Best of 2009 - Guest List - The Antlers

As a precursor to our impending year-end list, we've asked some of our favorite artists to select their five favorite releases of 2009. The Antlers have quietly become the breakout band of the year. Their third album Hospice has shown up with high placing on year-end lists such as The Music Slut, Stereogum and NPR's All Things Considered. And just last night they headlined a sold-out Bowery Ballroom. I think you get the point - the album is amazing!

Here are The Antlers' six favorite songs of the year, according to drummer Michael Lerner:

(In no particular order)...

Bon Iver - "Bloodbank"

Justin Vernon's soul/folk picked up right where he left off with For
Emma, Forever Ago. Beautiful melody and imagery here.

Sharon Van Etten - "I Wish I Knew"

Can a song be both fragile and powerful at the same time? Absolutely!
Just a gorgeous song. Sharon's live shows are also a must see.

Phoenix - "1901"

I feel like I heard this song everywhere this year and it still
continues to dominate my iPod. It completely succeeds in striking the
perfect balance between pop and rock.

Grizzly Bear - "While You Wait for the Others"

Such a great song! The verses slyly creep along before exploding into
the soaring chorus. The harmonies in that chorus are amazing! Also
great is the way the downbeat is dropped and lands on the 2 - Love
that!

Dirty Projectors - "No Intention" / "Stillness is the Move"

Ok, maybe I am breaking the rules by choosing both of these songs here
instead of just one, but I don't care - they are both that good!
2 of the best songs you'll never hear on Hot 97 but totally could/should.

FULL YEAR-END COVERAGE

DIRTY PROJECTORS - Stillness is the Move

It has taken me so long to get into Dirty Projectors. I'm not sure why, as it's become increasingly clear to me that this band is hugely talented and have a distinct uniqueness all their own. Sure, their recent collaborations with David Byrne and Bjork don't hurt, but this new video, stunningly shot by Matthew Lessner on Mount Equinox in Vermont, seals the deal. Their latest album Bitte Orca was released last month on Domino Records.

DAN DEACON debuts BROMST with 15-piece ensemble

by Matthew Dunehoo
Nikola Tesla’s landmark chorale recital at Royal Albert Hall in March of 1933 may serve as precursor to what might be experienced tomorrow at the Brooklyn Masonic Temple.

In anticipation of the March 24th release of his new album BROMST on Carpark Records, Dan Deacon has assembled a 15-piece live ensemble that will tackle the interpretation and ani(mania)tion of his new works. The debut of the material has left Deacon feeling “both excited and really nervous.”  

“Nervous,” would be one of the last adjectives to come to mind when describing a man whose live performances have a keen ability to incite a near-Pentecostal experience in the audiences that swarm to encircle his traditional multi-colored-steel setup of playback and manipulation devices.

For tomorrow night’s gig, Dirty Projectors and So Percussion round out the bill. So Percussion will serve in full as part of Deacon’s ensemble, leading one to believe that the show will possess at least a trace of the more reverent, recital-hall air of the quartet’s performances, as opposed to the more Deaconian “collective flail.”  However high or low Thursday’s performance will aim, it’s likely to hit with jubilance. Testify.

FREE SUMMER SHOWS NYC - River to River

The best part of living in New York during the summer is all the amazing free shows. The annual River to River Festival just announced their lineup:

Wire, Ulrich Schnauss, A Place to Bury Strangers, Sonic Youth, St. Vincent, No Age, Ted Leo, Mary Weiss (Shangri-La's), Atlas Sound, Akron/Family, Dirty Projectors and more.

I'm most excited about Wire, No Age, and Atlas Sound, but the experience of the festival is also a great part of a sultry, summer Manhattan day. Most of the shows are free at Southstreet Seaport. Sonic Youth is at Battery Park on July 4th and the tickets are free, but require getting tickets at rivertorivernyc.com (not sure exactly when they become available).

More on Free Summer Shows NYC soon...

GRIZZLY BEAR - "Friend"

Today Grizzly Bear are releasing "Friend", an EP of "new, reworked, and re-recorded material (including covers and collaborations)". To be more specific, here you'll find the band's takes on classics like The Crystals' 'He Hit Me (And It Felt Like A Kiss)', covers of Grizzly Bear by CSS, Band of Horses, and Atlas Sound, as well as collaborations with Dirty Projectors and Zach Condon (of Beirut).

Unfortunately, Grizzly Bear's appearance on Conan O'Brien tonight has been cancelled due to the Writer's Guild strike, but the band will be doing a free show at the Virgin Megastore (Union Square) on Wednesday. Grizzly Bear will take the stage in the cafe at 7:00 pm, but it is a good idea to get there early.

"Friend" tracklist:

01 Alligator (Choir Version) (w/ Zach Condon and Dirty Projectors)
02 He Hit Me (And It Felt Like a Kiss)
03 Little Brother (Electric)
04 Shift (Alternate Version)
05 Plans (Terrible vs. Nonhorse: Sounds Edit)
06 Granny Diner
07 Knife (CSS)
08 Plans (Band of Horses)
09 Knife (Atlas Sound)
10 Deep Blue Sea (Daniel Rossen Home Recording)