Tag Archives: Event Review

[Event Review] TMN’s 5 Favorite Acts from CRSSD Fest 2016

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(All Photos by Summer Luu via ListenSD)

 

Following an epic weekend, CRSSD Fest might’ve just become our new favorite music event in California. Presented by FNGRS CRSSD, the two-day festival is everything we’d wish for and more. Even though it mildly sprinkled on Saturday night due to the El Nino weather, it’s safe to say this is the best CRSSD thus far. The Waterfront Park in San Diego was the perfect venue for a festival that features artists that preach good vibes and company. The palm trees on the side of the main stage stick out in an occasionally clear sky, and the rain might’ve just loosened us up a little bit more – the music made it that much better.

To sum up our experience at CRSSD, we’ve handpicked five of our favorite acts that we think best highlight the festival. Check out our list below after the jump (in no particular order).

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[Event Review] GRiZ and The Floozies Tear the Roof off Mezzanine with Future Funk, SF 5/2

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Article by Ash, Photos by Dom Powell

’GRiZ – The Anthem (ft. Mike Avery)’

Since Funk’s inception in the mid-60s, it’s been reborn countless times particularly in hip-hop and, most recently, electronic music. Although it certainly possesses distinct composition elements, funk’s cross-genre transcendence also stems largely from its showmanship, quirkiness and the underlying attitude which it catalyzed. In some genres, this sort of evolution, or appropriation, is looked down upon, but funk is quite the opposite. George Clinton’s Parliament/Funkadelic, for example, was constantly changing adding young members to keep its sound fresh. Even now, Clinton, widely considered one of funk’s founding fathers, continues supporting and working with a diverse set of artists who keep funk alive and well. 

In the realm of electronic music, few artists have done a better job of carrying on the funk tradition than the sax-wielding GRiZ, whose “future funk” combines the enormity of electronic bass music with big-band funk of the 60s and 70s. The Detroit producer is in the midst of his most ambitious year yet releasing a stellar album with Say it Loud and launching All Good Records to give like-minded artists an opportunity to expand on the movement. We were lucky to catch GRiZ along with label mates The Floozies at their jam-packed show at Mezzanine in San Francisco over the weekend and it was a perfect reflection of an exciting moment in their respective careers. Continue reading

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[Event Review] 5 Faces of Chaz: Examining Toro y Moi’s Evolution at The Independent, SF 3/28

DSC_0344Over the last five years, Chaz Bundick, as both Toro y Moi and Les Sins, has repeatedly redefined his style bringing refreshing facets of his reserved, enigmatic persona to light all the while maturing with each album. A true musical chameleon, Chaz has worn many hats but, regardless of genre, he maintains his aesthetic always remaining true to himself. This realization couldn’t have been more evident as I watched Toro Y Moi perform a hometown show at The Independent in San Francisco last weekend in which he intertwined his various musical identities into a cohesive and career-spanning set.

Backed by several talented musicians, including ninja-favorite Astronauts, etc. on the keys, Toro y Moi’s countless jams, from hazy bedroom productions to groovy indie rock, were presented in the most vibrant way possible. Almost signifying transitions between old and new, Chaz swapped between MIDI keyboard and guitar through out without losing a beat. As an avid fan, and music geek, I found myself not only dancing steadily through out, but also hit with a flurry of thoughts and emotions inspired by the diverse, yet unified, setlist. To best capture those feelings, I decided to recount the performance in the context of a career retrospective. Flip through the pages and explore the five faces of Toro that I witnessed last Saturday with photos and songs from the set to match.

Toro y Moi’s upcoming album, What for?, drops on April 7th but can be streamed via NPR Music now. You can pre-order on iTunes here and find upcoming tour dates here.

All photos by Dom Powell

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[Event Review] Interpol – Denver, CO – Ogden Theatre – 9/27

Interpol
Ancient Ways

Every so often a band comes along and takes hold of both your ears and heart; their entire catalog consuming your soul while simultaneously strengthening its hypothetical grip on its listener over time. Such is the case for this writer with one of New York’s most treasured musical exports of the last decade: Interpol. Needless to say, when the now five-piece post-punk indie revivalists, who are on the heels of their fifth full length album El Pint0r (and second without longtime bassist Carlos Dengler), checked the city of Denver as a stop on their latest tour; The Music Ninja would surely have sent at least one willing representative. And what a delicate, mystical and inspirative performance they delivered on a most beautiful Saturday night at one of our city’s most intimate and sonically tuned venues, The Ogden Theatre.

The crepuscular ensemble  strutted out one by one to the Ogden’s stage amidst a dark, smokey shroud until finally lead vocalist Paul Banks assumed his position in front of the mic stand and say “hello” much to a raucous Denver crowd’s collective ecstasy. Interpol’s chosen live visual aesthetic was akin to a film noir; with gloomy lighting and minimal visuals playing off of their unique, highly recognizable sound  -while their crowds diversity (which on this night was completely sold out) never ceases to amaze. From older fans strictly of the group’s first two LP’s Turn On the Bright Lights and Antics, to younger, chic listeners of the so-called hipster persuasion and everything in between; the mass was undeniably in attendance for one reason. A rather stripped down but just as lively version of El Pintor single “My Blue Supreme” was the chosen opening vehicle for an eager audience to board before swinging it up once again for a reminiscent delivery of perhaps this writer’s single favorite Interpol tune, “Evil”. As the night wore on, Paul, Daniel, Sam, Brandon and Brad undoubtedly fell into an incendiary groove. The troupe found themselves sleekly cycling between intimate crowd favorites like “Narc”, and “NYC” as well as El Pintor fare including “Same Town, New Story”, “Everything Is Wrong”, an astounding live rendition of “My Desire” and an upstart encore performance of “All the Rage Back Home”.

While we’ve heard the division of Interpol aficionados arguing over their lack of recording polish since the departure of said Carlos D; their live show certainly carries with it the same intriguing edge on which their legions of fans built such strong opinions in the first place. All in all, it was a great performance from a band still retrotting the steps on its identity and their live show hasn’t struggled nearly to the level some critics would suggest. Don’t miss Interpol on the rest of their tour with remaining North American tour dates below, and stream the El Pintor single “Ancient Ways” above.

10-02 Dallas, TX – Southside
10-03 Houston, TX – House of Blues
10-03-05 – Austin, TX – Austin City Limits
10-07 New Orleans, LA – House of Blues
10-09 Memphis, TN – Minglewood Hall
10-10-12 Austin, TX – Austin City Limits
11-06 St. Petersburg, FL – Jannus Landing
11-07 Orlando, FL – House of Blues
11-08 Miami, FL – Fillmore
11-10 Atlanta, GA – Tabernacle
11-11 Nashville, TN – Marathon Music Works
11-14 Minneapolis, MN – First Avenue
11-15 Milwaukee, WI – The Pabst Theatre
11-17 Columbus, OH – Newport Music Hall
11-18 Toronto, Ontario – Kool Haus
11-20 Montreal, Quebec – Metropolis
11-21 Boston, MA – House of Blues
11-22 Philadelphia, PA – Union Transfer
11-24 New York, NY – Terminal 5
11-29 Washington, D.C – 9:30 Club

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[Event Review] Two Nights of Slow Magic

Slow Magic at The Independent in SF. Photo cred: Justin Yee (@yeesus)

Slow Magic at The Independent in San Francisco. Photo cred: Justin Yee (IG: @yeesus)

Gold Panda
Brazil (Slow Magic Remix)

In support of his stellar new album, Slow Magic launched the How to Run Away tour last week with over 20 U.S. dates scheduled between now and mid-October. Two of our ninjas had the pleasure of covering a couple of the tour’s earliest stops and were both blown away by the energy of the performance. Read each of their accounts below and check out the mysterious producer’s upcoming tour dates here. In case you missed it, you can also read our recent interview with Slow Magic here. Continue reading

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[Event Review] Wild Nothing @ The Larimer Lounge – Denver, CO

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Wild Nothing // "A Dancing Shell" (OFFICIAL SINGLE)

Living in the mountainous urban sprawl that is Denver affords some of the staff here at TMN the chance to see an amazing live show, on any given night of the week, at any number of sonically intoxicating venues throughout the Mile High City. On a blustery Tuesday night at perhaps the most intimate music room in the state, The Larimer Lounge, we had the fortuitous opportunity to revel in the anglophilic, shoegazey dream-pop that is Jack Tatum and his bedroom project turned critically acclaimed headlining act, Wild Nothing. A certain vivacity filled the small room and adjoining bar, radiating an energy that I hadn’t felt since seeing buzz-bands in the early 2000’s like The Futureheads, Okkervil River and Rogue Wave before the blogosphere world really took hold and so directly told us what was in or who is talented. The live music climate then was more focused on the reception surrounding a band’s newest EP, rather than a spread they recently did with “X” online publication of the month, and that era felt well represented. For both openers, the 20-something year-old dominated crowd would flock to the show floor as soon as any sort of live music began to erupt out of those dingy monitors – including the Larimer Lounge’s consistently give-and-take sound checks – leaving the smoking areas and bars almost barren and a blissfully jam-packed main room, which I am sure would have been a treat to perform for. Wild Nothing’s weekday performance contained one of the most musically unified crowds we had seen in some time, marking a totally refreshing return to concert attending. Continue reading

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