LIVE MUSIC MOVIES / Duke Street

CONCERT VIDEO – We Are Country Mice @ Cake Shop

Posted 31 Aug 2010 — by DukeStreet
Category Concert, Video

Before We Are Country Mice hit the road earlier this month, embarking on their biggest national tour to date, we swung by the rehearsal space for a quick interview with lead singer/guitarist, Jason Rueger. He told the story of their most recent cassette tape release, Transmissions, and the Tonight’s the Night–inspired recording session that birthed it.

“Festival” is a product of that late-night session, and a gritty tale of one summer day turned dark at a farm town festival. This video comes from a very hot New York City night last month – a show at Cake Shop, with Athens bro-fi purists, Futurebirds

Now is the time to catch We Are Country Mice. They’re covering serious ground on this tour, so be sure to check here for dates in your area. Bonus: they’ll be stopping in Rock Island to record a Daytrotter session in early September. Definitely looking forward to that.

WACM are back in NYC for CMJ (a lot of acronyms there), where they’ll be playing, among other shows, a party at Duke Street HQ on Saturday, October 23rd. (Stay tuned for lineup details. FYI: It’s going to be boss, so mark the date.)

We Are Country Mice – “Festival” – Cake Shop from DUKE STREET on Vimeo.

Tags: cake shop, duke street, Festival, Neil Young, Shakey, Tonight's the Night, transmissions, we are country mice

SNEAK PEEK – Paleface – Making of “One Big Party”

1 Comment

Posted 13 Aug 2010 — by DukeStreet
Category Bio, Video

Here’s a sneak peek of a new, behind-the-scenes video we’re working on for Paleface’s upcoming album, One Big Party. We had PF and Mo on our roof a few months ago to talk about the new record, life on the road, and the inspiration behind their song “Rock N Roll.”

Paleface – “Rock & Roll”

Via Official Press Release

After releasing his Ramseur Records debut The Show Is On The Road just over a year ago, Paleface and girlfriend drummer Monica “Mo” Samalot are back with One Big Party (Oct 12 Ramseur Records). The high-energy Indie-folk duo will celebrate the release with a special guest-performance alongside pals The Avett Brothers at Radio City Music Hall (Oct. 13th), followed by a Record Release Party Oct 16th @ at Southpaw in Brooklyn NY, a US tour (Fall-Spring), and a European tour (Spring-Summer). Also during the week of the release, Daytrotter.com will be featuring a brand new live recording session by Paleface, which includes stripped-down versions of two songs from the record.

One Big Party is just that – a fun, cheerful romp. Produced by Paul “Ena” Kostabi (Cults, The Willowz, Dee Dee Ramone…) in Piermont NY, the record takes an upbeat look at everything from moving forward after the end of a relationship to being stuck listening to classic rock songs on the van radio and not letting that bring him down. The song “Rock N Roll” – a fun, easy-going tune with the infectious chorus of “I’m like a rock, will you roll me” was inspired by the road, “we drive a Chevy and all the floor mats say like a rock” says PF, “so i just had to write a song about it!”.

-This week begins the album’s pre-sale campaign with packages including singed CD’s + instant download bonus track, original paintings by Paleface, signed tour posters, collectible promo items, and more!

For more info visit www.Palefaceonline.com

Tags: le loft, mo, one big party, paleface, rock and roll

CONCERT VIDEO – Little Gold @ Le Loft Rooftop

1 Comment

Posted 22 Jul 2010 — by DukeStreet
Category Concert, Video

Little Gold played a day party on our rooftop last month. They were the last of seven bands to play that afternoon, under skies that went from full sun to clouds to drizzle, finally letting up and holding steady for a set of dark, high-powered pop gems from these three talented dudes.

Here are two videos from that day – for “Half the Time” and “Bird’s Eye”. It’s not often you hear a band with such catchy, well-crafted tunes that can also fire on all cylinders live. That’s an especially tough thing to do as a three-piece, but they do it well. Led by Christian Deroeck (ex. Woods/Meneguar), Little Gold drapes sweet, mysterious harmonies over tight-sewn rhythms and smart lyrics. Watch these videos twice, and see if you haven’t got at least one part stuck in your head for the rest of the day.

The guys are playing Cake Shop this Friday, the 23rd. Next month they break away for a national tour w/ kick-ass labelmates, Inoculist. By the time they’re back, we hope you’ll have heard a lot more about Little Gold. In the meantime, go see them – bring a friend, and fall hard for one of our favorite bands.

Oh, and you can buy their most recent 7” “Completely Fucked!” (Heartbreakbeat) here.

Little Gold – “Half The Time” – Le Loft Rooftop

Little Gold – “Bird’s Eye” – Le Loft Rooftop

Tags: bbq, bird's eye, greenpoint, half the time, le loft, little gold, rooftop

CONCERT VIDEO – Deer Tick @ The Paradise

3 Comments

Posted 19 Jul 2010 — by DukeStreet
Category Concert, Video

When it comes to playing live, Deer Tick doesn’t fuck around. With the recent release of their third LP, The Black Dirt Sessions, (out now on Partisan) the guys have been touring the world like wild dogs, making a lot of believers along the way. We were lucky to catch the first of a two-night run at the Paradise in Boston, with Dr. Dog. It’s not too many bands that can really own that legendary stage, but both did on that night. It was old songs, it was new songs, a couple covers, a special guest, and one hell of a show.

The video here, for “When She Comes Home” – a hopped-up, straight-ahead strummer – oughta give you an idea of what a Deer Tick show looks and feels like. Then, of course, you’ll have to catch one yourself.

Looks like they’ll be covering most cities east of the Mississippi before summer ends, including a stop at Lollapalooza, then hitting the UK and Ireland this fall.

Deer Tick play Maxwell’s in Hoboken tonight with the man himself, Johnny Corndawg – expect the smell of leather and a few duets.

Deer Tick – “When She Comes Home” – The Paradise

Tags: black dirt sessions, boston, deer tick, the paradise, when she comes home

DUKE STREET Presents…

No Comments

Posted 22 Jun 2010 — by DukeStreet
Category News

Summer is upon us, friends. And we want to celebrate with you!

Come on out to Spike Hill (184 Bedford Ave. @ N.7th /// L to Bedford) this Sunday evening, June 27th, for a FREE show with a bitchin’ set of bands from NYC and Boston.

We’re proud and supremely psyched to curate this show as part of the 2010 Northside Festival. We know no better way to cap off this first weekend of summer than with good friends, great music, and cold beer.

Lineup (w/ video links) as follows:

11pm: The Loom

10pm: Baby Brainwaves

9pm: We Are Country Mice

8pm: Bryan Miltenberg (of Unremarkable People)

Doors at 7pm. Tell your friends to tell their friends. See you there!

Tags: baby brainwaves, bryan miltenberg, L magazine, northside festival, spike hill, the loom, unremarkable people, we are country mice, williamsburg

CONCERT VIDEO – Avi Buffalo @ Piano’s

1 Comment

Posted 07 Jun 2010 — by DukeStreet
Category Concert, Video

We’ve been hitting a lot of shows lately, and while we post the best videos we can as soon as we can, we do end up with quite a bit of footage in the vault. Here’s a number from Long Beach cool kids, Avi Buffalo, that we shot at their first ever NYC show, at Piano’s back in January. The outro guitar solo rips.

These barely-legal boppers have been making quite a name for themselves over the last few months with their self-titled debut LP, and it looks like they’ve got a big summer planed as well. They’ll cover most of the U.S., Canada, and the U.K. festival circuit, sharing the stage with some big names like Modest Mouse, My Morning Jacket, and, ahem, Wilco.

Sub Pop is putting them out on the road, and no doubt they’ll be a real tight outfit by summer’s end. If you’re in NYC, see them at ATP on September 4.

Enjoy!

Avi Buffalo – “Remember Last Time” from DUKE STREET on Vimeo.

Tags: avi buffalo, piano's, remember last time

CONCERT VIDEO – Futurebirds @ Southpaw

1 Comment

Posted 02 Jun 2010 — by DukeStreet
Category Concert, Video

If you haven’t yet seen Futurebirds live, you ought to do it ASAP while they’re still playing the venues with cheap beer. We hadn’t seen them since getting all “Americore” under the bridge at SXSW this year, so we were certainly psyched to shoot them live at Southpaw in Brooklyn on a recent Friday.

That night, the band played a big, meaty set sandwiched between Nashville legend, Country-Swing wildman, Johnny Corndawg (they’re his on-again-off-again backing band) and the young, sad, and sweet Jessica Lea Mayfield.

The videos here, for “Sam Jones” and “Ski Chalet” – two tracks from Futurebirds’ forthcoming debut LP – should give you an idea of what these talented ruffians from Athens are about. Theirs is a righteous blend of rich, howling harmonies, strummed-out country-stomp, and enough of that deep, throaty twang and reverb to go around. Live, the band brings it all together in just the right measures, with the raw energy of a southern house party and poise you just don’t see often these days.

Toward the end of “Ski Chalet” things got a bit hairy on stage – a guitar cuts out, a mic ain’t working – but it’s all just fuel for the fire. By the end, you’ve got the feeling that a band of six guys with a pedal steel and a mandolin, four vocalists, and a bass player with a mustache actually thrive on that kind of adversity.

Futurebirds will be on the road this summer supporting their debut LP, Hampton’s Lullaby (due out late July on Autumn Tone, and we can confirm that it’s fucking awesome). Get to a show near you, but be warned: You may get iced.

Download their free EP here

Futurebirds – Sam Jones – Southpaw

Futurebirds – Ski Chalet – Southpaw

Tags: futurebirds, hampton's lullaby, jessica lea mayfield, johnny corndawg, sam jones, ski chalet, southpaw

CONCERT VIDEO – Yellowbirds @ Southpaw

1 Comment

Posted 10 May 2010 — by DukeStreet
Category Concert, Video

Yellowbirds is a fresh new solo project of Apollo Sunshine guitarist Sam Cohen. They’re based in Brooklyn and at this point play out only sporadically, so it was a treat to catch them at Southpaw recently.

This video, for “In Our World,” highlights Cohen’s penchant for rich-textured pop that’s been dutifully torn, frayed, and occasionally tie-dyed, at the seams. You might think of Dr. Dog, with their soaring vocal harmonies traded for Cohen’s deeper, mildly melancholic delivery.

It’s a fine package altogether. While we wait for an official release from these guys, you can hear five songs on their myspace (“The Honest Ocean” is a jam).

Rock and roll on a Monday morning, friends.

Yellowbirds – In Our World – Southpaw

DUKE STREET BLOG PRESENTS…

No Comments

Posted 05 May 2010 — by DukeStreet
Category News

CONCERT VIDEO – The Low Anthem @ The Bell House

No Comments

Posted 03 May 2010 — by DukeStreet
Category Concert, Video

The Low Anthem are a four-piece band that travels with fifteen instruments. They may be masochists, but they’re also some of the most talented musicians we’ve seen on the same stage in quite a while.

They swung through the Bell House on a rainy Friday night a few weeks back, for a sold-out engagement with Toronto’s Timber Timbre. And they lit the place up.

You’ve probably never heard a singer lead into his next song by asking everyone in the audience to take out their phones, turn up the volume, aim them up at the stage, and call someone they’re at the show with. But that’s exactly what Ben Knox Miller did before “This God Damn House” – in the video you’ll see him take out two phones and play them like a weird theremin, through the lead mic. It’s an eerie, haunting sound.

They also graced us with a new tune, “I’ll Take Out Your Ashes” – a somber-sweet, brokedown waltz featuring some fine mandolin work by Mat Davidson (who also plays with our friends Spirit Family Reunion).

The Low Anthem are crowd-pleasers to the very end. This is music that’s wild, but never indulgent; spare but relentless, and rich in the crafting.

Sit back (or forward) and enjoy these videos. Then get out there and see the Low Anthem’s live show for yourself.

They have a few upcoming dates confirmed stateside, including the Newport Folk Festival, before they hit the European festival circuit this August.

Their latest album, Oh My God, Charlie Darwin was reissued by Nonesuch last year. Pick it up here.

The Low Anthem – This God Damn House – The Bell House

The Low Anthem – I’ll Take Out Your Ashes – The Bell House

Tags: cell phones, i'll take out your ashes, the bell house, the low anthem, this god damn house

CONCERT VIDEO – We Are Country Mice @ Bruar Falls

No Comments

Posted 27 Apr 2010 — by DukeStreet
Category Concert, Video

We Are Country Mice seem to have two sides. There’s the quieter, thoughtful side – clean guitars wrapped in rich vocal harmonies. Then there’s the rough, heavy-thumping, ‘full-speed-ahead-and-we’ll-make-the-state-line-by-morning’ side. Last week at Bruar Falls, they dove into a set of songs showcasing both sides of the beast.

In the two videos here – for “Sign of the Times” and “Ballad of John” – the band brings it on easy, before cutting loose to the finish. It’s as if they can’t resist the urge to twist the throttle a bit – drums pounding, cymbals crashing in time, guitars meandering or feeding back or speeding to crescendo. And to be honest, it’s in these measures of ragged, exalted near-collapse that these guys sound most comfortable.

That last paragraph is just a longer way of saying this: Go see We Are Country Mice as soon as possible. They’re a powerhouse band. And if you’re anything like us, you’ll have one hell of a time.

WACM just finished an April Cake Shop/Bruar Falls residency, but they’ve got a few NYC dates listed for the next month or so.

You’ll have to hang tight for a debut full-length, but until then, pick up their two 7” out now at [myspace.com/wearecountrymice]

We Are Country Mice – Ballad of John – Bruar Falls

We Are Country Mice – Sign of the Times – Bruar Falls

Tags: ballad of john, bruar falls, sign on the times, we are country mice

CONCERT VIDEO – Kimya Dawson @ SXSW

No Comments

Posted 16 Apr 2010 — by DukeStreet
Category Concert, Video

It was close to 8pm when Kimya Dawson walked across the patio to the stage at the Mean-Eyed Cat. She was following a riled-up set by Paleface, who’d followed Chris Denny, who’d followed Spirit Family Reunion – an all-day bill put together by Graham Wilkinson.

She picked up her guitar and sat down on a lone chair in the middle of the stage. As she tuned up, the place got quiet, and a good portion of the crowd moved forward to sit on the ground around the low stage setup. In the hanging silence, a few late arrivals passed beers down to friends and sat down themselves to watch. Then, she got things started.

There’s a sincerity well beyond innocence in Kimya’s songs. And what’s striking is the way she, having done her own thing for years, still captivates an audience in this quiet, “here’s a song I wrote” kind of way. At the tail end of our SXSW 2010 trip, it was pretty damn inspiring. Here’s just a piece of the chorus from this video, “Remember That I Love You”:

Rock and roll is fun, but if you ever hear someone say “you are huge,” look at the moon, look at the stars, look at the sun.

After all the running around from bars to backyards, all the hours of recording, all the cheap Lone Stars, and all the hype in Austin that week, it felt good to hear some perspective. And with that, we packed up the old camera and mic, walked out to the warm Texas twilight, and headed back downtown for a long Friday night.

Kimya Dawson – Remember That I Love You – SXSW 2010

Tags: austin, kimya dawson, mean eyed cat, remember that i love you, sxsw

ON LOCATION – Futurebirds @ SXSW

3 Comments

Posted 09 Apr 2010 — by DukeStreet
Category On Location, Video

We’d come down to Austin with the idea of shooting some performances in weird locations around the city. We scouted some locations our first day in town and by mid-afternoon found ourselves under the creek bridges in Waterloo Park, exchanging head nods with a couple of drifters who sat sharing a bottle. We knew this was the right spot. And after hearing the sounds you could get under that bridge, we knew Futurebirds were the perfect band for it.

The next day, the boys hauled it over between shows and met us down by the creek. They got right down to doing what they do best – strumming along and belting those psyched-out, too-many-to-count-part harmonies.

They started things under the bridge with “Hampton’s Lullaby.” About halfway through that tune, a group of young bucks stumbled onto the scene with a twelve pack, a harmonica, and a pretty serious buzz on. Immediately, things got awesome.

For “Dirty D” we set up on the stairs leading up the sidewalk. It was getting towards twilight. With beards and flowers in place, the guys went straight for it. The result was one of the highlights of our week at SXSW.

Enjoy the videos. Download the Futurebirds EP here: http://futurebirds.bandcamp.com/ and make sure to check their myspace for news on their upcoming LP. Go see them live this April/May when they hit the road with Dexateens and Jessica Lea Mayfield!

Futurebirds – Dirty D – SXSW 2010

Futurebirds – Hampton’s Lullaby – SXSW 2010

Tags: austin, dirty d, futurebirds, hampton's lullaby, on steps, sxsw, under bridge

ON LOCATION – Blues & Lasers @ SXSW

1 Comment

Posted 08 Apr 2010 — by DukeStreet
Category On Location, Video

There’s a certain magic sound that lives in hotel stairwells. If you’ve ever woken up in one after a long night, you’re probably familiar with it. All the angles and air and painted concrete breathe huge life into the smallest of sounds.

On this morning, we met up with Scott and Benny from Blues and Lasers, who were in Austin for a few shows with their other outfit, Grace Potter and the Nocturnals. The elevator was out of service, so they’d taken the stairs down and noticed all this natural reverb just begging for a harmony.

Up we went, out came the guitars, and the rest is what you’ll see here – a dark and sweet freefall of a tune from their forthcoming debut LP, After All We’re Only Human.

We were lucky to hear the rough mixes of that album, which is due out later this month, and let’s just say we’re very much looking forward to cranking it up on our roof this summer with a few cold beers. B&L will also play a show/release party at Brooklyn Bowl on May 8^th. Oh, and you should expect much more howling electric guitar and drums at that show (they rock two drummers at all times.) We’ll see you there, dudes.