Sonic Youth, McCarren Park Pool, Williamsburg BK, 7/28/07 by Daniel Michael Alleva

Aside from the performers, a true champion of Sonic Youth’s show at McCarren Park Pool was the young boy who couldn’t have been more than 8-years-old, ten feet from center stage upon the shoulders of his father, as the band performed in its entirety their landmark 1988 album Daydream Nation. Coming off of the success of their latest release - the critically acclaimed Rather Ripped - one of the greatest bands of my lifetime celebrated what I feel, as do many others, is one of the most important albums of all time. This hometown tribute for the dedicated that have followed Sonic Youth was a dignified toast.


Daydream Nation on record opens up like an invitation, with building anticipation in each turn and fold. And in a live setting, the reaction is the same - only tenfold. Kim Gordon’s breathy introductions to “Teenage Riot,” – coquettish phrases matched with ideological thoughts, possibly; “Face me, don’t displace me” and such – arouse so much tension that by time the song reaches a breakdown, you’re ready to explode. Thurston Moore and Lee Renaldo’s guitar work is still the finest in the land, and drummer Steve Shelley remains the anchor for the quartet.


The spirituality of a record like Daydream Nation cannot be ignored, so invigorating is every note. And to be under a Brooklyn moon for its grand unveiling is to be of note. With some certainty, I can say that you won't be able to see "Trilogy" performed in its entirety again for some time. But with great confidence, I know that Sonic Youth will be at either Webster Hall or Irving Plaza within 18 months of now, as they always are, doing what they do so splendidly. To this point, I return to the young man on his father’s shoulders.


While I was slightly too big to rest on anyone’s shoulders the first time I saw the band, I myself was a much younger man then. Through the years, Sonic Youth have remained the truest of all the acts I’ve seen. They never grow tired. They never stop smiling. They never stop rocking. They are personified by the rawest chord available to be played. And so when the circle remains unbroken, and we’ve preserved what is distinctly ours to share, there is no better way to celebrate than with a party for a Library of Congress selected album for the National Recording Registry. Daydream Nation is not so much an album as it is the essence of our expressive existence, available to anyone and everyone.

Siren Festival, 7/21/2007, Coney Island, BK by Daniel Michael Alleva

Despite technical difficulties, the Village Voice-sponsored Siren Festival was a hit yesterday, with fourteen bands spread out over two stages, along side the Cyclone roller coaster at Coney Island's Astroland Park.

As far as set-up is concerned, the Siren Festival is everything a festival should be: laid-back and open without the daunting presence of "The Man" over your shoulder; I couldn't help but be reminded of the Lollapalooza festivals of the mid-nineties at Randall's Island, and the ecclectic line-up featured reinforced my nostalgia.

The Philadelphia-based Dr. Dog played one of the more inspiring sets of the festival on the main stage, which was located on West 10th Street. It is always good to see a band from Philly or Boston come to New York and play a good set, but it's even better when the crowd is fully receptive, as they were for Dr. Dog's crispy-fried, bounce-fest.


Later on, The Detroit Cobras tore up the Stillwell Avenue stage with their rock 'n' roll-infused, R & B wallop. Led by vocalist Rachel Nagy and rhythm guitarist Mary Ramierez, the Cobras ran through a 40 minute set full of ass-shaking thunder, and Nagy joked about the early time slot by asking, "What's that huge glowing thing in the sky? I've never seen that before."







Keeping it weird was Atlanta's The Black Lips, who turned in an interesting - if not completely confounding - set that included mock-vaudeville, chickens, and country bop that was reminiscent of The B-52's early work.



But the day belonged to Maya Arulpragasam, a.k.a, M.I.A. The Sri Lankan-born MC ran through a set of her signature electro-dancehall hip-hop, featuring tracks from her upcoming release, Kala, as well as her remarkable debut, Arular. Between songs, M.I.A. hipped the crowd to her recent legal struggles. After being refused a visa to enter the country by the United States government, M.I.A. was forced to cancel several performances, and in the weeks leading up to the Siren Festival, her performance there was still up in the air.



Also featured throughout the day were The New York Dolls, We Are Scientists, Cursive, The Noisettes, and Glasgow's The Twilight Sad. Many local acts were featured on the Stillwell Stage, like Brooklyn's own The White Rabbits and Matt and Kim.

Everything Sucks . . . . Well, almost everything. by Daniel Michael Alleva

Everything Sucks is not your typical Long Island indie act. So far from it, actually, they should really consider relocation. For what now seems like an eternity, Long Island has become a wasteland for bad emo bands (as if there were ever any good emo bands). But what makes Everything Sucks a giant step in a new direction is their respect for the roots of the oft-misinterpreted genre of punk rock.

Embracing the virtues of some of the greatest peaks that punk rock has ever witnessed, Everything Sucks - without a shadow of a doubt - would have fit like a glove in the early days of Dischord Records had this young quartet not been born too late. Everything about the band screams, literally, vintage D.C. - from their socially conscious lyrics to their intimate stage performances. Their latest E.P. was actually, physically recorded in frontman Matt Brennan's garage. And just in case you're not sold on their earnest roots, they've been known to cover Springsteen and The Replacements in their live show. If Everything Sucks keeps it up, they'll be forced to change their name to Everything Sucks But Us.

Chris and Rich Robinson - Brothers of a Feather by Daniel Michael Alleva

Brothers of a Feather is the latest installment in several archival releases put forth by The Black Crowes brain-trust Chris and Rich Robinson. Late last year the brothers Robinson released The Lost Crowes, a double-set of material comprised of two Black Crowes records available previously only as bootlegs. This latest collection is from the critically-acclaimed, semi-acoustic tour Chris and Rich set out on in the spring of 2006.



The record consists of Crowes favorites like "Horsehead" and "Cursed Diamond." B-side gems like "Darling of the Underground Press" and Lost Crowes standouts like "My Heart's Killing Me" round out the compilation. An impressive selection of covers like "Roll Um Easy" and "Over the Hill" show how much depth Chris and Rich share as musicians. The album also features the first new Chris and Rich Robinson compositions in nearly six years, to mixed results. "Magic Rooster Blues" is too clichéd for honest consideration, but "Cold Boy Smile" has a nice fireside touch.

Ironically, the two highlights of Brothers of a Feather are the tracks composed by Chris and Rich for each of their respective solo projects, "Someday Past the Sunset" and "Leave It Alone."

Rating - B

Photos by Joe Russo.

Interpol - Our Love to Admire by Daniel Michael Alleva

Our Love to Admire is the third album from NYC's Interpol, and the first since leaving indie-label Matador Records and signing with Capitol Records. Unlike previous records - 2002's Turn on the Bright Lights and 2004's Antics - Our Love to Admire is a stripped down effort that builds momentum with each spin. The record captures the full essence of Interpol's influences - some obvious, and some not

The album's low-key start is thwarting at first. "Pioneer to the Falls" is a song for the midnight ages. "No I In Threesome" is a great "leaving town" track, full of flair. The centerpiece, where the momentum begins to kick in, is "The Heinrich Maneuver" into "Mammoth," some of Interpol's finest moments - pulsating, edgy, and funny.

Rhythm-section Carlos D. and Sam Fogarino, respectively, have all the grooves you need to have a good time with Our Love to Admire. Banks' lyrics border on kitsch, but tracks like "Who Do You Think?" are too irresistible to play elitist.

Rating - A

Ryan Adams - Easy Tiger by Daniel Michael Alleva

The first time I heard Ryan Adams, I was coming up Ocean Parkway from Gilgo Beach while a friend played Love Is Hell. It wasn’t anything I hadn’t heard before, but the material was rich in both style and substance, and I was instantly hooked. That was in 2005, the same year that Adams, along with his incredible band The Cardinals, would release three albums of new material: the double-album rocker Cold Roses, the hootenanny that is Jacksonville City Nights, and the bare- boned 29. Coming off the two years of touring that followed is Easy Tiger, the ninth album in total from America’s most captivating and transcending songwriter.

Opening with the rollicking good time of “Goodnight, Rose,” Easy Tiger commences in bloom. “Two,” the first single from the album, features a backing vocal from Sheryl Crow. It’s hard not to smile at the mental image of the two of them singing to each other in some candlelit studio, deep into the night. Easy Tiger packs enough casual, flirtatious attraction that you can pick it up at any point and still be a needle to the groove. To clap your hands to the bridge of “Tears Of Gold” is to wrap your head around the echoes of “Off Broadway.” All the tracks featured here take you right to the front door of the places you need to be, free of overindulgences. Adams is a rare talent that can say more in 38 minutes than others can say in a whole hour. As the audience, we digest Easy Tiger without having to think about what is beyond the context, because with Adams, the attraction is in already knowing and feeling. “Drop me a line, I wanna know how it all works out / I had a feeling we were fading out / I didn’t know that people faded out so fast.” Yep, I know how that goes, and “The Sun Also Sets” is only one of the places in time that Easy Tiger can bring you back to.

If you track the progression of his career, Easy Tiger is the best example of Ryan Adams as an artist in control, and the purest example of The Cardinals as a recognizable force. The tasty interplay on guitar between Adams and Neal Casal is accented by Jon Graboff’s pedal-steel work, while Brad Pemberton and Chris Feinstein hold down the bottom end with authority. If it comes to be that this is Ryan Adams’ peak, then Easy Tiger will forever look out over Mt. Everest. But for the time being, let’s just be easy about things, and embrace the now.