Not only is Tune Yards selling Bell House out these days, Merrill Garbus’ adoring fans knew all the words and sang along without being asked. The performance was superb; there were a few new songs.
This being her first headlining show in New York, she noted the newness of knowing that everyone present was there to specifically see her; and it was great to see the recent addition of a bass guitarist to what had previously been a solo stage act—not that she needed the extra help.
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Thanks so much to everyone who came out, especially the fabulous bands who played, and to Trophy Bar for hosting the whole madness. I know everyone I invited to play were some of my favorites, so of course I was thrilled more than anybody else to see them all at one place, but I was extra excited because they all played incredibly strong sets. A ton of pictures are posted here with helpful captions, and we filmed pretty much the whole thing, so video will come soon too! All pics were taken by me (Sarahana), except where noted.
You have two full days to learn and memorize these songs, so that you can come and hum along at the show on Saturday. All 192kbps of glory packaged within.
1. “Karate” by Afuche
2. “Hatari” by tUnE-yArDs
3. “As April Is to May” by Luke Winslow-King
4. “Song that Grows Like a Vine (Live)” by Gracious Calamity
5. “Sosey & Dosey” by Drink Up Buttercup
6. “Mechanical Life” by Glass Ghost
7. “For You” by Sharon Van Etten
8. “Ain’t No Grave” by Adam Arcuragi
9. “Woolgathering” by Vandaveer
10. a song by our special guests
Last week I finally headed out to Bruar Falls in Williamsburg, a new venue by the folks who run Cake Shop. The occasion was a release party for multiple releases, with friends Ladyfingers, Sister Suvi, Afuche and Tune Yards all celebrating a newly available body of work, though Ladyfingers pointed out he had nothing to sell at the venue since his release was digital-only (with suggested donations).
It was somewhat of a family affair, where everyone seemed to be fond of every one, except that one guy in reddish leather jacket with a penchant for experimenting on his point-and-shoot camera. I think I saw Phosphorescent. I’m 98% sure that only he can be the bearer of that longish face with hair and beard that are a burst of golden curls. Also, it was Charlie Chaplin’s birthday, and several (but not enough) people had followed the direction to wear only black and white. Sister Suvi, Afuche and Tune Yards ran a projection of a Charlie Chaplin film throughout their sets.
Day 5 in Austin was March 21, 2009. The morning began with a ride to the northern part of the eastern town, where five members of Balmorhea, an instrumental six-piece from Austin, were waiting to play a few songs for our video series, Secret Garden.
Day 4 in Austin was March 20, 2009. We rolled into downtown by Mohawk, which was one of the places where the much talked-about Hot Freaks party was happening. There was a huge line outside.
Admittedly, I’m not familiar with every single band involved in this year’s SXSW festivities, officially or unofficially, though I did listen to well over two hundred bands I don’t care to listen to ever again. Unlike them, the list compiled here includes twenty performers I think are most worth seeing, and for free, no less; as far as I know, all of them are either playing unofficial shows, or plan to play whatever last-minute gatherings that come their way.
A few days after I saw tUnE-yArDs open for Beirut at Music Hall of Williamsburg, I went to film the amazing woman behind it, Merrill Garbus, in Bed-Stuy, where she was staying at a friend’s apartment for a short visit. She asked me if I had specific requests, and though I said she could play anything she wanted, she ended up picking three of my favorites, “Little Tiger”, “News”, and “Hatari”, and one new song, “Harold”. We tried the first performance out on the stoop, but it was amazingly noisy–multiple airplanes, spontaneous banging, and one “just yell it out and somebody will hear it” conversation. So we headed back inside, walking around in the apartment and singing in the bathtub, talking about the band’s young history, promising future, make-up tradition, and so on
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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.
Evan Hammer: and now i’m excited too! thanks for the new band.
Jens: Where can I order t-shirts from the Tallest Man On Earth online? Is it possible at all?
nat lyon: three cheers for secret garden! it’s been too long.
jamie: Yo! You should definitely check out this awesome video MPLS.TV just shot of Dark Dark Dark this week for City...
sarahana: they were taken with the new iPhone 4 using the Hipstamatic app
