Heaven: literally

Luna Lounge: Ghosts I've Met

I've been meaning to check out the new Luna Lounge in Williamsburg since they opened, but haven't really felt the pull to go out there until this last Saturday night. With a dear out-of-town friend in tow, I headed out to check out the space and to see Ghosts I've Met.

To preface: I had never heard any music from this band, other than what was showcased on their MySpace, but had read an interesting article about them that made me want to check them out. My memory fails, per usual, about the exact place I read this article but since the show had been in my calendar for a couple of weeks it's safe say it was a while ago. At any rate, my true motivation for going was when HT recommended them to me as well.

The long and the short of it: the venue is not my favorite. It's pretty cavernous and the sound is way too loud and somewhat echo-y. I would go back if I knew the show is guaranteed to have more bodies there to absorb the sound (Saturday's show was an early one, so attendance was pretty low). But the music was nice: GIM is comprised of 4 very talented musicians who understand the slow-rock/alt-country territory very well. I picked up a CD and will give it a couple turns to see if it stands up.

We've Got A Lot to Be Glad For: Rock Plaza Central and Bishop Allen

Last Friday night I took my little lonesome down to the South Street Seaport to catch a couple bands that I am totally excited about: Rock Plaza Central and Bishop Allen.

My discovery of Rock Plaza was a bit inadvertent: I had read about them on Pitchfork (I think their recent album was included in Pitchfork's 50 Best of 2006 list, but I'm too lazy to check right now) and had thought " huh. they sound like a band that I would like to see". I even bookmarked their website to remind myself! Aaaannd....there they lingered for months: I totally forgot about them. But I was incredibly delighted to find out that this cool-sounding-band-that-I-totally-forgot-about was an opener one night I was at the Merc. And they were awesome that night. I'm sure they get this a lot, but there is a Neutral Milk Hotel association that comes to mind when I hear these guys, which might give you an idea of the level of energy these guys put in to a show and get in return from the crowd. They, at any rate, write songs about mechanical horses that were built by humans to battle Angels for dominance of the earth and who, after a time, begin to question the side that they are on.

I saw them once again at the Merc after that first show and was once again really impressed by their energy and force. The Seaport show, however, didn't really meet the levels of those two prior shows. I think that the setting, rather than the band, was at fault for this particular performance: the Seaport setting (especially in the early slot before the sun set) wasn't really the ideal setting for mechanical horse existential wanderings. So, while I think the music suffered for it, the enthusiasm of the band never waned throughout the performance. I will totally check them out next time they are back in town.

Bishop Allen is a band that I was introduced to a couple years back by a friend and I have always thought that they were fun. Witty songs that are also musically interesting seem to be their calling card. Last Friday, however, it dawned on me that BA might be making the move from an band I smile with to a band that I can full-on rock to. It was really exciting, and I can't wait to see them again next month at the Bowery. I"ll save more in-depth ruminations for a later post at that time.

Voldemort Can't Stop the Rock: Harry and the Potters

So last night I totally let my inner nerd out to play. Thanks to a tip from blogger EH, I made the voyage out the the Bohemian Beer Garden in Astoria, Queens, to see Harry and the Potters. Man was that fun! And I'm not kidding: the songs were uber-silly but rockin' (you can check out an example here), and you really can't beat the beer and food at the Bohemian.

However, while I hate to admit it to poor Harry, the show last night was totally stolen by Draco and the Malfoys. The insider references were spot on with these guys (the song Hippogriffs Deserve to Die was priceless) and the music was more than just a backdrop for the lryics. Speaking of, check this out! I'd totally see them again.

But the best part of last nights show wasn't even the music but the kids in the crowd: the unabashed coolness of being nerdy was really awe inspiring. I mean, I'm sure we've all been around (and perhaps been a part of) groups of hipsters that front themselves in that nerdy-cool sort of way. But last night was a completely different type of experience: these kids were genuine nerds and they were genuinely cool.

And speaking of genuinely cool, check out the Harry Potter Alliance. Their representative at the show, Andrew, is a kid that grew up with Harry Potter and is motivating fans and people of his generation to take the lessons of courage and love taught through the books out into the real world in the form of activism against genocide, poverty and environmental abuse. I only wish I was so cool as a kid.

Who doesn't need a blueberry casserole?

I want one. Really bad.

Decemberists: Summerstage

I heart the Decemberists. I think they are one of the few bands that can get a crowd of New Yorkers to act like an angry whale. Not to mention successfully encouraging them to sit down in the middle of a set and pretend they are asleep.

The show last night was great: they opened (appropriately) with July July and closed with an awesome version of The Mariner, which included humorous enactments from the band while the crowd bellowed like a whale. Awesome.

I was a little apprehensive about going to the show, I'll admit. The only other time I've seen them was in a tiny venue in I-Town and I was concerned that they wouldn't be able to pull off the same intensity at a larger venue. But I am pleased to admit that I was wrong: the band managed to be simultaneously energetic and intimate, despite the larger space. AND the surrounding trees of Central Park combined with the amazing weather were like icing on the cake.

**Many thanks to tixgirl on flickr for this great picture of last night's show: it is practically the exact view that I had of the stage myself. You can see more of her pictures here.