Review: Patrick Wolf at (le) poisson rouge

To get Patrick Wolf alone in a room for a private concert would be not only an awesome feat, but also a delight. His show at (le) poisson rouge last night was intimate and charming—and it’s probably as close as most of us will get to having him serenade us personally.

But it was more than just a concert; it was a conversation. It was a night of storytelling and music, with Patrick Wolf. Wolf shared family stories, inspirations for certain songs, funny anecdotes, and more. The crowd interacted with him enthusiastically, applauding and cheering at every opportunity, and there seemed to be an equal exchange between Patrick and his audience. (He even got two—count ‘em—two standing ovations!)

This was Wolf’s first live acoustic performance in New York in years. He played without a set list, which he said he missed being able to do. He opened his set to requests, which incurred a barrage of Patrick Wolf song titles. He played the ones he could do with his acoustic set (and even pulled out his dulcimer for one song).

Read the rest of my story for the New York Press here.

So fabulous.

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Lady Sovereign – So Human

Review: Lady Sovereign & Chester French at Highline Ballroom

Note to the viewers of Lady Sovereign’s show at Highline Ballroom last night: when a musician points her microphone at you, you’re supposed to sing. Yes, that’s right. You sucked as an audience.


You could see it on Lady Sovereign’s face, as she rhymed her Brit-rapper heart out – she was annoyed. She kept trying to pump the crowd up with her hilarious stage antics: flipping the Sovereign-goers off, grabbing and caressing her boobs, and even splashing beer all over the kids right in front, à la Gallagher. She handed beers out, too, and went around the stage pouring Heineken in fans’ mouths. Who cares about swine flu?

Lady Sovereign pours beer into a fan's mouth

In fact, the sharing of the booze sparked a “Swine flu, Fuck you” chant during her hit song “Love Me or Hate Me.” A few enthusiastic admirers reveled in the messy beer fountain, and these people were generally the ones with their arms pumping at all times. There were a handful of people rocking out to her electro-grime music, but the majority of the audience refrained from dancing and cheering. When Lady Sov left the stage the first time, she looked back at the crowd members and indicated that they should go nuts in about two minutes (just in time for her encore).

Read the rest of my review for the New York Press here!

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Luniz – I Got Five On It

Review: Ratatat at Terminal 5

Talk about moving on up. Ratatat, a band that, three years ago, was pretty fresh on a lot of people’s iPods has basically become a household name in the music world. That could be why, at their Terminal 5 show on Tuesday, April 21, there was a sea of teeny-bopper fans and frat boys. And lots of grinding.

The show itself was a spectacular display because of Ratatat’s always awesome stage production. The two main guys – Evan Mast and Mike Stroud – used to play with a third member, but they seemed to replace him with even more strobe lights, which made the concert quite literally electrifying. This was a good choice, however, because the light show was perfect: the strobe lights burst out, declaring the peaks of each song, while not distracting from the projection of videos behind the duo. (The projection works well with the group because of Stroud’s tendency to walk in front of it, leaning back or headbanging or whatever he decides to do, casting a massive shadow that mimics his movements.)

And seeing Ratatat live is spicy, like the hot sauce on the rim of your Tecate (which they were drinking onstage). Because they dropped the third stage member, Ratatat had to rely on lots of pre-recorded stuff. But the things they do live make up for it, like fast-paced drum solos lit up by a flood of red or blue light. The beats are bass heavy, with glittery synth chimes and spicy guitar riffs. Once the bass kicked in, as with any good dance music, the crowd started grooving. When the synth flickered in, the dancing intensified. But all of that is just set up. The bass and the synth combine in anticipation of something more intense and somehow abstract, and that’s Stroud’s guitar. It cuts the repetitive nature of each song with its irregularity, making it the real hot sauce to the equation. And playing classics (har har) like “Wildcat” and “Seventeen Years” interspersed with newer tracks like “Flynn” and “Shempi” ensured a pleased audience.

All photos by me

See my original article on the Washington Square News blog.

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Simian Mobile Disco – Love

Pete Hamill V3.0

Remember how I said I had a photo of me with the legendary Pete Hamill? HERE IT IS HELL YES.


I reviewed his book Downtown: My Manhattan earlier this year, and also chronicled an interview my class had with the dude. He's great, and I wish he was my grandpa. Thanks for everything, Mr. Hamill!

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Damien Jurado – Desert

Review: Asobi Seksu at Bowery Ballroom

Last night, I went to see Asobi Seksu play at Bowery Ballroom. It was a fantastic show!

You can read my review on the New York Press blog here. Be sure to browse my other photos below the story!

I went to the show alone, since I was covering it, so the beginning was kind of boring. Me and a beer and my cell phone, at least in between bands. Then the show came on, and I was blown away. My favorite part was when the band was about to leave stage for the first time. Yuki, the lead singer, took off her necklace, placed it on the mic stand, and went to tackle the drums. She took control of them and banged out the same heavy indie-rock beats that had been playing only moments before. To put it concisely, it rocked.

And of all people for me to casually start talking to, I pick the NYU grad student who used to be in the band. After the venue cleared out, he introduced me to the current lineup, who are all so nice and humble. Yuki's boisterous laugh is completely antithetical to her small figure. Billy was really polite and interesting. James was hilarious, and I hardly spoke with him because I couldn't think of any witty retorts. I, unfortunately, did not meet the drummer.

Several of the band members' families were at the show, so people lingered around for a while. Quite a few ex-members were there as well, so it was like one big happy reunion – and me. No one opposed to my presence, though. In fact, everyone was quite welcoming. A few hours and a beer later, it was time to go home.

All in all, good night.

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Chew Lips – Solo

Book Review: Pete Hamill's "Downtown: My Manhattan"

Pete Hamill knows New York. There’s no arguing that. His book Downtown: My Manhattan, first published in 2004, is a crash-course in New York history and culture, both for natives and outsiders. He skillfully blends nostalgia with New York now, giving readers history while making his present-day activities somehow relevant.


The son of Irish immigrants, Hamill incorporates his own Brooklyn-born past with the immigrant tale. He takes readers on a walking tour of his downtown, pulling us from Battery Park to Times Square (and beyond!). He weaves through history, narrating the Knickerbocker tale, revealing Herman Melville’s Pearl Street birthplace, reporting the mysterious appearance of the angry bull in front of the Stock Exchange and telling about the founding of the Village Voice. There’s just so much to take in!

Nostalgia is key, mostly because of the constant loss – and acceptance of loss – that New Yorkers face every day. Hell, I become nostalgic for New York’s past, and I have only lived here a few years.

His style is conversational, but still eloquent. His stories are informed and sentimental, and they add context to a city that over eight million people call home – eight million people who probably know little about its amazing story.

The only drawback of the book is that the reading can sometimes become tiresome or heavy. This is not because of Hamill himself, mind you, but because of constant facts and historical details that weigh down the narrative at times. Well, sometimes it's Hamill's fault. He gets a bit too sentimental every once in a while, which might distract readers (like me). But it isn’t long before he makes his next reference to the film Black Orpheus or to playwright Harold Pinter or some other fascinating detail, pulling readers back into the glorious past of New York.

It’s a good read, definitely. Still, not as good as Miroslav Sasek’s children’s book, This Is New York.

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Telepathe – So Fine

Review: Tapes 'n Tapes at Music Hall of Williamsburg

Tapes 'n Tapes played to a full and energetic crowd at the Music Hall of Williamsburg on Feb. 26. I was lucky enough to be there to photograph the show.

See my review on the Washington Square News blog here. (Right now, there is a grammatical error that wasn't my fault. I emailed my editor, so he should fix it soon.)

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Love Is All – Last Choice