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Burlington, Vermont's Ryan Power recently captivated the Northeast Kingdom in Bushwick with his unique and bizarre one-man electro opera. With several Vermont celebrities on hand - most notably, Heloise of Heloise & the Savoir Faire - Power delivered an entrancing vocal performance, singing beautifully over meticulous and multi-dimensional electro tracks. Power recently made waves when he opened for buzz band Women in Manhattan.
The latest LP,Is It Happening? was released in 2007.
So for me, CMJ kinda blew. Sure Crystal Castles were awesome. I'm a new fan of WhoMadeWho, Bad Veins and Heloise & the Savoir Faire. And Crystal Antlers rocked it all over the city. But my CMJ experience at first got off to a rough start. Then I hit the overwhelming fest for two nights. Friday I felt exhausted. Saturday I planned on going to the After the Jump day party, which was supposed to be at The Yard, then got switched to Market Hotel due to rain, then got cancelled entirely. Not to mention my failed attempt at catching Ebony Bones, who I am enthralled with right now. I call this all alot of bad luck. Whatever, it happens.
I had fun at the shows I got to see, so for what it's worth, here are my highlights from CMJ 08.
-Crystal Antlers at Continental Army Plaza, Brooklyn
I started off Wednesday with a non-CMJ show, part of Todd P's week of free shows at the Continental Army Plaza in Williamsburg. Yes it was outside. Yes it was cold. But that didn't seem to put a damper on Crystal Antlers' ferocious performance. These guys are a loud and gritty, somewhat oversexed, desert rock band from Long Beach CA, whose music may have felt more at home in the grunge era. They sounded really great outside, with the J train passing over the Williamsburg Bridge in the background. It was kind of perfect.
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I headed over to Piano's, intending to catch the Free Yr Radio showcase with Bumblebeez and Chairlift. When I got there I discovered Bumblebeez had been replaced by a band I had never heard of. Since I was there I went in and caught BM Linx, a bass-heavy softcore metal band that had the crowd in a tizzy, but I was really not into it. For me it was like watching a hair band on the Sunset Strip circa 1991. Not my thing.
It got really crowded and I had two hours until Chairlift were scheduled to go on, so I decided to change up my plans. I headed down to the Knitting Factory for the After the Jump showcase.
-Bad Veins
A pleasant surprise was Bad Veins of Cincinnati, Ohio. The duo are comprised of Ben Davis (vocals, guitar, synth) and Sebastian Schultz (drums) and they make dramatic rock music with an electronic backbone. I was really impressed with Davis' captivating performance - utilizing a megaphone to accentuate his complex and soaring vocals. Davis is a true artist and that became clear almost immediately.
-Crystal Antlers
In a funny case of irony, Crystal Antlers were also on the bill at the Knitting Factory. So yes, I unintentionally saw them twice in one night. And they rocked it both times!
-Heloise & the Savoir Faire
Heloise & the Savoir Faire were completely amazing, though the crowd had suddenly dissipated to about fifteen people, most of which were dancing their asses off. Heloise and her collective were high energy, rock 'n' roll fun, with a twist of carnival for flavor. I would really love to see these guys play a packed house. They would so own it.
Heloise and the Savoir Faire are a super fun NYC based band with buckets of charisma to spare. Their official debut LP Trash, Rats & Microphones was released last spring on Elijah Wood's label Simian Records (a division of Yep Roc). Stream various tracks here.
The latest single "Illusions" also has an entertaining new music video. Check it out...
The Team: Derek Morris for TROPHY, Scott McGibney, Halley Hopkins
Contributors: Matthew Lindsay, Matthew Dunehoo, Amos Mac, Jessi Bautista, Phoebe K. Waterson
Live Team: Sam Teague, Jeremy Russell, Jacob Lane
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