Photos: Diamond Rugs @ The Bell House

Diamond Rugs @ The Bell House - June 22, 2012
Photos: Sam Cornwall

Last night, indie supergroup Diamond Rugs performed a somewhat last minute show at the Bell House and our photographer Sam Cornwall was able to make his way in to snap some photos for us. Check out his full gallery below.

Reminder that tomorrow you can catch Diamond Rugs for FREE when they open for Alabama Shakes at Central Park SummerStage. That show starts at 3pm, so make sure you get there early enough to also catch Robert Ellis!

Photos: Howler and 1,2,3 @ Knitting Factory

1,2,3

Howler and 1,2,3, @ Knitting Factory - April 10, 2012
Photos: Sam Cornwall

During CMJ, one band that caught my attention was the recently-signed-to-FrenchKiss 1,2,3 -- whose sound I could only describe as "Dirty Projectors with HR from Bad Brains on lead vocals." A strange combo for sure, but fairly accurate. Technically a duo (though a quartet live), the Pittsburgh-based band released their debut full length album New Heaven (listen below) on the aforementioned FrenchKiss Records, and have been touring heavily in support of it.

1,2,3's Tuesday show at the Knitting Factory was one of two New York City shows with Howler, who we caught during their New York City debut back in January. Both bands played Mercury Lounge last night. If you haven't listened to Howler's excellent debut album America Give Up, well you can do that below as well.

Our photographer Sam Cornwall (whose blog PhotoEveryone you should definitely check out) was at the Knitting Factory show on Tuesday to document the night for us. You can take a look at his photos from the night, as well as both band's tour dates and records on Spotify, below...

Photos: Colin Stetson @ Glasslands

Colin Stetson @ Glasslands – April 3, 2012
Photos: Sam Cornwall

You may not know bass saxophone player Colin Stetson by name, but at one time or another you’ve probably heard him on one of your favorite LCD Soundsystem, TV on the Radio, David Byrne or Tom Waits records (the list goes on and on). A touring member of Arcade Fire and Bon Iver, Stetson has also been performing solo since 2008, playing a very unique form of free jazz. I caught him open for Godspeed You! Black Emperor last year and found his performance to be oddly hypnotizing and extremely captivating.

Stetson has been touring in support of his record New History Warfare Vol. 2: Judges, which Pitchfork named one of the top albums of 2011. Following an appearance at ATP Minehead last month, his tour brought him to Glasslands on Tuesday for a performance with Arcade Fire’s Sarah Neufeld. Both Neufeld and Stetson will be touring with Gregory Rogove (of Devendra Banhart) and Billy Medeski (of Medeski Martin & Wood) for the “Alone Together” tour, billed as An Evening of Solo Works – featuring the four musicians (in different variants throughout the tour) performing together.

Though I couldn’t make it to the show on Tuesday, our photographer Sam Cornwall was there for us on assignment and you can take a look at his photos, along with the Alone Together tour dates below…

Photos: They Might Be Giants @ Terminal 5

They Might Be Giants @ Terminal 5 – March 10, 2012
Photos: Sam Cornwall

Saturday, March 10 marked the end of a lengthy tour for alt-rock legends They Might Be Giants, who headlined the massive Terminal 5 in their New York City hometown. According to Death and Taxes:

This was no mere boring show, where the band plays a calculated mix of hits while trying to promote their new material. No, this is a band that likes to turn a gig into a fun and goofy event. They performed a rarity in the form of “Mr. Me” and billed “Cow Town” as the first TMBG song ever recorded, plus yelled at people for throwing things from the balconies. There were a couple of interludes featuring sock puppet avatars, one of which also included a brief appearance by the Supreme Court.

Following the slightly dark performance of “Ana Ng” (which is one of my favorites) and “Careful What You Pack,” they divided the audience in half, saying that the time for love was over and that for the next “between 4 and 40 minutes” the crowd would be split for “an atmosphere of total intolerance.” One side of the crowd was “people” and the other was “apes,” and they cheered back and forth. People won, out-fist-pumping those damn dirty apes once and for all. They managed to make one fan pretty happy, by giving a signed copy of “Join Us” to someone who was decked out in a ton of TMBG gear — hoodie, t-shirt, the works — proving that being “that guy” at a show can sometimes work out for the best.

Jonathan Coulton, who toured with TMBG a lot this past year, opened the show and even brought Susan Vega onstage to help with a song. Our photographer Sam Cornwall was there to document the show for us, and you can take a look at his photos of both acts, as well as the setlist below…

Photos: Slick Rick @ Brooklyn Bowl

Slick Rick @ Brooklyn Bowl - January 6, 2012
Photos: Sam Cornwall

Unlike our previous bait-and-switch experience with Digable Planets, the legendary Slick Rick rolled through Brooklyn Bowl this past Friday to rock his signature flow with backing band Lifted Crew. Our photographer Sam Cornwall was there to capture Rick The Ruler in all his eyepatch-sporting glory, and you can check out his shots below from this great show. Maybe Cee Knowledge from DP should consider hiring Lifted Crew instead of that cash-grabbing band who told us to eat a bag of dicks in the Comments. Just a suggestion.

Photos: Deer Tick @ Brooklyn Bowl (New Year's Eve)

Deer Tick @ Brooklyn Bowl - December 31, 2011
Photos: Sam Cornwall

If you happened to find yourself in New York City on New Year’s Eve, there were plenty of options available if live music was a pre-requisite to your plans. One of those options was seeing the great Providence, RI alt-country/indie band Deer Tick at Brooklyn Bowl, who according to our photographer Sam Cornwall put on a raucous show where champagne flowed and general mayhem ensued. As usual with Deer Tick shows, at least in New York City, special guests joined the band onstage including Craig Finn of The Hold Steady--who we recently caught play a great show at the Brooklyn Night Bazaar.

Deer Tick are on a short break from touring in support of their latest release Divine Providence, but will resume in March where they will play a slew of dates in Europe. Below, check out a full set of photos of said mayhem shot by Sam, as well as the band’s future tour dates…

Future Nostalgia - CHAPPO @ Mercury Lounge

CHAPPO @ Mercury Lounge - December 17, 2011
Photos: Sam Cornwall

On Saturday night, Brooklyn-based pych/indie band CHAPPO headlined Mercury Lounge, bringing their raucous show to a packed crowd. Photographer Sam Cornwall was there to document the show for us, which he described as including “confetti, glitter, crowd-surfing and three encores.” As evidenced by the photos, it looked to be quite the party. The band released their latest EP, Plastique Universe II: Pisces Princess back in August, which you can download on iTunes over here. We ran our very first ticket contest for the show (hopefully the first of many) and you can check out Sam’s awesome confetti-ridden photos below…

Photos: Yeah Yeah Yeahs @ Brooklyn Bowl

Yeah Yeah Yeahs @ Brooklyn Bowl - December 16, 2011
Photos: Sam Cornwall

Announced only two days prior, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs headlined a benefit on Friday for beloved New York City DJ Jonathan Toubin, who was seriously injured in a freak accident on December 8. Amongst the other acts on the bill, including Heavy Trash and Stabbing Eastward (featuring Tunde Adebimpe of TV on the Radio), were DJs Gibby Haynes of Butthole Surfers and Billy Miller of Norton Records. Quite the lineup indeed--a great show for a great cause.

Photographer Sam Cornwall was there for us on Friday, and you can take a look at his photos of Karen O (clad in Santa Claus outfit) with the rest of the band, plus the setlist below...

Photos: Gene Ween & Dave Dreiwitz @ Brooklyn Bowl

Gene Ween & Dave Dreiwitz @ Brooklyn Bowl - December 3, 2011
Photos: Sam Cornwall

If you missed out on getting tickets to what was surely an insane Halloween party with Ween back in October (don't feel bad, we didn't make it in either), then the next best thing was seeing co-frontman Aaron Freeman (a.k.a. Gene Ween) along with Ween's bassist Dave Dreiwitz at Brooklyn Bowl on Saturday. Together, and along with cellist Jane Scarpantoni and Freeman's daughter Anna Freeman, the band performed a 25-song set, including Ween favorites "I Don't Want To Leave You on the Farm," "What Deaner Was Talking About," and probably my all-time favorite Ween song, "Birthday Boy."

If you happen to find yourself in Denver, CO towards the end of the year, do yourself a favor and buy a ticket to see Ween at the Fillmore Auditorium on December 29, 30 or 31 (New Year’s Eve). Tickets are currently on sale for all three dates, with a special 3-day package option available. After that, you'll be able to catch Gene Ween and Dave Dreiwitz on the upcoming Weezer Cruise. Photographer Sam Cornwall sent us a set of photos from Saturday's show which you can check out below, along with the setlist for the night.

Set list (via The Village Voice):

Kansas City Star
Mountains and Buffaloes
Ooh Va La
Flutes of the Chi
Little Birdie
I Don't Want To Leave You on the Farm
Hawakawawi Say
The Stallion, pt. 4
Stay Forever
She's Your Baby
Demon Sweat
Lullaby
Happy Colored Marbles (with Anna Freeman on vocals)
Chocolate Town
Right To The Ways and the Rules of the World
Oh My Dear (Falling In Love)
Deep Calm
Kite-Flying Man
It Don't Come Easy
The Argus
Chancy Boys
What Deaner Was Talking About
—
The Needle and the Damage Done
Birthday Boy Polka Dot Tail (with Anna Freeman on vocals and Peter Stampfel on fiddle)