Weekend Fun with Algebra II & Heart Bones

Algebra II at Asbury Park Brewery

AP to NYC

This past Friday night, I headed over to Asbury Park Brewery to catch the release show for Algebra II's debut album, Why Would Anyone Think This Goes Here? The album is the culmination of six years of making music together for Maggie Pakutka (guitar / vocals), Gabby Evergreen (cello), and Lewie D'Avanzo (drums, bass). I've dug Algebra II's combination of sweetness and noise for a while now.

Their vibe, I think, is best summed up by a little story. A couple of years ago, I booked Algebra II for a show at the Asbury Hotel. They went on last. There was this guy in a big, red MAGA cap hanging around the bar and making scrunched up faces at the other bands who played that night. When Algebra II was setting up, he noticed the cello and said something like, "Aah... Here we go. Finally, some good music." But once Maggie dug into her SG, Lewie started banging the drums, and Gabby started dragging her bow across the strings, the guy stuck his fingers in his ears and ran out. It really was good music, and the rest of us had a fantastic time.

On Friday, Algebra II put together a bill that included some of Jersey's finest bands. There were happy birthday balloons and tiny party hats. We got the shoegazy dream pop of New Brunswick's Resounding NO, the jangly power-pop of Bloomfield's Joy Cleaner, and the loud, folky, indie rock of Jersey City's Long Neck. The evening culminated with Algebra II playing their new record front to back. In addition to good music, the whole night was full of some really good feeling; and those are always the best shows.

Resounding NO

Joy Cleaner

Long Neck

Algebra II

Algebra II

On Sunday, Chris Dickman and I headed up to (le) Poisson Rouge in Manhattan to catch Heart Bones. Sunday afternoons on the Parkway headed towards NYC are never the best, so Chris and I decided to roll the dice with New Jersey Transit. Surprisingly, the train was only about 20 minutes late and we made it to the show in pleeeeeenty of time. I'm gonna say we were the first two people in the venue, which isn't unusual for me; but Chris -- justifiably -- thought I was nuts.

Anyway...

(le) Poisson Rouge is in the heart of my old NYU student stomping grounds, and I always love going back to Greenwich Village. When I went to school there, (le) Poisson Rouge was the legendary Village Gate, and I saw a few shows in the upstairs performance space. Shows at LPR take place downstairs, and Sunday's show was set up in-the-round, with the stage in the middle of the room.

Good Fuck (Tim Kinsella and Jenny Pulse) were the scheduled openers, but had to cancel because of an emergency. Simon O'Connor of Simon Doom filled in with a solo set backed by tracks from his iPhone. I saw O'Connor's other project, Spiral Heads, open for Sweet Spirit a few weeks back; and I've been digging his post-punk influenced songs.

Simon Doom

I caught Heart Bones when they came through on their Dirty Dancing tour at the end of last year and I had a blast. On Sunday, Sabrina Ellis and Har Mar Superstar took full advantage of the in-the-round setup by having the audience walk circles around the stage as they played to all corners. That highly-interactive aspect of the show, combined with the eminently danceable songs (check out singles "Little Dancer," "This Time It's Different," and "Disappearer"), made for another joyful evening.

Heart Bones

Heart Bones

Heart Bones

Afterwards, Chris and I stopped for pizza at the place I went to almost every day during my freshman and sophomore years of college and then headed back to Jersey like a couple of snails on NJT.

CoolMom was out of town on Sunday, so I stayed up super late editing pictures. That made Monday pretty much a lost day, and I couldn't really finish this up before heading to CoolDaughter 2's swim meet on Tuesday. But you've got it this morning, so now you can rejoice. All the pics will be at the Flickr account.

Swearin' Played Monty Hall with Dark Thoughts, Long Neck, and Soft Center, 12/7/18

Swearin' by Rose Lamela

End of the Week

Words and Pictures by Rose Lamela

If there is one thing I have learned this year it is this; the best thing to do after a rough week is to hit a show with my cameras. Jersey City, my prefered destination, was where I was headed. I can get in the car, swirl my way through the confusing one ways, blast some Long Neck, and get a good parking spot.This time the parking spot was a bit rough as I might have jinxed my constant praise to the parking gods; but, because of my crazy parents with their punctuality lectures, I was early.

I sat in the car and did a rough Spotify browse of the bands I'd never heard before that were on the bill: Soft Center, Dark Thoughts, and Swearin all at WFMU’s Monty Hall. Long Neck, of course, didn’t require any browsing. Due to my show hopping earlier this year, I was already hooked.

It was exactly 8pm, and I walked a few blocks in the cold December air over to "The Old Monty." There was a ticket waiting for me, and I was one of the first listeners there. I chatted with a few people I know on the video crew and waited for the music to seep through my ear plugs.

Soft Center started us off with a very mellow flow, and I was particularly surprised that this was their second live performance. They sounded like a seasoned band and were very unified in their sound. Gina Pensiero's voice stood out to me. Her voice seemed different in a world of voices coming out of the indie world. It was refreshing. They played songs off their new album No Pattern. "The band is Gina Pensiero and Sean Lango," the bassist told me at the end of the set. "We are part of the live band," he said with a proud smile.

Soft Center

Soft Center

Soft Center

Soft Center

The next band to hit the stage was one of my favorite bands I have had the opportunity to see live this year. I have had the pleasure to see this native Jersey City band three times. This was the first band I covered for the blog, so I am very biased. Oh, and they kick ass live which might be another reason to be biased. They came on board with tons of energy as this was their last show of the year.They opened with the song "Elizabeth" which has become one of my favorite tunes. Deep down I always think Lily is singing about Exit 13 on the turnpike. Just a little wishful thinking. Or am I right?

Long Neck

Long Neck

Long Neck

Long Neck

Dark Thoughts came a-blazin' with some down and dirty punk. The three piece band from Philadelphia sped up the show, and it filled me up with something I've been missing. They have an authentic punk flavor to their songs that had me feeling like I didn't quite miss out on the 80s punk scene. It was happening now, and didn't matter that my ears would shatter if i didn't have my ear plugs on.

Dark Thoughts

Dark Thoughts

Dark Thoughts

Dark Thoughts

Next up was the headliner, and I could't help but notice the lead singer. She seemed familiar. I didn't realize it was Allison Crutchfield which a quick search later that night made the old light bulb go off. They brought the shy crowd closer to the stage, and the music rang. I love Allison's voice and stage presence. It was great that this band reunited so I can be a part of their nostalgic  musical gathering.

Swearin'

Swearin'

Swearin'

Swearin'

Swearin'

After the show all the anxieties of the week seemed to leave me. It's all in the experience of feeling the bass in your body, hearing words from the heart, and seeing music lovers come out in the cold. As I rode through one of my favorite Jersey locations and off into dark Route 7, I jammed out to "Elizabeth" for the gazillionth time. The week was finally over.

All of the pictures from the evening are in Rosi's Flickr galleries. Also, maybe give her a follow on Instagram at @rosi_music79.

White Eagle Hall Celebrated Their First Anniversary with Rye Coalition, Will Wood and The Tapeworms, The RockNRoll Hi-Fives, and Long Neck, 5/5/18

Rye Coalition at White Eagle Hall

Happy Birthday!

This past Saturday, I headed back up to Jersey City to catch the first anniversary celebration for White Eagle Hall. It was a free show headlined by the band who opened the venue exactly one year ago, Jersey City's own Rye Coalition. Joining them on the bill were Will Wood and The Tapeworms, Long Neck, and our CoolDad Music Extended Family Band, The RockNRoll Hi-Fives.

I've attended a few shows at White Eagle Hall over the last 365 days; and, I have to say, it really is a great room. They've been booking some important touring acts as well as making room for local nights in their 800 cap space; and the staff there have been extremely accommodating to CoolDad Music, allowing contributor Rose Lamela and me press access to just about everything we've asked for.

Speaking of Rose, Saturday was the first time we ever met face-to-face. That was a nice treat. This Internet-connected world allows us to form so many virtual friendships, and it's always fun to make them real. I also think this means that this was the first time we ever had "double coverage" of a show by CoolDad Music. Be on the lookout for Rose's pics a little bit later.

Rosi and Joe

The whole show had a very casual party vibe about it. Lily Mastrodimos's Long Neck kicked things off with a very loose and amiable set that featured songs from the band's fantastic Will This Do? released early this year. Make sure you check it out. Albums that come out in January have a tendency to be forgotten as the year rolls along, and Will This Do? deserves to stay on your radar.

Long Neck

What can I say about The RockNRoll Hi-Fives? I've seen the Centenos more than my own family over the last month or so (This is 100% true.), and my heart fills to bursting every time they play. They had friends in the audience, and I'm sure they won over some new fans as well. The big stage at White Eagle Hall was a change from the smaller spaces the band played in Japan, and the jumps and high kicks were back. No confetti cannons this time, but they did bring celebratory beads that they tossed to the crowd.

The RockNRoll Hi-Fives

I don't know what it is about piano players, but they seem to make for the wildest and most animated frontpeople. Will Wood lived up to that in spades. During the set from Will Wood and The Tapeworms, Wood stood atop the keyboard to better elicit crowd participation, bounced high off of his bench, slammed the keys with his feet. At one point, the sax player wound his way through the crowd. The music and the performance were theatrical, and Wood is a charismatic and sardonic emcee.

Will Wood and The Tapeworms

Rye Coalition took the stage as celebratory balloons poured down from the balcony. They're a hard rocking five-piece who don't play that often anymore, and the crowd up front went pretty nuts for them. Singer Ralph Cuseglio spent a good portion of the set at the edge of the stage doling out hugs and kisses. The rest of the band and the crowd fed off of each other. The band lost themselves in a few extended jams, and Cuseglio passed around a bottle of whiskey only to exclaim, "You motherfuckers!" when it came back totally empty.

Rye Coalition

Saturday felt like not only a celebration of White Eagle Hall, but also a celebration of all that's been going on in Jersey City over the last year or more. I find myself up there more and more as venues like White Eagle Hall, Monty Hall, FM, and Pet Shop JC have been drawing me back up to Hudson County. I'm starting to recognize lots of the faces that I see at these shows (Rose told me she recognized me from a few places) over and over again.

Since starting this site, it's always been kind of strange to me that Monmouth and Hudson Counties could be in the same small state but still feel so far removed from one another. Hopefully, with more places for bands to play and for fans to meet, we'll see a little more cross-pollination and become closer neighbors.

Happy birthday, White Eagle Hall. I'll be back soon.

All of my pics from the evening are at the Facebook page and will be in the Flickr galleries when I get around to uploading them.

PHOTOS: Long Neck Played Monty Hall with Mikey Erg and Adult Mom, 1/28/17

Will This Do?

Lily Mastrodimos's (ex-Jawbreaker Reunion) Long Neck released Will This Do? last Friday. The album is the second for Long Neck and the project's first full-band effort. On the record, Mastrodimos's formidable voice meets pop-infused arrangements. The collection combines indie, Americana, and punk in a way that always works well for me (see: Laura Stevenson), and Will This Do? has been in rotation here for a while.

Long Neck followed up the release of Will This Do? with a Sunday-night show at WFMU's Monty Hall in Jersey City. Joining them on the bill were Mikey Erg and Adult Mom.

On hand for the show was new CoolDad Music contributor, photographer Rose Lamela. Below are some of the images Rose captured from the evening. You can check out the full photosets as well as the rest of Rose's work over at Flickr. Stay tuned for, hopefully, more from Rose here in the near future.

All photos by Rose Lamela.

Adult Mom

Mikey Erg

Long Neck