Feist razzle dazzles McCarren Park

A tad late for the wrap up, but Wednesday night was the Feist show in McCarren Park. Wow, what can I say—I love Leslie Feist. Just after sunset, she took the stage, and draped her silver sequined arm band over the microphone. She proudly showed off her new acoustic guitar and asked the crowd to help her name it, and promised she’ll call her guitar this name for the rest of its time on earth. After she said she would take suggestions via paper airplanes, Sofiblu ended up relaying airplanes towards the front of the audience for a bit of the night. The best name someone recommended was “McCarren.” Of course, if you’re going to play in front of thousands of New Yorkers, you gotta show Brooklyn some love.

Although she didn’t play my two favorite songs, "One Evening", and "How My Heart Behaves", I really enjoyed “Limit to your love,” ‘Sea Lion Woman” (which really got the crowd going), and the demo version of “Leisure Suite.” She said she recently found the four track demos so she and the band re-taught themselves this version. Recordings don’t do her justice. She sounds so amazing live, and her charm just rolls off the stage lik ripples in a sea of cigarette smoke.

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Feist- Leisure Suite (demo version)

Feist- Leisure Suite (album version)
(Buy Let It Die)








Feist did an interview with Index Magazine about two years ago. She discussed her songwriting, and mentions Canadian girls.

“I love how Canadian girls manage to look totally hot in their enormous parkas. In Canada, it’s not about fishnets and heels, or other fantasy female stuff. Canadian girls are stalwarts---ruddy and healthy.”

I’m sure she’s just itching to work her parka this winter.

Raveonettes Demos

The Raveonettes have new songs up on their MySpace. On their last albums, the Danish duo melded retro fifties pop with punk friendly guitars. Although I wasn't a fan of their cover of The Angels' My Boyfriend's Back, the single "Love in a Trashcan" more than made up for it. It's has one of the slickest, coolest guitar riffs I've ever heard.

Of their new songs, “Lust” is my favorite. I’m a sucker for a brooding bass and dark beats. It seems like their new material peels off the heavy punk aspect that was more noticeable on the first couple of albums and is instead moving towards a sparser sound. They’ve also scaled back band-wise. Their current tour consists of Sharin and Sune, with the addition of one female drummer.

I’m really excited for their show at Bowery Ballroom on October 12. I’ve always wanted to see them live. They are also playing Southpaw in Brooklyn on October 10th.

The Raveonettes perform “Lust” at the Detroit Bar in California:
(It looks like it was filmed by a fan in the audience, so the video quality is not so great, but the sound is surprisingly good.)

I hear with my little ear...

On Wednesday, I'm going to McCarren Park Pool to see Feist, along with about a thousand of her other closest friends. The “pool” is this crazy huge swimming area that’s been drained to accommodate happy concert goers—like me.

Although I love the energy that comes from huge venues like this one, small and intimate shows are what I hold closest to my heart. It’s the same way I feel about dinner parties. Why have 20 people come to dinner and speak to each person for a few minutes, when you can have five people huddled around a table, deep in conversation, wine glasses emptied, and refilled by the people who make you laugh so hard your cheeks hurt?

So while I look forward to the show on Wednesday, I kind of wish I was in Toronto when Feist picked up her guitar, and probably a milk crate or something, and did a live, intimate street side performance for NXNE in 2004. It’s like you and Feist, and the random happenings of the city. I’m having fun figuring out the little noises in the background, but Mushaboom lets your imagination run a litlte.

What do you hear?

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Feist- Mushaboom (live at NXNE, 2004)

Locksley, Ra Ra Riot @ Studio B

On Saturday, a couple of friends and I went back to Brooklyn to check out After the Jump Fest, a full day music event which aims to raise money for music education. This was my first time at Studio B, which I think is the perfect place to host dances— the indie rocker’s dream prom. Clearly, I was loving the disco ball.

We were there mainly to see Locksley and Ra Ra Riot. But as the day progressed we ended up inhaling cookies and coffee from the sweets truck parked outside. I was probably more partial to Locksley whose music jams incredible upbeat rockability in every song. They were really quite charming, and in honor of music education, even pulled two people from the crowd to play guitar and tambourine with them.

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-- Kal, teaching a fan the chords

-- Jamming with Locksley

This tune has the potential for a crowd sing-along:

Locksley- Why Not Me (link expired)

(Buy Don't Make Me Wait)

Ra Ra Riot hail from Syracuse, and seem like a group of friends who just enjoy playing together. The girls who played cello and violin were selling their band’s merchandise after the show. Un-jaded young musicians are always a pleasure.

Sofiblu and I will be seeing them again on Sept. 7th when they open for The Editors at Webster Hall.

Slow down.

On our way to Rumsey Playfield last evening, a friend and I passed two men wearing Aaliyah t-shirts. It didn’t even occur to me till much later that it was six years to yesterday that she died in a plane crash.

In six years, a lot has changed. Mothers who had infants, now have little children. Students who left behind high school, have traded school bags for cubicles. Friends became lovers, lovers are now husband and wife.

When people honor a memory, it makes the world slow down. How much has changed in your life?

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Aaliyah- I Miss You
(From I Care 4 U)