At Dia:Beacon, they have a whole room with a series of paintings by Andy Warhol. Shadows consists of 102 paintings that are hung edge-to-edge around the whole room. Warhold said that Shadows was actually "one painting with...parts."

Posted by tien mao in Concerts/Music, Photos at 4:49 PM

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Coldplay took the stage at a packed Madison Square Garden for their final free show on Monday night. The group played many of its songs from their new album, Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends, as well as several previous hit songs.

Working out the kinks in only the fourth performance of the new material, lead singer Chris Martin joked several times about the quality of the band's performance "We come over here, we steal your women and we can't even play one song," Martin joked. With concert goers given free tickets, Martin said that there would be no complaints about ticket prices.

In addition to playing "plugged" and acoustic sets on the stage, the entire band took to one of the concourses at The Garden to play a two-song acoustic set, which included "Yellow". They concluded the concert with a confetti filled performance of "Lovers in Japan".

Much thanks to Kathryn for hooking up the free tickets to the free show.

Posted by tien mao in Concerts/Music, NYC, Photos at 5:51 PM

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Over the weekend, Shannan and I went to see Fuerzabruta, the new-ish performance by the people behind De La Guarda. The show consists of the same dancing, yelling, and some similar aerial tricks as De La Guarda, but I didn't think it was great like the older show. Fuerzabruta also featured a random story line of a guy running on a treadmill and getting hit with foam/cardboard walls (I found this kind of boring). What is cool is the water pool that drops down from the ceiling of the theater, the energizing music parts, and the dance club feel at points (not that I like dance clubs).

I would say that the Times review summarizes the show pretty well. I would say that it was good, not great, and not nearly as good as De La Guarda.

Posted by tien mao in Concerts/Music, Culture, NYC, Photos at 3:27 PM

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Last night, we went with my parents to see the Radio City Christmas Spectacular. With my new, youthful haircut, it made sense to sit in a crowd with all the other children. But seriously, The Rockettes were amazing. But I could have done without the dancing bears, the Santa Claus mumbo jumbo (though the dancing Santas were entertaining), and the Jesus story. Just make the show 100% Rockettes exhausting themselves for an hour and I think you've got a hit!

Then again, they've been doing it for 75 years, so they probably won't listen to me.

Posted by tien mao in Concerts/Music, Culture, NYC, Photos at 3:50 PM

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In the Spring Street entrance for the C/E, there's a mosaic in the stairwell as you enter the station. It was made over the course of a year by Edith Kramer using glass, marble, granite, slate, brick, and ceramic tile.

To my expert eye, it looks like the downtown 4/5/6 platform at 14th St.-Union Square to me.

Posted by tien mao in Concerts/Music, NYC, Photos at 2:34 PM

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Last night at The Garden, besides many bitches and hos, there were two block parties. There was Bloc Party at the WaMu Theater (what a horrible name) and the La Kalle Block Party Concert 2007 at the arena, making for a somewhat confusing evening. It even led to Garden security to say, "this entrance is for the English group 'Bloc party.'" Kele Okereke even made mention of the dual bloc(k) parties at The Garden during the show.

Posted by tien mao in Concerts/Music, NYC, Photos at 12:23 PM

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Sunday was the last Pool Party at McCarren Park Pool in Greenpoint this year and possibly ever. Performing was one man show Yacht, who stopped his performance at one point to take Q&A and got into the crowd to perform; The Baltimore Bass Connection with The Cool Kids, Kid Sister, Santo Gold, Spank Rock, and Amanda Blank; and Ghostland Observatory, who are awesome.

Posted by tien mao in Concerts/Music, NYC, Photos at 10:35 AM

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I've been pretty busy using my camera for the past few days, so I'm going to go in order of event.

Thursday was the 2007 U.S. Air Guitar Championship at Irving Plaza (now dubbed Fillmore New York - guh) where contestants vied to represent the United States at the World Air Guitar Championships in Oulu, Finland. 2006 champion Hott Lixx Hulahan was defeated by William Ocean, who came in 2nd last year.

See also: Last year's championship at Bowery Ballroom

Posted by tien mao in Concerts/Music, NYC, Photos at 8:54 AM

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From yesterday's Pool Parties at McCarren Park Pool in Greenpoint (I think it's Greeenpoint). Performing were Oxford Collapse (myspace, Annuals (myspace, and Band of Horses (myspace).

Posted by tien mao in Concerts/Music, NYC, Photos at 9:04 AM

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Oh how McCarren Pool has changed. It's current incarnation is as a concert venue where I caught the Sonic Youth/Yeah Yeah Yeahs concert last Friday (I barely saw Sonic Youth). I thought the show Friday was better than the one at Roseland earlier this year, but that might be because of my fondness for the pool. It seems like most of that crackling blue paint on the bottom of the pool seems to coming off.

Previously on McCarren Pool:
- McCarren Pool 1
- McCarren Pool 2
- Agora at McCarren Pool

Posted by tien mao in Concerts/Music, Photos at 8:05 AM

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Friday night after hitting up the NYC Photoblogger show, I went to Galapagos in Williamsburg to check out The Flanks. Apparently, I missed a performance of Point Break (in play form), which was right before The Flanks. I had previously seen The Flanks at BBQ NYC.

Posted by tien mao in Concerts/Music at 7:59 AM

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Last night I caught U2 for the second time this year (the first being in May in New Jersey) on their Vertigo tour. The show last night was their 8th (!!) show in New York on this tour - one on the first leg, five in October, and two in November with last night's being the last. Bono said it, but it's obvious that U2 loves New York.

- Setlist from last night's show

Posted by tien mao in Concerts/Music at 8:08 AM

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Last night, Calvin and I headed over to the Cutting Room to see a show that Andy was promoting as part of the Verge Music Tour. We didn't get a chance to check out the opening act, but we did catch Wayne Hsu and most of The Ken Oak Band's set.

It's good to see Ken Oak putting that cello to use. There's nothing quite like taking an instument that your parents made you learn and saying, "HA! I'm not going to be a doctor! I'm going to be an artist!" Okay, maybe that's not how it actually happened, but just how I picture it.

Posted by tien mao in Concerts/Music at 10:16 AM

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Friday night, I went to the Beck show at Hammerstein to see him for the 2nd time in less than a week. I think that the show was considerably better than the one at Keyspan Park. It was mostly the crowd that was better, but the sound certainly wasn't as good. The coolest difference between the shows was that they had a HUGE drop-down boombox Friday that came down during one of the shows.

One of my most vivid memories of Beck dates back to college though. During the first few days of freshman year, I remember walking back into the dorm while everyone was still moving in to the sounds of Beck. Not just playing in the background, but blasting in the background right next to my room. What do I see when I pass the room? A shirtless guy in shorts with a Florida (University of) hat on singing to the music and kind of dancing in his room.

Needless to say, whenever I hear Devil's Haircut, I am reminded of freshman year of college. Why nothing else from that album? Because that was his favorite song off the album and he was always listening to it. Always really loud too. Good times, good damn times.

I've put a few clips from the Brooklyn show up now. Be sure to check out the E-Pro clip as there is a great dancing guy that was on the left of the stage

Posted by tien mao in Concerts/Music at 3:17 PM

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Went to the Across the Narrows concert at Keyspan Park yesterday. I only caught the last three acts, The Polyphonic Spree, Belle and Sebastian, and Beck. The Polyphonic Spree were dressed in a cult-like Charlie Brown gospel outfits.

Beck was awesome, but I'm too tired to write more. I'm seeing him again later this week too, so I might have more to say then. Maybe some clips here tomorrow too.

Clips from the show:
- Girl (2:04, 5.1 mb)
- Devil's Haircut (1:01, 1.8 mb)
- Clap Hands (23 sec, 672 kb)
- E-Pro (1:17, 3.4 mb)
- Loser (1:04, 2 mb)
- Where it's At (1:05, 2 mb)

Posted by tien mao in Concerts/Music at 8:05 AM

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I recently ordered the limited edition Public Works box set from DJ Shadow / Obey Giant. It's pretty pricey at $169.99, but it comes with five shirts designed by Shepard Fairey, a full length mix CD from Shadow, a book of Fairey's work, and a bunch of stickers and pins. So maybe with all that stuff $170 seems kind of reasonable, especially when you consider the "Grim Reaper World Tour" shirt (featuring George Bush as the Grim Reaper) is limited to a run of 450.

More information:
- Public Works, official site
- Dan Dickinson on "Inside DJ Shadow's 'Public Works'"

Posted by tien mao in Concerts/Music at 8:10 AM

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Last night, I finally went to McCarren Pool to see Agora. While I wanted to see the dance, one of the big reasons I headed to McCarren was to see what changes were made to the pool. When I went to the pool in July, there was graffiti on the walls and overgrown weeds. What a complete change. All the graffiti outside the pool was gone, no more weeds, and it was clean.

It was interesting how the show was choreographed in the 50,000 square foot pool. So few dancers, so much space. There were no bad seats, but also not really any great seats. But I'm glad I went.

Jake went a couple nights ago and also has some pictures.

Posted by tien mao in Concerts/Music, Photos at 10:55 AM

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Last night, I went to Webster Hall to check out one of the 2005 CMJ Music Marathon shows. I mainly wanted to catch the Blackalicious performance and that was pretty much the only group I followed that performed last night. I came away with a good impression of Lady Sovereign and Aesop Rock (with Mr. Lif) though.

And in case you were wondering, Mr. Lif's hair took 10 years to grow.

I previously saw Blackalicious perform last year with the Quannum Tour (wow, check out that 2MP camera goodness!).

Posted by tien mao in Concerts/Music at 12:16 PM

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At Saturday's BBQ NYC, The Flanks were performing. What are The Flanks, you ask? Why it's a country jug band. What's that? Well, Margaret Mitchell explains it all in her Gothamist interview. They were quite entertaining, but there was one problem, I couldn't really hear them unless I stood right in front of them.

Country music in New York, why that's unpossible!

Posted by tien mao in Concerts/Music at 7:25 AM

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Last night, I stopped by for a bit at Movable Hype 4.0. I only saw Langhorn Slim, but he was pretty good. He got the crowd going and people actually started dancing. I can't say that I've seen that before at a Movable Hype.

Posted by tien mao in Concerts/Music at 7:58 AM

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Last night was the Nike Run Hit Wonder race in Central Park, which I headed over to check out. I'm sure you're thinking, "wait, you went to run?!?" No, no. Moral support and to check out the scene. The 5 mile run featured warm up music by The Donnas, and music along the course by Chingy, Nina Sky, the Fountains of Wayne, and Z-Trip. Joan Jett was the post race performer, which is actually the only musical act I saw.

I really wanted to check out Z-Trip, but he was all the way at the bottom of the course and I probably would have missed him had I gone to check him out. It's almost as if I had to run to go listen to him spin. So unreasonable.

Posted by tien mao in Concerts/Music, Sports at 7:49 AM

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Last night, I went to Continental Airlines Arena to watch U2 on their Vertigo tour. It seems that any U2 concert you go to is at least visually stunning (even Pop Mart was visually appealing). Despite the visual awesomeness of the concert, I must say that it wasn't as good as the Elevation Tour back in 2001. It was good, just not awesome.

I would write more, but it was a late night so I'll just leave you with some pictures and clips. Oh, and I should add that picture #3 is of people holding up their phones.

Clips from the show:
- Vertigo (first set, 1:55, 5 mb .mov file)
- Sunday, Bloody Sunday (2:59, 3.5 mb .mov file)
- Sunday, Bloody Sunday (1:52, 3.6 mb .mov file)
- Mysterious Ways (1:32, 2.4 mb .mov file)
- Vertigo (encore, :30, 746 kb .mov file )

More information:
- Setlist from the 5.17.05 show

Posted by tien mao in Concerts/Music at 8:05 AM

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Who would win this epic match-up? I kind of view the two singers as the same thing. Old, not really for my time, each with some catchy tunes and a seemingly cult following. If they were younger, would they clash like Biggie and 2Pac once did? Sleeping with the other's wife? Or would they croon about the other with disparaging words like Jay-Z and Nas. More recently, would it be like the new rivalry between 50 Cent and The Game.

Then again, after taking a look at their song lyrics, there doesn't seem to be much anger in them at all, let alone between each other. But, oh, what could have been. Both born in New York, and a mere two years apart. Did they run in rival circles? Were they friends? Are they friends now?

I'm going to say that Diamond would win. He's more successful (I think anyway) and he's got an inch on Manilow. 1" = a lot of ass whooping.

Posted by tien mao in Concerts/Music at 7:56 AM

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Because I was curious as to how Lindsay Lohan's first "live" performance would go, I recorded part of Good Morning America yesterday so I could watch her singing later in the day. Not that I really expected her to sing or anything, but she did a decent job of lip synching for her first live performance. I only noticed two obvious miscues in the performance.

Lucky for her, she kind of knows how to conceal it with head turns, pole mic stand moves, and various other dance moves.

Here is a short clip (as in 3 seconds) of her first flub. You can hear the singing start, but she's just raising her head up at that time. Didn't we learn anything from Ashleygate? Yes, make sure the band plays the right song.

Posted by tien mao in Concerts/Music, TV at 7:58 AM

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Is it strange that the factory workers are listening to "I'm Every Woman" right now? Okay, maybe it's on the radio or something, but still...there has to be something better than that. It's almost like the episode of The Simpsons (Homer Phobia - 4F11)where Homer wants to make Bart more manly and takes him to the steel mill where everyone is gay. Classic stuff.

From SNPP:

Homer: Bart, I want you to shake hands with -- what's your name, fella?
Roscoe: Roscoe.
Homer: Roscoe here runs this mill. He's gonna show us around to let you get a first-hand look at real all-American Joes doing what they do best.
Bart: Why the hell would I wanna see that?
Homer: [sotto voce] You'll thank me on your wedding night.

A bunch of men are working in the mill when Roscoe, Homer and Bart
walk in.

Roscoe: [to all] Hey! Listen up! I want all of youse to say hello to the Simpsons.
All: [waving in a cliche, sissy-like attitude] Hello-o.
Homer: [gasps] Has the whole world gone insane?!
Worker: [sissy-like] Stand still, there's a spark in your hair!
Worker: Get it! Get it!
Homer: [whimpers] [another guy walks past Homer holding a vat of hot steel in hot pants]
Worker: Hot stuff, comin' through!
Homer: [screams]
Bart: Dad, why'd you bring me to a gay steel mill?
Homer: [frightened] I don't know! This is a NIGHTMARE! YOU'RE ALL SICK!
Worker: [waving his hand] Oh be nice!
Homer: Oh! My son doesn't stand a chance! The whole world's gone gay! [a whistle goes off] Oh my god! What's happening now?
Roscoe: We work hard. We play hard. [pulls a chain] ["Everybody Dance Now" starts playing]

Posted by tien mao in Concerts/Music at 4:43 PM

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Last night, I went to check out the oft-promoted Movable Hype concert, presented by Gothamist, at The Knitting Factory. Playing at the concert was The Fresh (not pictured), Sons of Sound (first picture), Snowden (second picture), and Asobi Seksu (pictures three-eight). A whole bunch of bands that I've never listened to, but what the hey. Had a few drinks, listened to some tunes, tapped my toes and bobbed my head.

I wasn't entirely sure that I would be able to last the entire show, what with the booze, tiredness, and recent sickness, but I'm glad that I did. While I enjoyed all the bands, I'm particularly happy that I stuck around for Asobi Seksu (playful sex, in Japanese). I'm not entirely sure why I liked them so much. Maybe it was Yuki, the lead singer, and her short skirt, or maybe because they seem to live in Greenpoint.

- Youngna on "Movable Hype" (check out her extreme closeups)
- WhatISee on "Movable Hype"
- Brooklyn Vegan on "Movable Hype or..."
- Jen on "now what?"
- Gothamist on "A Movable Hype Thank You"
- Jake on "Movable Hype Slow Synchro Flash"

Posted by tien mao in Concerts/Music at 7:43 AM

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Has anyone else been watching TV recently when you hear Franz Ferdinand blaring during a commercial? Well, if you're watching Fox, this may occur with more frequency than not. It seems that both Fox and SAAB have chosen Franz Ferdinand's "Better on Holiday" as the soundtrack for their commercials. Fox for their postseason baseball coverage and SAAB for their new SUV.

Nothing like hearing peppy music during the commercial breaks. Who needs iTunes? One curious thing I've noticed is that I don't ever remember seeing the SAAB ads on Fox during baseball or at any other times. I wonder if this was a concerted effort or if that's just not SAAB's target audience.

Semi related, I went to the Franz Ferdinand concert back in September.

Posted by tien mao in Concerts/Music at 9:18 AM

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Last night, I went to catch the Beastie Boys at Madison Square Garden, which some might call a homecoming. The concert supplants the Foo Fighters concert I previously went to as the best concert I've ever been to. Hard to believe since the concert was at MSG, but it was amazing.

They played for about an hour and half, with songs from their newest album (about 4) and lots of songs from the past. They also had an instrumental set, which was a nice time to relax. For their encore, they came up into the crowd and performed from around section 226...where I happened to be sitting!!! Ad Rock, MCA and Mike D were no more than 3 feet from me. It was pure insanity. We got on the seats, excitedly sang along, and threw our hands in the air (all causes for the horrible photos).

Apparently, they were also filming a DVD of the show for sale later, which I think I'll have to buy. Big ups to random ticket assignments, the Beasties and friendly neighbors for sharing.

- Setlist from the show

Clips from the show:
- Triple Trouble (272 kb .mov file)
- Sure Shot (576 kb .mov file)
- Shake Your Rump (520 kb .mov file)
- An Open Letter to NYC (588 kb .mov file)
- Brass Monkey (480 kb .mov file)
- So What'cha Want (528 kb .mov file)

Posted by tien mao in Concerts/Music at 3:58 PM

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Friday night, Johnny and I went to one of MoveOn's Vote for Change concerts with Pearl Jam and Death Cab for Cutie. The series of concerts featuring all sorts of artists (from the Dixie Chicks to Jurassic 5) from MoveOn is designed as a way to reach scores of voters the swing states including Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan, Iowa, Missouri, Wisconsin and Florida. The different groups hit different parts of the same state on one day before moving onto the next swing state. Last night was the first day of concerts. While the concept of reaching undecided voters in these states with some great music is great, you have to wonder if the people are coming for the bands or for the political message. I'm not one to argue that changing one voter's mind doesn't matter, but you kind of wonder if hearing a musician talk about it will really have an effect. The great thing is that - at least at the concert I was at - Pearl Jam was really encouraging people to vote without being too partisan. Wait, that doesn't sound right. Pearl Jam was really encouraging people to vote and was slightly partisan, but never mentioned who they were going to vote for or a candidates name.

As the last time I went to a Pearl Jam concert, they were again awesome. Johnny was saying how Pearl Jam has the some of the greatest fans - and with the response and crowd participation in their concerts, it's really hard to argue with.

While I expected some politicking, the best line of the night was Eddie Vedder's message for undecided voters. Something along the lines of "People that are undecided are stupid and I have the perfect example. Mullets. Long or short, make a decision." Simple, no?

A few random notes/thought about the night. Reading is a bitch to get to. The police there also don't know anything about directing traffic. Talk about making a town a pain in the ass to get to. Tim Robbins is a pretty bad singer and dancer (not that I'm one to talk), despite not really being able to hear him. When he came on stage, I thought I heard a few "Stuyvesant! Stuyvesant!" chants.

After the concert was over, Johnny and I made the best concert exit ever. Our car was parked on the 5th level of the parking complex, but the exit for the lot happened to be across from the arena and the entrance happened to be right next to our gate. Because JK is such an astute PJ fan, he knows they end with Yellow Ledbetter. After hearing the song, we bolted to the car and we were out in less than 5 minutes. Best exit EVER!! Why the rush? We had an appointment with some casinos in Atlantic City...

Posted by tien mao in Concerts/Music at 3:00 PM

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Last night, I went to check out Franz Ferdinand at Roseland, a big venue for a group from Glasgow with one album. Despite the lack of material, Franz did know how to - sigh - rock. They had energy and were nice and loud. What more can you ask for in a show? Perhaps some entertaining members? Check. Nicolas was pretty amusing with his marching to keep the beat and his hummingbird like right hand.

One feeling I did have is that the venue was almost too large for them and not perfect for them at this stage in their careers. I think it's okay to play for an hour when you're in a small venue, but one hour at a place like Roseland seems kind of lacking to me. That and their strange bow at the end. It was like a elementary school play. Perhaps that's part of their charm. If you're wondering what they played - just take a look at the album. I believe they played one "new" song.

The crappy clips:
- Clip of "Better on Holiday" (1010 kb .mov file)
- Clip of "Take Me Out" (884 kb .mov file)

Posted by tien mao in Concerts/Music at 7:49 AM

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Looks like the Madden 2005 full court press is on. They're appearing everywhere, here, the iTunes store, everywhere. It seems like it's a pretty "clean" album, with only one song having a notation that its clean.

The following songs appear on the album:
Last Day of School by Wylde Bunch / This Disaster by New Found Glory / Wait by Earshot / Saturday Night by Ozomatli / Yung Wun Anthem (clean) by Yung Wun / Fool the World by Hazen Street / Give It Up by Midtown / Two-Timing Touch and Broken Bones by The Hives / Alive & Amplified by The Moony Suzuki / From Out of Nowhere by Faith No More and Take Me Out by Franz Ferdinand.

I kind of wonder if appearing on a Madden soundtrack is like "jumping the shark", but then you have to remember how popular the Madden franchise is. Being on the soundtrack could open up new opportunities for the artists, exposing them to a huge range of people.

Posted by tien mao in Concerts/Music at 7:29 AM

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I can't really say that I'm much a Phishhead but Johnny and I went to the Phish concert last night at Keyspan Park. Let's just say it was an interesting night. The evening started with a couple of hot dogs from Nathan's and a hilarious incident where a concert attendee was splashed with a drink as he was waiting to cross the street. Security was so tight slow that we missed the first two songs of the show.

After finally getting inside, I marveled at the scene - it was like no other concert I've been to. The first song or two, I was just taking in the atmosphere, but after it hit me, I understood why Phish concerts, even if you're not a fan of theirs, can be so enjoyable. Keyspan also has this remarkable smoke system that seems to form flumes of smoke all over the field. Quite remarkable. Over the course of the concert, I recognized two songs - both by Brooklyn native and special guest, Jay-Z. He performed "99 Problems" and "Big Pimpin'". That was great and very unexpected. After that, Trey joked by saying, "Ladies and gentlemen, Eric Clapton...just kidding!"

I ended the night by eating two more hot dogs. There's nothing quite like eating 4 hot dogs in the span of 4 hours. There may have been some chili cheese fries as well...yikes.

- Setlist from last night's show.
- Clips of the Jay-Z performance. (1.5 mb .mov file)

Posted by tien mao in Concerts/Music at 1:14 PM

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Since we're all sitting under this Reagan-passing induced haze, it's easy to miss news on Ray Charles passing away yesterday at the age of 73. This morning, after looking at the cover of The Times, I thought to myself, "at least he's on the front page and not just in the obituaries." Then I was going to just post a link to this in the Little Read Links, but then I realized that relegating Mr. Charles to that section would be like ushering his death to the obituaries.

Sadly, I never saw Mr. Charles in person, but seeing him perform on any stage was always great - except that "Wild, Wild West" performance on the MTV Music Awards the best perfomances being his renditions of "America the Beautiful".

- NY Times: Ray Charles, Bluesy Essence of Soul, Is Dead at 73
- CNN: Ray Charles dead at 73: Influential singer, pianist called 'the Genius'

Posted by tien mao in Concerts/Music at 9:13 AM

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The new Beastie Boys album, To the 5 Boroughs, comes out June 17th, but thanks to an anonymous source, I got an advance copy of the album. First impression - the songs are quiet. Quiet because the beats are low and not loud like some other songs from the Beasties. As a Beasties fan, I admit that I'm biased, I'm going to like anything they do, and I'm just happy that they are finally coming out with a new album.

As a New Yorker, I have a soft spot for them and one song on the album, "An Open Letter to NYC". This is the Beastie's "little something to show some respect" to the city that's "still livin'" after "a lot has changed, two towers down, but still in the game." So the lyrics might be a little cheesy, but how can I not love the chorus, "Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens and Staten. From the Battery to the top of Manhattan. Asian, Middle Eastern and Latin. Black, white, New York, we make it happen." Naturally, the song mentions many of the neighborhoods in New York.

Some people may call this album too political, but I see it as the evolution of the Beastie Boys. It might not be ideal for their music, but they've developed into people with strong political viewpoints. That, and I tend to agree with them, so I'm not seeing it as a political album, but an album that is about the times that we live in.

Also on the album is "Triple Trouble" which sounds a lot like "Rapper's Delight" from by SugarHill Gang.

Of course, I'll still buy the album when it comes out on the 17th.

- Previsouly on "Ch-Check It Out"

Posted by tien mao in Concerts/Music at 8:27 AM

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Last night I went to The Offspring concert at Hammerstein Ballroom. Hammerstein is thought by some to have "the best floor of any venue" and it was certainly "rocking" last night. While I had been to Hammerstein twice previously - to see the Foo Fighters and to see No Doubt - this was no doubt the wildest crowd I have experienced there. One thing that seems to be a trend is that I'll never be disappointed in Hammerstein (except with that stupid name change).

During some points of the concert, the floor was shaking, something I can't remember experiencing at Hammerstein Before. It was an absolutely wild, wild show that wrapped up the North American leg of The Offspring's tour; they previously came to New York in December. While some of the compliments from the band like "this is the best show ever," or "this is one sexy crowd," seemed transparent, I believed Dexter Holland when he said that the crowd last night was better than the one in December.

We started pretty far back on the floor, but eventually made it up to the front again. Mike got to the front row, Jason went over the top crowd surfing, and Johnny and I got three rows back. That was close enough to see that Noodles is looking old with his gray hair and he's not a fan of Bush, wearing a shirt with Bush's face that said, "Not my president." Amen!

Posted by tien mao in Concerts/Music at 9:00 AM

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Last night, The Strokes played Central Park Summerstage. Let's just say the show was awesome. The Strokes played for about 72 minutes, which covered almost all their material. Assuming an average song length of 4 minutes, and that's being generous, they probably played about 18 songs. I wasn't counting or anything, so I'm not certain on that number. There was plenty of talking between songs, taking up even more time. Nevertheless, I thought the show was awesome.

New York was the last stop their tour (they play four more "festival" shows in the U.K.), which stopped around the country. Two stops before NYC, they stopped in Boston, which Julian Casablancas recounted for the hometown crowd. During the show, he said to the Red Sox fans, "go to your laundry, pull out those red socks and shove 'em." Despite my disdain for the Yankees, I thought that was pretty funny. Several times during the concert, Casablancas said that it was nice to be home and he mentioned some of the memories he had of growing up here.

Some thoughts from the night:

- I saw 2 too many Von Dutch hats.
- I saw 1 too many "Jesus is my homeboy" hats.
- The Strokes don't need two opening bands, no matter who the bands are and how short they play.
- There were too many teens.
- KROCK had a special seating section, it was Clear Channel's venue and concert, and there were lots of fucks uttered throughout the concert.
- The headline, "Strokes Julian Casablancas and Albert Hammond Jr. dead from lung cancer" in 30 years would not be a surprise.

So are The Strokes a New York City success story? I'm going to say, "yes", but like them or not, they can certainly argue that they are.

Sorry the pictures are so grainy, but I took them at a higher ISO setting.

- Ghettolicious clip of 12:51 by The Strokes at Summerstage

Posted by tien mao in Concerts/Music at 7:39 AM

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The new Beastie Boys single "Ch-Check It Out" is now available at the iTunes Music Store. At the store, they are celebrating their first anniversary by giving away free music for a week. It looks like they are giving away one song a day from the artists in the banner above.

Incidentally, while picking the rents up at the airport, I caught the "world premiere" of Ch-Check It Out on K-Rock. It's standard Beastie Boys, but I love it. Not sure if I love it because it's a good song, or because I miss them coming out with new stuff, but I'll be buying the song via iTunes tonight. You can check out (haha) a short sample of their song on their website or through iTunes. Their new album, To the 5 Boroughs, drops this summer. Awwww yeah!

I believe you can also hear the song during The O.C. tonight. It was funny, the DJ on K-Rock said that they premiered it and "welcome to the K-Rock...bitch."

- "Ch-Check It Out" at the iTunes store

Update:
- Watch "Ch-Check It Out" video on Launch.com 10:30 am, 4.29.04
- Watch "Ch-Check It Out" from Beastie Boys site 10:16 pm, 4.30.04

Posted by tien mao in Concerts/Music at 5:10 PM

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I think I've determined that Bon Jovi's "Living on a Prayer" is quite possibly the worst song to have stuck in your head.

We've got to hold on to what we've got
'Cause it doesn't make a difference if we make it or not.

I think I heard it on the radio yesterday, and I it has been in my head non-stop. Sure, there are many songs that get stuck in your head, but this one is such a bad song! Crap!

We've got each other and that's a lot for love -
We'll give it a shot.

I even have the rhythm stuck in my head. Quick! Give me another song! Please! Anything! Maybe that stupid 867-5309 song.

We're half way there
Livin' on a prayer
Take my hand and we'll make it - I swear
Livin' on a prayer

Nope, didn't work. Crap.

Funny side note - the Bon Jovi official fan club URL is BackstageBJ.com. How funny is that?

Posted by tien mao in Concerts/Music at 9:35 AM

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Last night, I hit up the Metallica concert at Nassau Coliseum with Johnny and Mike. I had a fourth ticket, but unfortunately had to eat it. That aside, it was a great concert. Also a very, very loud concert. It wasn't so much the music that was really loud, but more that the pyrotechnics were loud and somewhat jarring at times.

For such an old band (age wise), Metallica sure knows how to "rock-out". JK points out that the set list was very old school, possibly the oldest school he's heard. The band was into it, the crowd was into it, both were into each other. Metallica should learn that lasers that are supposed to do things on the ceiling of the arena don't do well if there are rafters and the such.

Four Five things for me to keep note of if I go to another Metallica concert at Nassau:
- Grow hair out and get lots of tattoos
- Shave head and get lots of tattoos
- Learn a few more Metallica songs
- Start believing in the phrase, "Long Island, strong island!"
- Get Metallica hockey jersey to sport at concert

What a strange set of shows I've been to in the past week - N*E*R*D/Black Eyed Peas, Quannum World Tour, and now Metallica.

Posted by tien mao in Concerts/Music at 7:48 AM

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DJ Shadow and Joyo Valarde

DJ D-Sharp, Lateef, Vursatyl

Jumbo, Lyrics Born, The Gift of Gab

DJ Shadow

Lyrics Born

The Gift of Gab

Last night, I went to the Quannum World Tour 2004 show at Irving Plaza. The concert featured several Quannum artists, most notably DJ Shadow and Blackalicious. Other artists included DJ D-Sharp, The Gift of Gab, Joyo Valarde, Latyrx, Lateef & The Chief, Lifesavas and Lyrics Born. What can I say, I absolutely loved the show. It was billed as the first gathering of all the Quannum artists in on show.

It seemed like there were too many MC's on stage at times, but at other times, they worked well together. MC's included The Gift of Gab, Lyrics Born, Lateef, and the Lifesavas crew, Jumbo and Vursatyl. Several DJ's were also on hand, including DJ Shadow, Chief Xcel from Blackalicious, Rev Shines from Lifesavas, and DJ D-Sharp.

I guess the question with all that talent on stage was, "who was the best?" As far as DJ's go, I would have to go with Shadow. All the MC's were very talented, but I think The Gift of Gab and Lyrics Born were the best with Lateef impressive as well.

Clips from the show:
- Quannum Crew 1 (3.74 MB .avi)
- Quannum Crew 2 (3.72 MB .avi)
- Blackalicious (2.99 MB .avi)

More information:
- Chris was also at the show

Posted by tien mao in Concerts/Music at 9:24 AM

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I'm on the phone with Keyspan and waiting for a customer service rep. The song that I'm listening to? Baby, Baby by Amy Grant. Man, this is such an old song. What the hell? Can't they have some more contemporary music? If they are piping in Lite-FM, then it's not their fault, but really, what the dilly, yo?

Now, I'm listening to some mumbo jumbo about their services which has the standard cheesy background music. Is classical music too much to ask for? Maybe they can just play the sound a fax machine makes. Eeeeeeeeee-ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo. The music almost makes me feel like I'm on a plane and watching one of their safety videos or the music they play when you de-plane. This might only be on Asian carriers though.

Do they have to pay royalties on the music they play? I wonder. Do I have any telephone system engineers reading this site?

Posted by tien mao in Concerts/Music at 3:30 PM

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Black Eyed Peas

N*E*R*D*

Jay-Z and Pharrell

Last night, I went to see the Black Eyed Peas and N*E*R*D* at the Roseland Ballroom. It was a great show, but I'm biased in the fact that I'll like almost every live show. The Black Eyed Peas were good, but they seemed to lack something. N*E*R*D*, however, was awesome and Pharrell showed why the ladies love him. There were some sightings of panties and bras being thrown to the stage. Jay-Z even came out for a short while, which was a crowd-pleasing surprise.

Some of the biggest cheers of the night were when the Black Eyed Peas told the crowd to get out and vote and Pharrell sang about ousting Bush.

I might have a clip or two from the show up later this weekend.

Posted by tien mao in Concerts/Music at 10:45 AM

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Last night, I went to go see De La Guarda with Mark, Miko, S., and Schreiber. I had previously seen the show sometime in college, but since there were some people in our group that had not, this was a great thing to do. Just like last time, I loved it. The people seeing it for the first time loved it too. Schreiber even got involved in the production, almost getting totally naked during one part of the show. My only thought is that I'm just not sure if it was the best thing to do on a rainy day.

Anyone that lives in the New York area and has yet to see the show should get some tickets. It really is a phenomenal show that is different from a lot of the other shows in New York - just don't dress up too much if you're going. The website kind of shows you what the show is about, so if you really want to know about it, check it out. I would just wait to be surprised though.

Posted by tien mao in Concerts/Music at 9:05 AM

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Oh yeah! Another concert in April. At around the same time as the two other concerts I'm going to in April. I can see my hearing take a hit, but it's going to be great. I mainly want to see DJ Shadow and Blackalicious. Also there will be DJ D-Sharp, The Gift of Gab, Joyo Valarde, Latyrx, Lateef & The Chief, Lifesavas and Lyrics Born.

Anyone else interested in going? I might have an extra ticket.

Posted by tien mao in Concerts/Music at 8:23 AM

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Every Tuesday, I get an email from Apple for "New Music Tuesdays" in their iTunes store. This week, one of the items in the email was for William Hung's pre-release EP. Just great. I didn't buy any of them, since I think that would be a waste of money, but I listened to the samples. He "sings", "She Bangs", "