Screaming Females Played Warsaw Last Week with Kitten Forever and Big Huge, 10/26/18

Screaming Females by Rose Lamela

Just the Thing

All Photos by Rose Lamela

I've been trying to write this one all week. Life gets in the way, though; and my mind really hasn't been in a place that's allowed me the focus to do much more than shoot and edit pictures. I do want to say a few words about this show, though, before turning things over to Rosi.

As I sat on the BQE heading to Warsaw last Friday in bumper to bumper traffic, I cursed and swore -- as always -- that this would be the last time I drove myself to Brooklyn for a show. I really didn't have much trouble parking, though, and made it to the venue in plenty of time. By the time I walked up to King Mike at the Screaming Females merch table, I'd calmed down a bit.

We chatted briefly about Screaming Females' tour with Kitten Forever which was wrapping up at Warsaw. Mike told me about how positive the experience had been and about how much inspiration he drew from watching Minneapolis trio Kitten Forever every night. "It's been just the thing we really needed. Every night has been so positive."

"I could definitely use that," I said.

"Well, I hope we can do that for you."

Screaming Females, Kitten Forever (well and truly inspiring), and Big Huge managed that and more. It was great to see Rosi and friends, and it was pretty awesome to leave the picture-taking to someone else for once. I stood up front, right along the barricade and let everything wash over me. Just the thing.

The Company and the Music

By Rose Lamela

It's an obvious thing in my inner circle and from past posts on this blog that Screaming Females have been my favorite band this year. I have never seen a band seven times, let alone six times, in one year. Their performance at Warsaw last Friday was like most of their shows, full of power-driven beats and Marissa's amazing lead guitar performance. She is my favorite shredder, and the fact that she is a female guitarist makes this "Year of the Woman" feel serendipitous.

We were welcomed by both Big Huge and Kitten Forever as a well put together primer for the main event. Big Huge had a well received retro style to their music which can be considered, in many ways, a new sound coming back in. Kitten Forever's performance was a great example of musical talent as the group members switched instruments throughout the show and used a phone receiver as a microphone adding some grit to their lyrics and sound. They also showed the audience that rock music is not only about the sound but also the camaraderie of touring with bands and the appreciation for the behind the scenes people that help them on their journey as they travel from one venue to another.

Big Huge

Big Huge

Big Huge

Big Huge

Kitten Forever

Kitten Forever

Kitten Forever

Kitten Forever (and some old dude up front)

Screaming Females, of course, played hard and brought in a list of their best songs. They played quite a few songs from Rose Mountain, which will always be one of my favorite albums of all time. This was the first time I heard them play "Triumph" and according to CoolDad's recollection the first time they played "Wishing Well" with us in attendance. They even delivered on "Doom 84" from Ugly which remains my favorite song to hear live. They closed the night with "Hopeless" which was what I needed to hear at the end of a tough week.

Screaming Females

Screaming Females

Screaming Females

Screaming Females

Screaming Females

Screaming Females

One of the things I love to do as a music lover is nag people to listen to bands I discover. I harassed many people to “Get with” this band. I was able to gather some converts; and, not only were we together for the first Screaming Females' show this year at Monty Hall in Jersey City, but we also ended up together in Brooklyn for the last local Screaming Females show of 2018. We all remember our favorite shows; but, along with those memories, are the people we shared them with. Let rock and roll be full of that, and don't forget to thank those other music lovers that join you on the journey.

Check out the complete photo sets from the evening at Rosi's Flickr account.

Thee Oh Sees Played Warsaw with The Flying Luttenbachers and Landed, 10/19/18

Thee Oh Sees' John Dwyer by Rose Lamela

A Long-Awaited Show

Words and Pictures by Rose Lamela

[CoolDad Note: I want to say, if I haven't said it before, that the input we've been receiving from our contributors this year has been a huge help and inspiration to me. I held very tightly for a long time to the idea that this site was mine and mine alone, and that worked for a time. But life happens. Things ebb and flow. Without Rosi, Henry, Matt, Ken, and anyone else who's contributed here this site would be a very different and, sometimes, very barren place. Through her last couple of posts, Rosi has reminded me of some of the enthusiasm that I used to -- and still occasionally, but less frequently do -- bring to my posts. I've personally enjoyed that a lot, and I hope you have, too. That's all.]

It was a freezing cold afternoon in February earlier this year, and I was looking for shows to go to that could warm up my spirit. I was about a month in as a contributor at this super awesome music blog and a newly-born indie music fan. I had been listening to Thee Oh Sees nonstop and could not find a song I didn't like. Their albums were blasting out my car for most of 2017. "The Dream" was on all my road trip playlists and Orc was my favorite album.

I got a notification that the Thee Oh Sees, Or Oh Sees, or I keep getting incredibly confused Sees was playing in BK. I was told to call them "A band John Dwyer is currently in that absolutely rocks." The problem was I had to wait till October. That felt like a very, very, very long time.

Fast-forward a million miles per second, and here we are. It's October and I couldn't piece my thoughts together before the show last Friday. We, unfortunately, could not get a press pass' but I brought a point and shoot camera and was able to get a few shots. It was my first time to Warsaw. I had heard a lot about it, but I was unaware of how much character came with this auditorium. I have a soft spot for old venues that have a theatre climate to them.

The Flying Luttenbachers opened the show. At first I didn't quite understand what was happening. It sounded to me like a noisy jazz nightmare. Each member was on their own tangent and no one was playing together. I was at the point of complete rejection until their tangent consisted of a pretty kick-ass drum beat. It started to make sense to me, and I found myself understanding. I wouldn't call them traditional by any means but amazingly original. Whatever they were doing, the audience totally dug it.

The Flying Luttenbachers

The Flying Luttenbachers

The Flying Luttenbachers

Landed took the stage next. I met a very nice photographer for the band that told me they were from Providence, RI. We geeked out about our cameras and talked about John Dwyer. I later found out that Dwyer was a band member of Landed in the late 90s, and the lead singer apparently lit himself on fire once. I do think pyrotechnics would go very well with this band. I have never been to Providence, but it sounds like I need to go check out this righteous city where this band and Dwyer were born.

Landed

Landed

Landed

And then it happened. I got completely slammed into the guardrail in front of me. I took a couple of deep breaths and realized I was at the show I been waiting for since the winter. Coincidentally, they started their set with Pink Floyd's "Interstellar Overdrive." I'm not sure if you read my post about Ulrika Spacek, but I wrote that before the Oh Sees show. I swear!!!

Thee Oh Sees

Thee Oh Sees

Thee Oh Sees

I stuck out the body slamming and close calls of getting kicked in the face for a few songs, and then Imade my way to the back. I feel very lucky I got the opportunity to hear "The Dream" up close and within Dwyer's spit path. The rest of the show had to be experienced in the back of Warsaw, but thanks to the venue's amazing acoustics, it was not a problem. Watching the synchronized drumming of Dan Rincon and Paul Quattrone was an experience that I cannot compare to any show I have ever seen. They positioned both drummers super close together giving the audience a visual of two drumming machines seamlessly imitating each other's every move. They played well into midnight and their set list included songs like "The Static God" and "Nite Expo" from Orc. They also played "Sentient Oona" from Smote Reverser which is a song I've been playing a lot when I need a boost from the mundane.

Thee Oh Sees

As the year gets closer to being wrapped up, I am feeling the hints of gratitude that come from the shows I have had the opportunity to see in 2018. Thee Oh Sees were worth the wait and have officially made my list of best shows I have seen this year. My taste in music has developed, and being open to indie rock has allowed the aging process to go particularly well. Of course that is my opinion, as I always think I have the best taste in music. Live with it and rock on!!

Make sure to head over to Rosi's Flickr account to see all of her photos.

Hinds Played Warsaw with QTY and Sharkmuffin, 5/10/18

Hinds

Me Divertí

The first time I ever met Tarra Thiessen and Natalie Kirch of Sharkmuffin was back at Northside Festival in 2014. I took some really terrible pictures of them at Bar Matchless and had a brief conversation with Tarra who handed me a download card for some of their music.

As I walked past the location of Bar Matchless on my way to Warsaw last night, I noticed that the place had been shut down. The old, corner bar was boarded up; and graffiti covered the walls. Kind of sad. But, also, kind of a reminder of how far Sharkmuffin have come since that night in the tomblike performance space at Matchless. I was heading to Warsaw to see them open a sold-out show for Spanish garage quartet, Hinds.

I'd only ever shot at Warsaw in the past as press for Northside or CMJ. I don't know if that conferred any special rights upon me or if the place has just changed their photo policy since then; but the rules for the evening were the typical "3 songs and out" for the openers and then, curiously, "wait 45 minutes BEFORE shooting Hinds." OK. I'm nothing if not a rule follower.

The cavernous space had started to fill in as Sharkmuffin took the stage; and, bang-bang-bang, three songs were over before I even really had a chance to get my bearings. I filed out of the photo pit with the rest of the photographers and took in the rest of Sharkmuffin's set from the crowd. They made the most of their 30 minutes, Tarra's voice ricocheting around the huge space on favorites of mine like "Fun Stuff" and "I Called You from the Moon."

Sharkmuffin's Tarra Thiessen

New York's QTY were up next. Rose Lamela shot their set when they opened for Cults at Monty Hall a few weeks ago, but I'd never heard or seen them before. Rose failed to mention to me what a good band QTY are. Co-fronted by singers / guitarists Dan Lardner and Alex Niemetz, QTY play a style of rock that owes as much to Stephen Malkmus as it does to The Strokes. Definitely in my wheelhouse, and I've been listening to their self-titled debut all morning.

QTY

Speaking of bands who have come a long way, I first saw Hinds in 2016 at South By Southwest. I caught them playing something like a 12 noon set at Frank, a bar / restaurant that serves artisanal hot dogs. There were maybe 50 people there; and, when the set was over, the women of Hinds set out to play several more shows that day. Throughout the week, I would run into them on the street rolling amps and dragging gear from venue to venue. Last night, they sold out an 800-person room in Brooklyn and played to a crowd that knew just about every, single one of their lyrics.

Hinds

Both of Hinds's albums -- 2016's Leave Me Alone and this year's I Don't Run -- are charmingly lo-fi and ramshackle. They sound like they're being piped out of one of those little toy, plastic guitar amps made by Danelectro. In a good way. Singers / guitarists Carlotta Cosials and Ana Perrote trade accented vocals that can veer between whispers and wild screams in an instant.

Hinds

The songs sound sunny and fun, but many of the lyrics deal with the downsides of relationships. I Don't Run is both lyrically and sonically more mature than its predecessor; but it still has that lo-fi vibe. Interestingly, while the lo-fi sound is there during the band's live performance; Hinds -- who also include Ade Martín on bass and Amber Grimbergen on drums -- are about as tight and polished in their delivery as any band I'd describe as "ramshackle" has a right to be. Songs like "The Club" and "New For You" from the latest record and relative oldies like "Bamboo" sounded fantastic while retaining everything that makes Hinds Hinds.

The other thing that makes Hinds Hinds is an exuberance on stage that infects the whole crowd. When 45 minutes were up and photographers were allowed into the pit, it became apparent why the band wanted us to wait. QTY took over guitar duties from Cosials and Perrote for the band's cover of "Davey Crockett;" and the pair climbed onto the barricade and tossed themselves into the crowd. They surfed around in a crazy scrum until making their way back to the stage. Security hustled us out again as the band closed things out with "New For You" and "San Diego." They sprayed the crowd with Champagne and lingered, dancing as the house music came up.

Hinds

For various reasons, I've been struggling with inspiration here at the site. Last night was cool, though. Seeing how far a couple of bands I've followed for a few years have come gave me some perspective on how much water has gone under the bridge here. Being inspired by a new (to me) band made me see that there's still plenty out there to get excited about. And, simply, Hinds never fail to put a smile on my face.

I had fun.

Pics are on the Facebook page and in the Flickr galleries.

Titus Andronicus Played Warsaw with EX HEX and Spider Bags, 10/16/15

The Boys Are Back in Town

When I was a kid in high school, I went to a lot of concerts. My friends and I used to calculate how much money we spent going to see our favorite bands, and it was pretty much every dollar we had. That's something that's stayed with me for my whole life. Going out to see live music is pretty much my favorite way to spend an evening.

Back then, though, most of the concerts I went to were at big venues like Madison Square Garden or Radio City Music Hall or Beacon Theatre or the Garden State Arts Center. Even the, supposedly, alternative acts I went to see were at places like that. There was the occasional standing show at The Ritz or Lone Star Roadhouse, but I wasn't a punk kid at all. No VFWs or church basements or whatever. Almost every concert I ever went to was a seated in a theater / arena / stadium kind of affair, and my seats were never up front.

I've found it kind of funny, then, that -- as I've gotten older -- the experience of sitting in some theater 20 rows back from the stage doesn't really do it for me anymore. Standing at the back and watching a band onstage over a sea of bobbing heads just seems so distant and impersonal to me now. If I get stuck near the bar, I just get angry at all the people carrying on their conversations like nothing else is happening in the room.

Doors for the Merge Records CMJ showcase at Warsaw in Greenpoint were 6:30pm. I left at about 4 and made a stop in at The Gutter where a bunch of my friends would be playing the Little Dickman / Sugar Mama BK showcase that same night. I had a couple of beverages with them, apologized in advance for missing the gig, and then made the short walk over to Warsaw.

The place was pretty empty, so I had an order of pierogies and another beer before staking out my spot in front of the stage. I'd brought my camera; so, in my mind, that was my excuse for parking myself at the stage about 3 hours before the headliners were scheduled to hit. I took off my jacket and placed it neatly at my feet. I organized my lenses and my camera bag, formatted my memory card, and was good to go.

It was about 8:15 by the time Spider Bags took the stage. Things had filled in around me a bit, but I still had plenty of room to breathe. In the three previous times I'd seen them, Spider Bags had been impressive, quickly working themselves to a sweaty frenzy. I'll admit to finding their set in Philly on the first night of this tour a little less satisfying, but I was way in the back of the room where the band had to compete with conversations and a constant flow of traffic to the merch table or the bathroom.

This time I was right up front. Spider Bags did about a half hour's worth of material that included their originals like the always awesome "Eyes of Death" and a cover of D.C. Snipers' "Baby Don't Be Violent." SPIN had released their list of "Top 50 Rock Bands Right Now" earlier in the day; and, by the time their set was over, I honestly thought about how crazy it was not to have Spider Bags on it.

I missed out on getting tickets to the EX HEX show at Monty Hall in Jersey City last spring. Then, when I was covering Northside Festival in June, Spider Bags joined EX HEX for another Merge showcase. Like this past Friday night, it was also sold out. Not really sure that my badge would get me in and wanting to catch a show by some friends across the borough, I opted to pass. CMJ was finally my chance to see Mary Timony, Betsy Wright, and Laura Harris; and they, quite simply, blew me away.

Rips is one of my favorite records from last year, even though I came to it kind of late. Songs like "Don't Wanna Lose" and "Waterfall" have a pure rock and roll simplicity that I love and that translates amazingly live. Even with my feet aching after a couple of hours of standing, being right up front as Mary Timony braced herself against the monitor to reel off a guitar solo isn't a moment I would ever trade for a comfortable seat far away from the action. And... ...not that clickbait lists mean anything... ...but SPIN missed another big one by not including EX HEX.

At about 10:30, Titus Andronicus took the stage and the room was at capacity. Every void around me had been filled by a body, and I thought about what I'd witnessed in Philly. I'll admit to getting (justifiably, it turns out) worried as I extrapolated that experience out to the 5-times-larger-than-First-Unitarian-Church Warsaw. Patrick Stickles dispensed with his usual speech about not imposing one's will on others during the show, and the band dispensed with the Stickles solo number (the song choice varies) that had opened the last few Titus Andronicus shows I'd seen. Instead, the band opened by acknowledging their return to Brooklyn from the American leg of their tour with a cover of "The Boys Are Back in Town." That, incidentally, is the first thing I ever saw Titus Andronicus perform live and the first song I officially wrote about here at the blog.

As the set progressed with "Fatal Flaw," "Stranded (On My Own)," "Lonely Boy," and the opening two tracks from Local Business -- "Ecce Homo" and "Still Life with Hot Deuce on Silver Platter" -- the crowd heaved forward, crushing me against the stage. Beer spilled down my pants. Steve from YJY patted me on the back and we screamed into each other's faces. I tried taking pictures.

Stickles then announced more songs from the band's most recent effort, The Most Lamentable Tragedy; and they ripped through most of "The Magic Morning" section of the punk opera. The crush was getting serious now. Pain as the stage felt like it was becoming one with my ribcage. The friction of moving bodies had pulled my jeans about halfway down my thighs. As Titus Andronicus finished "Fired Up," I braced for the violence that would accompany "Dimed Out." I know the set was planned, but I like to think that Patrick Stickles spotted me down front; called an audible; and gave me an ever so slight break by choosing to play "A Pot in Which to Piss."

"Dimed Out" did follow that, and it was everything I knew it would be. I stopped taking pictures for a few minutes and just tried to exert some ownership over my little plot of floor. Someone actually reached in and knocked my left hand off of the stage where it was bracing me. Things remained at a fever pitch through the second half of "Four Score and Seven" and "A More Perfect Union." When the band left the stage after concluding with "Titus Andronicus" just before midnight, the crowd screamed for more until the lights came up and security started shooing us out.

I was covered in sweat and imagining the art project of bruises that would dapple my torso in the morning as I hobbled back toward The Gutter to see if my friends were still there. "Maybe I'm getting too old for this," I thought. "Maybe I should just stand in the back like the 45-year-old dad I am and save my body."

I don't think I can do it, though. It's two days later, and I'm still sore; but I can't trade the connection, the feeling of... ...euphoria... ...exhiliration... ...anger... ...frustration... ...SOMETHING... ...for the comfort that comes from standing in the back of the room and watching things unfold from afar.

Pics at Flickr. Links below.

Titus Andronicus

EX HEX

Spider Bags

Northside Festival, Night 2: Donovan Blanc, Sharkmuffin, Tweens, Marnie Stern

Tweens were impressive during their set at Rough Trade NYC on Friday night.

Warsaw / Bar Matchless / Rough Trade NYC

Yesterday was a typically busy Saturday for us. CoolDaughter #1 had her 7:30-9 AM swim practice. CoolDaughter #2 had her 9:30-10:15 AM swim lesson and a softball game at 11. Their summer camp had its annual pre-camp "Day of Fun" yesterday afternoon, and CD1 had a birthday party from 6-8 PM.

I had some driving / breakfast-getting duties for CD1's swimming, and I like to help out at CD2's games. I love pitching and coaching at the softball games, and CD2 is definitely getting better. There was no way that I'd miss it so that I could wander around Brooklyn alone in the early part of the day. I did want to get there in time for The Blind Shake, though. That meant squeezing in some photo editing before I had to leave and no writing about the events of Friday night at Northside.

So, I'm doing this thing today where I'm writing about two nights ago. Then, one day from now, I'll write about two nights before that. Let's see if I can keep things straight.

Just as I pulled up to my parking spot next to McCarren Park on Friday night, the skies let loose with a biblical downpour. Little kids playing baseball and soccer in the park scattered, along with their parents, to their own cars; and the gutter quickly flooded with several inches of water. Scary thunder and lightning, too.

Never good at preparation, I hadn't brought an umbrella or a camera bag; so I moved the car closer to Warsaw where I'd spend the first part of the night at the Captured Tracks showcase. Things let up enough that it wasn't so bad standing out front in the drizzle with all the mindie kids there to see Craft Spells and Beach Fossils in about three or four hours. I'd come to see openers Donovan Blanc (pronounced "blahnk"), the new-fangled version of New Brunswick's Honeydrum, who will be releasing their debut LP for Captured Tracks on June 24th.

Warsaw is a big performance space in Greenpoint's Polish National Home: "Where pierogies meet punk." You can get pierogies, kielbasa, and bottles of Żywiec from a lady behind a plastic, checkered tablecloth-covered folding table in the "Warsaw Bistro." The venue holds about 800.

Donovan Blanc did a set of easy-going, laid back, quiet pop. As with Honeydrum, there were similarities to the hook-filled, lo-fi pop of Ariel Pink; but things weren't lo-fi anymore. Frontman Joseph Black put out kind of a chill and lounge-y vibe. The group concocted a drink for the evening called "Summerly Heaven," which should give you an idea of their whole schtick.

I left after the set -- to the incredulous "No Re-entry!" exclamations from the door people -- so that I could head down the block to catch Sharkmuffin at Bar Matchless. Fronted by Holmdel native Tarra Thiessen, Brooklyn's Sharkmuffin are a band I've been following for a while. Their short set of garage pop provided a nice jolt of energy following all the chill vibes from up the block. The band room at Matchless is a wonderfully small and tomblike space where no phone reception shall enter; and Thiessen's coffin-shaped, rose-topped guitar case at the foot of the stage was just right.

It is my new mission to bridge the divide that exists between our own local scene and the other thriving metropolitan area scenes like Jersey City and Brooklyn. As I'd been doing at every show where I got the chance, I told Thiessen that we'd love to see her and her band down in Asbury Park soon. She was more than receptive. Baby steps.

From there it was off to Williamsburg to catch Tweens and Marnie Stern at Rough Trade NYC. After a bit of an ordeal trying to find parking, I made it into the really nice performance space at the back of the huge record store just in time for Tweens. I loved them.

Featuring Peyton Copes (bass) and Jerri Queen (drums) of Vacation and fronted by Bridget Battle (guitar / vocals), the Cincinnati trio play high-energy, snotty, 60s girl group-inspired pop punk. Single "Be Mean" had the whole place screaming the chorus.

Guitar shredder extraordinaire, Marnie Stern, followed. She played solo, accompanied only by backing tracks from her Mac. Stern said the performance was a first for her; but after a few initial hiccups, she got into the groove and mesmerized those who remained with her unique combination of experimental guitar riffage and pop rock.

When it was done, I headed back to my car and drove home to get what rest I could for the full day that would start early the next morning. Words and pics on that one on Monday, I guess.

I won't be heading back up to the festival today. That means I'll miss some bands like Ovlov, Creepoid, Alvvays, and Hey Anna. But in order to be a cooldad, you've first gotta be a dad. I'll be reveling in that with my lovely girls today.

Here are some shots from Friday. Flickr for more... blah, blah...