs about depression and self-doubt. Aye Nako, a band I've wanted to see for a while now, were worth the wait. They draw from a well of 90s influences and challenge listeners with songs about sexual and racial identity.

Mal Blum and The Blums

Aye Nako

I wasn't prepared for Sex Stains. Fronted by Allison Wolfe (Bratmobile, Partyline), the band gave us probably the wildest set of the entire festival. I couldn't stop snapping pictures as Wolfe and co-lead vocalist Mecca Vazie Andrews bounced, twirled, high-kicked, and rolled around on- and offstage. At one point, they invited audience members up to dance with them (No surprise, Ed the Punk was first to take them up on the offer.). Short, intense blasts of punk / post-punk. Beer raining on me from somewhere as I was taking pictures. Just amazing.

Sex Stains

Immediately following her band's set, Wolfe was right down front going wild for the reunion of Jersey City hard rock band, Rye Coalition. They played one of the longest sets of the night, and the Jersey crowd ate it up along with band-provided cupcakes.

Rye Coalition

Laura Stevenson. One of my favorites. She and the band took the stage after 9, and that's when I got this weird feeling -- after having spent about 7 hours in the windowless box of Convention Hall -- that I didn't really know whether it was day or night anymore. Anyway, Stevenson's set was wonderful, as expected, if a little too short for me. It was hard taking pictures as I just wanted to close my eyes and listen to the music, but I managed. Stevenson's last two records -- Wheel and Cocksure -- are stunning in different ways, and all of that came across during her set.

Laura Stevenson

Philly via LA duo, Girlpool, had the penultimate Convention Hall set. Harmony Tividad (bass, vocals) and Cleo Tucker (guitar, vocals) stood at either end of the stage right setup, their voices weaving around each other as they sang. The pair's friendship comes through on 2015's Before the World Was Big, and they brought the whole audience into that during their set.

Girlpool

Finally it was time for Providence, RI's Downtown Boys. I've written before here about the band's passion. Singer Victoria Ruiz delivers rousing calls to action as intros while the sounds of the sax and the rest of the band build up behind her. The tension rises until everything explodes into "Wave of History" or "Monstro." At times, Ruiz held the mic to members of the audience who shouted "She's brown! She's smart!" along with the band.

Downtown Boys

Downtown Boys included their cover of Bruce Springsteen's "Dancing in the Dark" towards the end of their set, and the line "You can't start a fire without a spark" seemed appropriate for the entire weekend. Yes, the festival ended up having to cancel its scheduled third day. No, there probably weren't as many people in attendance as Don Giovanni Records (or even I) would have liked. But something important happened over those two days. For a weekend, bands had the chance to play not to help sell beer or energy drinks or to up some corporation's street cred with millennials, but simply to share their art with people who cared about it. They got to play as part of a bill that included women's voices, LGBTQ voices, the voices of people of color -- voices that are often lost in the white, male-dominated bills of major "Indie" rock festivals.

Following the festival, bands went back out into the world of gigs sponsored by beer companies and huge music-industrial complex gatherings. But, for two days in Asbury Park, they got to see that an alternative is possible. The New Alternative Music Festival didn't burn the corporate music industry to the ground, but maybe it was a spark.

Pics are all done. I'll be uploading them to the Flickr galleries this afternoon.

Downtown Boys Reissuing 2012 S/T Debut

12" Vinyl

I remember seeing Downtown Boys listed as one of the bands playing the Don Giovanni Records showcase back in 2015. At the time, I had no idea who they were or what they sounded like. After their set, during which singer Victoria Ruiz performed her first crowd surf and drummer Norlan Olivo was hoisted above the crowd while standing on his floor tom, I stood there with my mouth open and a lump in my throat.

The band filled Knitting Factory with passion, rage, and exuberance all simultaneously. Their songs, delivered in a mix of Spanish and English, railed against institutionalized oppression and gave a voice to many voiceless segments in American society. It was the punkest thing I'd ever seen. Since then, I've seen Downtown Boys a few more times, and my reaction has always been the same as that first night.

Downtown Boys at Knitting Factory Brooklyn in 2015

Today, Downtown Boys announced that they will be reissuing their self-titled 2012 debut album on 12" vinyl via Buffalo's One Percent Press. Originally self-released on cassette and CD-R, all handmade by the band in their hometown of Providence, RI, this collection has been out of print for several years.

Recorded in a Providence, RI basement with the band's original lineup, it's an early document of some of the ideas that would eventually result in 2015's Full Communism for Don Giovanni Records and the band's spot on that Knitting Factory stage. Among the 10 tracks are live set staples like "Rich Boys" and "Haz Algo" along with covers of "Maldito" by Mexico's Jessy Bulbo and "Poderimo Rok" by Pekinška Patka from the former Yugoslavia.

You can stream Downtown Boys over at the band's Bandcamp page and order the vinyl over at One Percent Press.

Downtown Boys are on tour this summer. It's a tour that will bring them to Asbury Park's Convention Hall on September 17th as part of Don Giovanni's New Alternative Music Festival. You don't want to miss them.



Downtown Boys on Tour

June 24 - New York, NY - Market Hotel
July 3 - Providence, RI - Aurora
July 7 - Cleveland, OH - Mahall's
July 8 - Chicago, IL - Empty Bottle
July 9 - Chicago, IL - West Fest at Empty Bottle
July 10 - Detroit, MI - El Club (matinee show)
July 23 - Denver, CO - Summit Music Hall
August 4 - Boston, MA - Middle East
Aug 24 - Washington, DC - Rock and Roll Hotel
Aug 27 - New York, NY - Afropunk Festival
Sept 8-10 - Raleigh, NC - Hopscotch Festival
Sept 17 - Asbury Park, NJ - The New Alternative Music Festival

CoolDad Does Austin: SXSW Day 2

Downtown Boys cannot be stopped.

Cheer Up Charlie's, Little Dickman Records, NOBUNNY

After my experience of getting shut out of shows I wanted to see on Tuesday night, I made it a point to arrive early for the AD HOC Magazine Day Party at Cheer Up Charlie's. The show featured a full slate of bands I wanted to see at the festival, so I could park myself in one spot and check acts off of my list.

There was no crowd when I arrived, and I got to check out both Surfbort and Wall on the inside stage. Both bands are from New York. Surfbort is more hardcore punk, while Wall is kind of post-punk in the vein of Priests. I enjoyed both sets, but Wall kind of blew me away.

The outside stage featured All Dogs, Frankie Cosmos, Waxahatchee, Dilly Dally, Downtown Boys, and White Lung. Every single one of those was an act I came to see, and every single one of those were fantastic in the hot sun yesterday. All Dogs were just as good as I remembered them from seeing them at Asbury Lanes in the summer; and Dilly Dally lived up to everything I'd heard about them. Drawing on influences like Pixies and Hole, Toronto's Dilly Dally became a new obsession of mine.

Frankie Cosmos played as a duo; and Greta Kline charmed her way through some technical difficulties, guitar tuning issues, and forgetting some lyrics once or twice. It was still an enjoyable and relatable set. Waxahatchee (Katie Crutchfield) played solo and fought the din of a competing show across the street. She managed to hold everyone's attention with her singular voice.

Downtown Boys' passion once again had me choking up in the front row as singer Victoria Ruiz stalked around the edge of the stage delivering impassioned speeches about empowerment and injustice. Every one of their shows is like a political rally and it's hard not to get swept up. White Lung brought their new sound and new songs. Lead singer Mish Way was a commanding presence, and the band appear to be onto something cool with their new record.

I hadn't eaten a damn thing all day, so I made my way back to my hotel to clean up and fuel up before heading to Carousel Lounge for Little Dickman Records' Rock Or Die III party featuring Sharkmuffin, T.V. Tramps, Dentist, Darkwing, and Fruit and Flowers. It was another good night of hanging with some friends from back home, and all the bands got good reactions from the crowd.

It was an early show; so, after some In and Out Burger, Chris from Little Dickman and I headed downtown to catch NOBUNNY close out Hotel Vegas for the evening. That was a wild, wild set. Constant stage diving, beer cans flying through the air, and just a continuous barrage from the band. Thanks to Chris for dragging me to that one. I probably would have missed it left to my own devices.

Time to make my way back downtown for some more day party action. Until next time.

Downtown Boys Partner with DemandProgress.org and Others to Launch Spark Mag

Rhode Island's Downtown Boys in New Brunswick this past September.

Radical!

Everybody's got a definition of "punk." Songs have been written about it. Comment threads have grown into the thousands of responses over it. I'm not a music historian or authority on punk; but, to my mind, the term often applies to two not always related things: aesthetics and ideology.

If I were to say that a band had a punk sound, you'd probably develop an idea of what I was talking about. Loud, fast, lots of power chords, etc. If I said that a band looked punk, you'd probably form some image for that as well. Neither of those really tell you much about a band's ideology, though. Lots of bands, for lots of reasons don't wear their ideology on their sleeves. They're just there to make music, put on a good show, have a good time. Nothing wrong with that.

Bands that subscribe to and live a punk ideology are harder to find. They're harder to find because living your ideals while trying to make a living is hard. They're harder to find because doing things outside "the system," calling out authority, and speaking up for those who find it difficult to speak for themselves aren't things that generally get you recognized by the mainstream.

Acts that do all these things -- who consciously decide to exist outside of the musical-industrial complex and who espouse a radical / activist message -- are punk. It doesn't matter what they sound like. It's their approach that makes them a punk band.

It's in that sense that I've often described Rhode Island's Downtown Boys as one of the punkest bands I've ever seen. Their shows are emotional affairs during which the band give voice to the concerns of the oppressed and the marginalized, fearlessly calling out some the institutions we're taught to revere like the police and our mainstream version of history.

Downtown Boys have partnered with DemandProgress.org, Future of Music Coalition, and Impose Magazine to launch Spark Mag, a new culture website whose aim is to publicize the music of radical and politically-minded artists from all genres and to connect them with fans and the organizing campaigns these artists have been working on for years. Spark Mag aims to highlight artists who may receive less coverage for their work because of their radical views.

The site launched yesterday. It's edited by Downtown Boys' Joey La Neve DeFrancesco and Victoria Ruiz and already includes contributions from Ruiz, Liz Pelly, Jes Skolnik, Priests' lead singer Katie Alice Greer, and more. Spark Mag also includes an online store through which artists will sell their work directly to fans with most of the proceeds going directly to the artist and the rest going to support DemandProgress.org who have mobilized their membership in the past to fight for net neutrality, to defeat the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA), and to advocate for reforms in the area of money and politics.

This is all extremely important and interesting. It's important and interesting if you agree with the points of view of the artists featured in Spark Mag because it is true that artists with a radical message often don't get heard by the mainstream. But it's also important if you don't agree or have some misgivings about the positions held by the artists featured here. The online world can be an echo chamber in which it's too easy to find things that reinforce our beliefs. It's important to seek out alternative voices, to understand opposing positions, and to have respectful and reasoned debate. I hope that Spark Mag can get some of that going. That would be pretty punk.

Spark Mag is running an Indie Go Go campaign to help them with the launch.

I'm adding them to the blog roll. Check them out at thesparkmag.com.

Don Giovanni Records Free Show w/ Screaming Females, Downtown Boys, Glazer, and more, 9/12/15 (PHOTOS)

Screaming Females in New Brunswick's Boyd Park

Saturday in the Park

I got home from Philly on Saturday morning at about 2:30AM. CoolDaugther #2 had a 9AM away soccer game. We all made it over there, though. The skies looked a little threatening, but it never rained. CD2's team won big, and she even got an assist. Afterwards, we stopped for smoothies and headed home. I drank some coffee and headed to Boyd Park in New Brunswick for my second annual trip to Don Giovanni's free, end of summer / back to school showcase.

By the time I arrived, Delucy had just finished. I couldn't blame Don Giovanni for sticking to a tight schedule as the weather looked like it could turn ugly any second. Ed The Punk and Young Luke Henderiks gave Delucy positive reviews, so I'll check them out.

The rest of the day, emceed by comedian Brett Davis, followed the same tight schedule with one small exception. It was just my second time seeing Glazer, and they were as good as I remembered. All fuzzy and Dinosaur Jr.-y. After their set, there was an impromptu shred-off between one of Glazer's guitarists and 8yo bass prodigy, Lil Asmar. Asmar was the emotional favorite and amazed with a pretty flawless cover of "Higher Ground." Remember. He's 8.

Things got back on schedule with Izzy True. Her shy and self-deprecating wit permeates each of her songs. Wild Rice gave us some heavier, bluesy, psych rock. New Brunswick high schoolers, Electric Trip, turned in a crazy set of metal. That ended with a guitar being smashed to bits on the concrete slab that served as a stage.

I was interested to see how Downtown Boys' performance would translate to the park setting. Having only seen them at the packed out Don Giovanni Showcase at Knitting Factory Brooklyn, I wondered what their show would feel like in the great outdoors. They were just as stirring as I remembered, lead singer Victoria Ruiz introducing each song with a call to action. Adrienne Berry's sax honking, Joey DeFrancesco bouncing as he ripped at his tele, I swear I could feel a lump rising in my throat as I got carried along by the band's passion. "This is punk," I thought.

Once it was time for Screaming Females, most of the people sitting in the concrete bleachers of the amphitheater came down to the performance area. Screaming Females, simultaneously one of the hardest rocking and sweetest bands in the business, had been audience members for most of the day and now dove into a relentless set. I don't think it was until almost the end of the set that Marissa Paternoster even said her usual, "We're Screaming Females, and we're from New Brunswick, New Jersey." It wasn't like the crowd needed the intro. I felt a few raindrops starting just as the band wound things up.

I was struck again by the sense of community and friendship that characterizes these Don Giovanni shows. From seeing Marissa Paternoster front and center for the early sets, to the shred-off with Lil Asmar, to the reception given to Electric Trip, to Victoria Ruiz calling Marissa Paternoster her band's "little big sister" and thanking King Mike for screen printing the t-shirts that helped fund their tour, to seeing Joe Steinhardt and his wife with their 9-month old baby, the day felt almost like a family affair.

I got shots of everyone except Delucy. You can see highlights below or head to Flickr for full sets.

You can also catch Screaming Females when they headline Dark City's Halloween show at Convention Hall on October 31st. Screaming Females will be performing as X, and that bill includes lots of our good friends.

New Single from Downtown Boys

Downtown Boys' Victoria Ruiz at Knitting Factory Brooklyn in February

"Monstro"

There were lots of memorable moments at this year's Don Giovanni Showcase. For me, one of the most memorable was the set turned in by Providence, Rhode Island's Downtown Boys. There were wigs and saxophones and crowd surfs and communal on-stage audience dance and singalongs. And it was all in the service of speaking up for the outsiders and the marginalized.

Allyson Dwyer attended the show with me and wrote:

"With Downtown Boys, I really  saw how and why punk can be so powerful. I saw how it has the ability to empower others, to help them articulate a voice and release a cathartic anger and energy. The things that Downtown Boys sing about are important. They scream at racism, sexism, capitalism and colonialism and do not ignore how these institutions intersect. The level of energy from the room spoke to the raw anger young people in this country feel towards these topics, and how needed it is for women, people of color, and LGBTQ to have a punk space of their own. As dozens of people in the crowd hopped on stage with the band to sing out, I won’t lie, I felt a little tear."

On "Monstro," a single premiering at SPIN from Downtown Boys' upcoming Full Communism, singer Victoria Ruiz screams, "She's brown!! She's smart!!" as the pandemonium generated by the rest of the band rages around her. It is enough to cause a little lump to form in your throat. I get that little lump, that little dampness at the corner of my eye, not just because of the passion with which Downtown Boys deliver their message. I also get that feeling from the realization that someone in American popular music in 2015 is actually singing about these things at all.

Why CoolDad Music

Black Wine as Devo at The Knitting Factory Brooklyn.

I Have to Do a Post Like This Every Once in a While

"What the hell am I even doing?"

That's what I was thinking to myself as I sat, pulled over on Marcy Ave., waiting for the NYPD officer to finish writing out my summons for supposedly running a red light. It was about 3AM, and I'd maybe endangered the lives of me, my passenger, and whomever else could have come through that intersection. We were heading home from the second night of the Don Giovanni Records showcase in Williamsburg.

We got back home at about 4AM, and I sat in the driveway scanning the ticket. It could end up costing $278. Ouch.

I thought the same thing again -- "What the hell am I doing?" -- as my car slipped and slid down Route 35 on my way to The Battery Electric's record release party. About 3-4 inches of slush covered the highway, and there was always someone behind me who thought I could be driving faster.

Coming home was less harrowing but no picnic either. It was probably about 2:30 by the time I got to bed.

I'm a 45-year-old suburban father of two getting home at 2, 3, 4 in the morning from covering rock concerts. I spend hours on Satudays and Sundays and almost all of my free moments during the week editing photos and preparing posts. Why??

I got my answer soon after those Don Giovanni shows in Brooklyn.

And, again, after that Battery Electric release show in Asbury.

Our first Asbury Park show was an undeniable blast. @asburylanes was as fun to play as it is to hang out at, @thebatteryelectric brought out a great crowd for their record release party snow be damned, and excellent, photographers like @cooldadmusic were there to document it all. We'll be back soon.

A photo posted by Black Wail (@blackwail) on Feb 23, 2015 at 7:51pm PST

And these are just two examples. Over the three years that I've been running CoolDad Music, I've had several thoughts about what I want the site to be. What I've found that works the best for me is just documenting. Documenting what these artists, however big or small, bring to a show night after night. Documenting what happens inside these venues. Documenting the feelings that all of this brings up inside my own mind. When I go back and view these pictures or read these posts, they take me back to some of the special moments I've experienced and shared over the last three years. Those experiences, together, have been a life saver for me; and it's just icing on the cake when I see evidence that they hold meaning for someone else.

So the answer to "What the hell am I doing?" is "I'm doing something that I love. I'm producing work of which I can say that I'm proud." It's no small thing, I tell you.

I've said this before, but that thing that you always read about finding your passion? It's true. Find what you love and do whatever you can to shoehorn it into your life. Doing it as a job, I guess, would be cool; but who really gets to do that? It doesn't matter anyway. Find what you love. Devote as much time to it as you are able. Do a good job. And when you find yourself asking, "Why the hell am I doing this?" look back at the work you've produced, and you'll see that it's healed your soul; it's allowed you to express who you really are; and it's probably touched other people along the way.

That's kind of what art is, isn't it? I believe each and every one of us is an artist deep down inside. We all just have to figure out what kind  -- musician, painter, writer, photographer, parent, chef, baker, sandwich maker, friend, listener, ballplayer, housecleaner, or a combination of several different things. Whatever kind of artist you are, once you find it and act on it; you'll be the happiest you've ever been.

Thanks for reading.

Don Giovanni Records Showcase at The Knitting Factory Brooklyn, 2/7/15 (PHOTO LINKS)

Downtown Boys played. Craziness ensued.

Night 2

The dynamic duo of Allyson and me were back at Knitting Factory Brooklyn for the second installment of Don Giovanni's 2015 label showcase. After a bit of wrangling to ensure that I had a photo pass for the show, I was inside again and took up my spot front and center. Good thing I got that pass, too; because I went absolutely crazy taking photos on the second night.

Anyway, Chris Gethard was hosting again for Night 2. He'd noted the evening before that Don Giovanni are a label that think outside the box: Take the first two nights of the showcase and put them right next to each other. Then, hold Night 3 some number of weeks later. Even better, make that third night have two separate shows to confuse everyone even more.

Joe Steinhardt: "improv'er" / break dancer

Gethard again treated us to the comedy stylings of Don Giovanni executive Joe Steinhardt. This time Gethard and Steinhardt engaged in some long-form improv involving Ikea and break dancing. Both gamely attempted to execute spins on the stage. Gold.

Recent -- like really recent -- Don Giovanni signees Alice started things off with a short set. They seemed a little nervous which was pretty charming, and they definitely have a sound that touches on a lot of stuff I really like. Looking forward to the record.

brick mower produced one of my favorite records of 2014; and, while I missed them on Night 3 of last year's showcase, I've seen them several times locally since then. They had Chris Pierce on drums like they did when they opened for The Muffs at Asbury Lanes and sounded as tight as I've ever heard them.

Post-NSC stage.

Last year, Nuclear Santa Claust played the smaller Night 1 at Death By Audio. That was the most aggressive of the three nights with The Groucho Marxists, Vacation, Tenement, and Night Birds also on the bill. Just like last year, beers -- Beers. Not empty beer cans. -- hurtled toward the stage throughout the set. The band, which includes Don Giovanni "co-honcho" Zach Gajewski on bass, were soaked. Cans littered the stage when the set was done.

Pete Stampfel, Chris Gethard

Just before Worriers took the stage, New York underground legend Peter Stampfel joined Gethard onstage. He discussed some deeply personal experiences with vacuum cleaners and, when asked what advice he had for independent bands trying to make it, said simply, "Persevere." Chris Gethard called Stampfel a "perfect man."

I'd just seen Worriers at Asbury Lanes during one of the Home for the Holidays after-parties, and I'm really growing to love their sound and the content of Lauren Measure's songs. Saturday just solidified that for me.

The next two sets continued the surprise theme of the previous night. Philly's Pinkwash set up a stack of amps for guitarist Joey Doubeck. After some technical issues, Doubeck and drummer Ashley Arnwine delivered a short (Very short. Like 4 songs.) set of room-shaking guitar / drum rock.

As surprised as I was by the intensity of Pinkwash, nothing could have prepared me for Providence, RI's Downtown Boys. The band's politically charged, bi-lingual punk rock worked the crowd to the first real moshing, stage-diving frenzy of the weekend.

Downtown Boys and friends

Downtown Boys had guitar, bass, drums, saxophones, a guy jumping around hitting drumsticks together, and lead singer Victoria Ruiz. They had rage. As Ruiz made between song speeches about gender, race, and the police, her mother stood beaming at the front of the stage. Ruiz eventually climbed into the audience and ended up being hoisted aloft in what she claimed was her first-ever crowd surf. Drummer Norlan Olivo eventually followed Ruiz into the crowd and climbed atop his floor tom as the crowd held it over their heads. By the end of the set, people from the audience had joined the band onstage for a group sing and thrash. Totally crazy. Totally cathartic.

California X did a great job following the hardest act to follow of the night, closing things out with a wall of guitar noise. The band had a lot more room to move around than when I saw them a few weeks ago at Paradise Lost, and I could actually see them and take photos this time. I held my spot at the front of the stage and reveled in one of my favorite bands right now.

At the end of the night, I told Joe Steinhardt about my amazement with Downtown Boys, and he said, "We try to bring you the future here."

Don Giovanni bring more than that. It's obvious that Joe and Zach are signing and helping out bands that they really personally enjoy. The results of that approach are obvious when you feel the good vibes at one of these shows.

Two days. Two late, late nights. One traffic ticket. Thirteen bands. So worth it.

Links to all of the pics from Night 2 are below.

Chris Gethard, Joe Steinhardt, Peter Stampfel
Alice
Brick Mower
Nuclear Santa Claust
Worriers
Pinkwash
Downtown Boys
California X