The afternoon was sizzling on Saturday, and most people didn’t dare get up from their blankets spread over the green carpet of Central Park’s Summerstage. But Apostle of Hustle’s charming frontman Andrew Whitman didn’t appear alarmed. He began by saying “Happy Pride Day,” and went on to play “My Sword’s Anger” and the title track from their newest, National Anthem of Nowhere. His pool of random behavior - like displaying a scarf before blindfolding himself for no reason - was good for morale throughout.
The opening band was Winnipeg’s The Duhks, glittering with the spark of a Grammy nomination for Best Country Vocal Performance by a Group or Duo. Charged with a fiddle and a style inspired by genres all over the world (folk, samba, country, soul), there was no denying their on-stage talent. Posted below is “Death Came a Knockin,” which earned some sing-along cred, taken from a radio performance on KGNU Radio Boulder.
The lead singer of the Cribs addresses the crowd at the Other Stage: “People go on about global warming and the environment,” he says in the middle of a downpour. “But the real threat to civilisation is shit indie bands.”
The video montage projected behind Animal Collective’s Panda Bear (Noah Lennox) made his solo show all the more arresting. Though with little to say and a strange sort of serenity (despite all the bristling moods his songs convey), his solitary presence was already captivating to begin with. But there was something the visual display conveyed- via flashes of naked bodies, bearded men, a roller-coaster make-out scene, amongst others- that made the connection between his music and the audience more instinctive. Noah went from song to song without a pause, playing plenty of material from Person Pitch. He finally spoke in the end to thank others who played and those in attendance. There was no encore, but the set was not short. Animal Collective band member Avey Tare watched almost the entire show from the side of the stage.
Photos and report from my lovely roommate, Lorelei:
Architecture in Helsinki had a full house – a full, mad house – of frenzied fans at the Irving Plaza on Friday night. The primordial feel of their latest single was pre-empted – before the band even appeared onstage – by the bellowing of witchdoctor weekenders* in the front row. So everyone seemed well and truly tribal by the time the boom dah-dee dah-dee dah dee boom of ‘Heart It Races’ emerged as if from a swamp that had been a thousand years in the making.
After all the exposure to magazine spreads featuring Feist’s pretty face, it was much relief to see one my favorite badasses in person. Her live version of songs have always been more gutsy (and often more blues-y), but the material from her latest, The Reminder, does especially well. “My Moon My Man,” for example, sounded almost legendary. “Sea Lion Woman,” which has been a live favorite ever since she started playing it, was an absolute blast and a great choice for the encore. Feist’s boyfriend (and Broken Social Scene frontman) Kevin Drew made an announced entrance for a solo piano accompaniment to a slow version of “Lover’s Spit.” But he also casually came back with a tambourine for “Sea Lion Woman,” dancing away silly with Bryden Baird, Feist’s trumpet player. It was a great sight.
Apostle of Hustle played the first of their 3-week bi-city residencies last night at Mercury Lounge. Wednesday they fly to Chicago to play their other residence, Schuba’s Tavern. After I missed the first opener, Murder Mystery, and didn’t pay attention to the second, Ola Podrida, this Broken Social Sceneside-project (that’s an understatement, this is AoH’s second album tour) started out cool and calm, but then rocked out to their album’s title track, “National Anthem of Nowhere.” Apprently there was a scene at the foot of the stage when frontman Andrew Whiteman became a little too enthused in his drumming and knocked a tambourine into his red wine; at which point he requested a new glass (plastic cup) of “le Rouge.”
hooves on the turf is a mostly-music blog based out of brooklyn. i can be reached at hoovesontheturf [at] gmail [dot] com - please send me your lovely music as an attached mp3 or an mp3 link. if i like what you send, i'll be sure to ask for more.
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