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Pub Ass photos by Fred Pessaro, Sycamore pics courtesy of Ditmas Park Corner

"So great that I made it for The National's concert. Really small venue and great vibe. Highlight of the day. #NationalTrouble" - Alejandro Masferrer

"brah I'm just so fuckin hyped to watch the NATIONAL GEOGRAPHY BEE!!!" - Nic

It was a flurry of activity for Brooklyn indie stalwarts The National today. Not only did they release their great and critically-acclaimed new album, Trouble Will Find Me, but they also announced, this morning, that they'd be celebrating it with three tiny NYC club shows in one day, today. Around noon they played a free show at super-tiny Sycamore in Ditmas park. They then packed up their gear and headed to Williamsburg to play the also-very-small back room at Public Assembly (which, like the front room, will soon be closed for renovations). Pictures from Sycamore and Public Assembly, which just finished, are in this post, PA setlist included. If you got in, what time did you get there and did you wait in line?

The band, who kicked off their tour the other day in Ithaca and were on Letterman last night, will play again at Mercury Lounge tonight at 10 PM. (How many of you were able to get tickets?) Clearly these guys don't have a problem with long days. As mentioned, for those who couldn't make it to any of their release celebr...

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Before his meme-worthy, high-flying performance at the Billboard Music Awards, the Grammy winner set a timetable for his next releases.

First announced last month, Miguel has planned another series of Art Dealer Chic EPs. The initial triptych hinted at what would come on Kaleidoscope Dream, and like that series, the new three EP series will be freely available online.

“It’ll be under Art Dealer Chic. It’ll be the next three installments

The Dungeon Family crew reveal the lead single from their first album since 2004.

Described by Cee Lo as “Public Enemy on acid,” Goodie Mob’s Age Against the Machine is due out on August 27. Judging by lead single ‘Special Education’, it may be more accurately described as “Public Enemy on Skrillex.” Each member gets a chance to shine over a wobbly, glitched-out beat, with guest vocalist Janelle Monae singing the (somewhat incongruous) chorus.

Listen to ‘Special Education’ below. Cee Lo recently announced plans to document Goodie Mob’s reunion in a TBS reality show.

by Bill Pearis

As mentioned, Kisses (Jesse Kivel of Princeton and Zinzi Edmundson) just released their second album, Kids in LA, via the Cascine label. Mining '80s synthpop sounds, the duo have a strong sense of songcraft and the record (produced by Saint Etienne's Pete Wiggs) makes for great light summer listening. You can stream the whole thing below.

Kivel also features on "Borderline" from the new Classixx album (they play LPR next month) and you can stream that track below too.

You can catch Kisses and a few of their labelmates (including Selebrities, Rush Midnight and Chad Valley) at the Cascine/New Town Radio Northside Festival Showcase on June 13 at Cameo. Tickets are still available.

If you can't make that show, Kisses will be back in NYC a month or so after to play Mercury Lounge on July 19. Tickets to that show go on on AmEx presale on Wednesday (5/22) at 10 AM with the regular on-sale happening Friday (5/24) at noon. Kisses have a few other East Coast dates as well which are listed below.

Continue reading "Kisses released 'Kids in LA' (stream it), add tour dates" at brooklynvegan

Words like “party metal,” and “beer metal” come to mind when talking about Kvelertak, Norway’s black ‘n’ roll export, but a more accurate descriptor would be “sweat metal.” Or, if we we’re really going for accuracy, “fluid metal,” because it wasn’t just sweat that was soaking the stage and crowd at the Kvelertak show on Friday night. The band played the Studio At Webster Hall, a claustrophobic basement under Webster Hall Proper in New York’s East Village that always seems to be more packed than any fire marshal could ever allow. They were in town for a sold-out show in support of their well-received new album, Meir, and they brought the waterworks.

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Nashville rockers Diarrhea Planet, the only act our own Alex Young may love as much as Kanye West, have released “Separations”, the lead single off their forthcoming sophomore LP, I’m Rich Beyond Your Wildest Dreams. While the band’s four guitarists usually bring enough ferocity to level a city block, this latest cut is a little more subdued, a grimy pop-punk ballad of low, rumbling riffs, shouting harmonies, and lead vocals like singer’s purposefully trying to make his throat bleed.

I’m Rich Beyond Your Wildest Dreams is due out sometime this summer via Infinity Cat. The line starts behind Mr. Young.

Relive reason #44 why the band both rock and roll by catching the replay of their recent cover of “Born To Run” alongside Titus Andronicus’ Patrick Stickles.

Even if your entire existence was nothing but a thought in the back of someone

Since 2011′s double dose of Wit’s End and Humor Risk, the output from singer-songwriter Cass McCombs has been relegated to just a few singles (the poignant “If You Loved Me Before” and the “Bradley Manning” tribute single).

This summer, he’ll continue with another one-off release in “Three Men Sitting On A Hollow Log”, part of a split 7″ with fellow troubadour Michael Hurley. McCombs’ latest is slightly more rollicking than his recent fare, with his folksy drawl just a singin’ some words that Pete Seeger might be fond of over some jolly interplay between an electric and an acoustic guitar. Listen in below.

[soundcloud url="http://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/92730814" params="" width=" 100%" height="166" iframe="true" /]

McCombs’ “Three Men Sitting On A Hollow Log” b/w Hurley

As mentioned, Peter Hook and his band The Light have moved on from performing Joy Division albums in full to now doing the first two New Order albums, 1981's Movement and 1983's Power, Corruption and Lies. He actually sang lead on two Movement songs, so maybe it's slightly less outrageous as it first sounds. He's just announced a North American tour of that which stops in NYC on September 13 at Webster Hall. Tickets for that show go on sale Wednesday (5/22) at noon.

Meanwhile, his former bandmates are touring as actual New Order this summer, including their NYC stop at Williamsburg Park on July 24 with Holy Ghost! Tickets to that show are still available.

All Peter Hook & the Light tour dates are listed below.

Continue reading "Peter Hook & the Light performing New Order's 'Movement' and 'Power, Corruption & Lies' on tour (dates)" at brooklynvegan