This Saturday – Studio @Webster Hall Showcase

Reposted from ‘Knocks from the Underground’

This Saturday, May 29th, Rethink Pop Music presents genre-bending trio Ghost Ghost live at the Studio @ Webster Hall with Heypenny, The Vanguard, True Womanhood, and The Sour Notes. Ghost Ghost will be joined onstage by the unstoppable Charlie Kemmerer on paints, the uneditable Tim Bartlett on live video and the unbelievable Mark Christensen on guitar. Tickets are normally $10 ADV or $12 DOS, but the band teamed up with Knocks for an awesome giveaway: the first fan to email knocksny@gmail.com with their favorite ghost joke wins both tickets! (If you don’t have a good ghost joke, a knock knock joke will do.) Video teaser for the show here.

Ghost Ghost loves you so much that they’re also offering their latest single, “Vassar Days,” for FREE download here. Learn more about the rest of the album, No Clothes on Ragged Island: The Life of Edna St. Vincent Millay, on their website – they wrote and recorded the entire album in only one week! Plus, who doesn’t enjoy a little history on Edna St. Vincent Millay via a rock album?

Show starts at 8 pm with Ghost Ghost headlining. The Studio @ Webster Hall is located at 125 East 11th Street in New York City.

Buy tickets below or visit: RPM-RSVP.com

Tags: ghost ghost, heypenny, knocks from the underground, music, nyc events, RethinkPopMusic, showcase, the sour notes, the studio at webster hall, the vanguard, true womanhood, webster hall

LA Shark… fucking awesome!

LA Shark are the most progressive people/music coming out of London/Brighton right now! We were lucky to share a stage with them at Audio last year when we were touring the UK and we can’t wait to bring them to NYC. Check out the official video for their single “A Weapon” below:

Tags: Audio brighton, Brighton, la shark, LA Shark A weapon, progessive london, RethinkPopMusic, uk

Quantify?!

What’s “IT” worth? We are enjoying…

French, (not Justice) good, (not Justice) carbon coby, (Royksopp), video (genius)

Brooklyn, (eh… so ) good, (need a band) carbon coby (bout time you got a band), video (already innovators… show your parts)

Tags: Julian Casablancas, justice, make the girl dance, pendulum, RethinkPopMusic, vitalic, Yacht

Wild Beasts Eat Your Lunch And Sing Their Way Out Of Prison.

Hayden Thorpe and Tom Fleming of Wild Beasts share vocals and their delivery and annunciation is  simultaneously fresh and archaic. Hayden’s voice is that of an incredibly talented schizophrenic, switching effortlessly between refined falsetto and a low Mr. Hyde growl. Fleming’s low tenor as well as drummer Bert’s baritone are baroque in the sense that the notes sung are long and sustained, evoking an almost religious emotion, proper and depraved.

The English countryside upbringing shared by the band is beautifully written into their songs. In “All The King’s Men” Bert and Fleming sing a deep backup melody that reminded me of the enchanting and haunting style known as Gregorian Chant. Their singing is jolly, yet serious and rolls along with the drum creating a percussive chant that anchors the song. Benny’s harp-like strings allow Thorpe’s lead falsetto to accelerate and lace itself fluidly throughout the song.

Wild Beasts catalog contains tracks that are like thin rivers covered in sand and small rocks. The sounds they produce tumble and trickle alongside one another colorfully. Even Thrope’s vocals sound as if they are passing through his entire body, like a continuous stream, rather than merely forming at his mouth. Their finest songwriting comes through on “The Devil’s Crayon.” You literally hear Thrope’s voice breaking apart as the song is whipped tight and crashes into a bridge.

www.wild-beasts.co.uk

http://www.myspace.com/wildbeasts

Tags: All the King's Men, RethinkPopMusic, wild beasts, Wild Beasts Two Dancers

Whyleaveastoria.com Turns 2 and Wants to Celebrate with You!

Presented by Spaten, in association with RethinkPopMusic, Studio Square, and Thrillist:

On Thursday, April 8th at Studio Square, Why Leave Astoria?! will celebrate two giant milestones, its second birthday and growth topping 4,000 members. The event begins promptly at 7pm at Studio Square–located at 35-33 36th St. Astoria, NY 11106

To honor the event, WLA has partnered with Spaten beer, RethinkPopMusic, Studio Square, and Thrillist to bring Astoria the largest centralized celebration Queens has ever seen. In anticipation of growth over last year’s celebration attended by over 1,000 people, this year’s event features five of the borough’s biggest musical acts and washed down by TEN FREE KEGS of Spaten and Franziskaner beer. The event will also mark the kickoff of Studio Square’s participation in the hugely popular WLA Card program.

Fifteen of the most talked about independent clothing and accessory designers in the borough will be displaying their wares throughout the evening. There will be giveaways and contests as well as performances throughout the evening by Sol Dance Center, CrossFit Queens, and the New York Circus Arts Academy.
There is no cover charge for the event.

EVENT RUNDOWN:

7:00 Red carpet guest arrival hosted by Sunday Morning Mimosa, Performance by Bobby Kane
7:45 Performance by Illimanjaro featuring Hops
8:30 Performance by TJ Moss Band & Pie Boys Flat
10:00 Performance by The Vanguard
11:00 DJ Lo-Fi of ADG, Performance by Sol Dance Studio

The Vanguard
The Vanguard have been featured on Matt Pinfield’s Morning Show on 101.9 RXP. They have played every noteworthy venue in NYC and were featured in a half-dozen SXSW 09 showcases. They also played The Exit festival in Serbia along with a 7 day UK Tour, MPMF in Cincinnati, Miami Music Festival and their video for “Both Sides” was featured on MTVu. SPIN.com named them a buzzworthy up-and-coming band because of their “bubbling melting pot of sounds, influences, and ethnic backgrounds.” With their second EP ‘Playtime!’ about to be released this fall, The Vanguard are gearing up to hit the road for their next international tour.

TJ Moss Band
TJ Moss Band mixes pop, rock, soul, Fenders and firewater to create their own unique brand of rock and roll. This Astoria, Queens based trio recently opened for Joss Stone at the BOK Center in Tulsa, OK. They were featured in TimeOut New York magazine for “Battle of the Bands: Brooklyn vs. Queens”, which they proceeded to win. Their song “It’s Over” was featured as the finale-winning performance on Bravo’s hit show, Step it Up and Dance last summer.

Pie Boys Flat
For the last few years the fan base for Patrick, Fitz, and Jason has been growing all over the city, country, and abroad! With their history of playing live shows across the world PBF has truely crafted an original live experience that you don’t find anywhere else. Known for writing songs that cross many genres (from rock ‘n’ roll to reggae, blues to bluegrass, latin rock to jazz funk) they bring all the styles home everytime with very unique arrangements. There’s something different about the voices that these three young musicians put together. But in the end you understand that regardless of how, all these sounds come together underneath the same roof that is so sublimely PIE BOYS FLAT.

Illimanjaro
Formed in 2004 and based in Queens and Brooklyn, Illimanjaro have built a reputation as a power trio with a unique brand of punk/funk-infused hip hop for the young and rowdy. Following the release of their well-received debut album ‘A Problem’ (February 2007) and four-song EP ‘Not Invited’ (February 2008), Illimanjaro are back with their third record entitled ‘Boiling Point’ (December 2009)—featuring eight tracks that bubble with the kind of scorching intensity and raw energy that has made the band such a hair-raising live act.

Bobby Kane
There are few songwriters these days that place so much of their souls into their music; Bobby Kane is one of them. Every lyric of every song comes from life and life experience. From mellow and melodic to furious and un-tamable, his styles trample the guidelines of modern music and then transcends them all. With a unique vocal style and an ear for warm sensual chord structures, the potential to go down in history as one of the “Great Ones” of our age is evident.

For More Information: http://www.whyleaveastoria.com/events/wla-turns-2-4000-member-party

Tags: astoria, event, music, NYC, queens, RethinkPopMusic, spaten, Spaten Beer, studio square, the vanguard, thrillist, why leave astoria

The Aviation Orange @ D.I.Y.Bushwick Music Festival

The Aviation Orange is playing in the inaugural D.I.Y. Bushwick Music Festival on:

Wednesday 3/26 – 11pm at Brooklyn Fireproof – 119 Ingraham St

Thursday 3/25 – 11pm at Bushwick Music Studios - 55 Waterbury St.

C0ming off a huge buzz from SXSW, The Aviation Orange is the must-see band in Brooklyn this week.  Read the details below and buy passes HERE

Official Site

INAUGURAL DIY BUSHWICK MUSIC FESTIVAL CELEBRATING ARTISTIC DIVERSITY AND PERSEVERANCE IN BROOKLYN, NY

“Let the music industry have South By Southwest and the CMJ festival. Brooklyn has its own DIY Music Festival for Brooklynites by Brooklynites.”
- NY POST

Brooklyn, New York – Bushwick Music Studios in association with Deli Magazine and Arts In Bushwick are proud to announce the official schedule for DIY Bushwick, A Musical Festival, taking place March 24-27, in nine venues throughout Bushwick. The inaugural festival will feature Brooklyn-based bands, DJs, and artists performing in alternative Do-It-Yourself spaces just a walk or a bike ride apart. Admission prices range from free to $10 with an average ticket price of $5. Festival passes will be available online for $20, with Friday/Saturday passes available for $10. This is part of an effort by festival organizers to make sure that the events are accessible to all.

Tito Fleetwood Ladd, owner of Bushwick Music Studios, decided to organize the festival in an attempt to galvanize the neighborhood’s flourishing music and arts scene. In the last few years, Bushwick has emerged as a frontier for DIY venues, attracting artists and musicians with the limitless opportunities provided by these raw spaces. Although the scene has been growing for some time, a Bushwick-centered festival of this scale has never been attempted.

Ladd’s vision was that by working together, the Bushwick music scene would ultimately receive more visibility. “There’s this incredible energy and all these cool spaces with amazing talent in Bushwick,” says Ladd, “This is our way of showing that to anyone who wants to pay attention to us. We’re all doing it together.” When he reached out to several venues and organizations in Bushwick, he immediately received enthusiastic support.

Deli Magazine and neighborhood stalwart Arts In Bushwick have both signed on to help coordinate and produce the event. Bushwick Music Studios will be joined by nine spaces including Party Expo, Goodbye Blue Monday, Brooklyn Fireproof, Castle Braid, The Opera House Lofts, House of Yes, Eastern District, and Northeast Kingdom.

Two Brooklyn-based companies have pitched in their efforts: The first, an online gig-booking agency, GigMaven, has been helping to book bands. And the innovative StreamJam will stream the shows live online. The festival is truly a local DIY effort that takes pride in its self-dependence. Corporate sponsors are nowhere to be found. DIY Bushwick is pure grassroots.

The festival kicks off at Wednesday the 24th at Eastern District at 5:00 with a free show!

Passes cost $5 for the day, $10 for Friday and Saturday, or $20 for all four days.

Tags: brooklyn, bushwick, bushwick music studios, diy bushwick, music festival, RethinkPopMusic, SXSW, the aviation orange

RethinkPopMusic Presents: Ambassadors, The Yes Way, Fugitive Souls, Emily Long and Dinosaur Bones – The Village Voice

A little RPM love over at The Village Voice camp. Reposted from: http://www.villagevoice.com/slideshow/rethinkpopmusic-presents-ambassadors-the-yes-way-and-dinosaur-bones-1655446/

“Five bucks, five bands, free booze” RSVP at http://www.RPM-RSVP.com to enter for only $5 and get a FREE download! RethinkPopMusic’s youngest band Ambassadors, is excited to announce that they are back and stronger than ever after a 2009 full of adversity. Ambassadors’ keyboardist (Casey Harris), who has been blind since birth, had to have a kidney transplant (from his mother) last November. The kidney disorder wasn’t discovered until he was a senior in high school and little is known about the disease because the correlation with vision loss is EXTREMELY rare. However, have no fear! Casey is back to 110% and the time off allowed Ambassadors to incorporate some new instruments into their already outstanding live show. The showcase at Santos Party House on 02/18 will be Ambassadors first since taking 3 months off following a very successful UK Tour and CMJ Showcase. RSVP and RethinkPopMusic will email you a secret link to download their first single “Tropisms” which was featured on mtvU The Freshman. Their self titled debut EP is slated for an early summer release.

Tags: 5 bands 5 bucks free booze, ambassadors, dinosaur bones, emily long, fugitive souls, RethinkPopMusic, santos party house, the village voice, the yes way

My Daily Thread – RethinkPopMusic – B Sides: Live at The Village Lantern – NYC

Our good friends over My Daily Thread were kind to post about our new project ‘B-Sides’.  Check out the post below and be sure to head over to their site.

Industry innovators RethinkPopMusic are at it again. Known for putting artists first, the most recent project, B-Sides Live, answers the overwhelming need for NYC artists to debut new material, play acoustic sets or unveil side projects.

The weekly event will turn The Village Lantern into the artists’ playground, allowing independent artists to have full administrative control. In fact, participating artists can choose to play their entire album acoustically, collaborate or just play favorite covers for an hour. The only catch? This event isn’t intended for acoustic singer/songwriter sorts but rather artists already in a band with no intention of going solo.

B-Sides Live is scheduled to launch at The Village Lantern on February 4 and run every Thursday thereafter (excluding Feb. 18 when RethinkPopMusic will be holding its showcase at Santos Party House and March 18 when SXSW will be taking over everyone’s attention). Share the love grassroots style through word of mouth in the independent artist community. There will be no cover charge, no fliers and very little public promotion. Think of B-Sides Live as a living room jam session with friends…just a few more of them.

reposted from: http://www.mydailythread.com/mydailytracks/2010/2/2/rethinkpopmusic-b-sides-live-at-the-village-lantern-nyc.html

Tags: b-sides, my daily thread, RethinkPopMusic, the village lantern

Jay Reatard- Homicide?

It is being reported on various websites that Memphis Police are investigating the death of Jay Reatard as a Homicide investigation. This good get dicey, he really knew how to piss people off. Here is a link to more info:
http://larecord.com/news/2010/01/14/mpd-investigating-jay-reatards-death-as-a-homicide/#more-39360

Here are a couple of pictures which were taken a day before his death-posted on his twitter page…pretty strange stuff:

Tags: homicide, investigation, jay, jay reatard, Jay Reatard homicide, jay reatard twitter pictures, Jimmy Lee Lindsey Jr., L.A.Record, Memphis Police, reatard death, RethinkPopMusic, twitter, twitter pictures

R.I.P. Jay Reatard

Rethinkpopmusic is very sad to hear about the death of Jay Reatard at the age of 29.

In a music world saturated with pristene auto-tune vocals and bubblegum melodies, Jay Reatard (born Jimmy Lee Lindsey Jr.) really knew how to dirty the place up! In 2 minute, frenetic in your face punk anthems he always made me feel like there was this maniac punk rocker around the corner just waiting to bash my face in!

In fact at one show, he actually did just that to one lucky fan!

Jay Reatard Punch Video from Tim McCready on Vimeo.

FYI, that’s a good thing in punk rock.

To listen to Jay Reatard is the musical equivalent of getting beat up by a 6th grader. Think, The Ramones, if they were all pre-pubescent kids. His songs, although quick and simple, contained dark complex lyrics which only made it more interesting to hear them in such a context. One of my absolute favorite Jay Reatard songs is “Death is Forming” -the lyrics say it all “Alone in a room needless I sit. I close my eyes and try to forget. Death is forming. Get in line.” This was a guy who thought about death, violence and all the scary unknowns which we all question.

Sean Michaels of The Guardian UK reports:

Speaking to Billboard last summer, Lindsey said his new album was about “dealing with mortality issues, growing older, disenchantment with your youth”. The LP, which saw Lindsey shift from punk rock to noisy pop, was “the first record where I’m kind of exiting the dumb kid part of my life and going into the almost-30 point”.Tragically, he will forever remain on that cusp. http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2010/jan/14/jay-reatard-dies

This Billboard quote is so eye-opening because it shows that with all his songs about death, Jay Retard was definitely looking forward to living.

The music world is a bit more tame today. We will miss you Jay, thanks for all the music.

Tags: billboard, death, jay, jay reatard, jay reatard death, jay reatard rip, Jimmy Lee Lindsey Jr., reatard death, RethinkPopMusic, the guardian UK, vimeo