Live Picks: 02.16.2012 – 02.22.2012
02.20: Quintron and Miss Pussycat + Bass Drum Of Death + Har Mar Superstar + Marijuana Deathsquads – One Eyed Jacks
The duo of John Barrett and Colin Snead, better known as Bass Drum of Death, offers one of the the most earnest takes on modern garage-punk the increasingly crowded field of vintage noise-rock revivalists has to offer. Beyond the lo-fi aesthetic, their recorded material springs forth with an infectious vibrancy owned to fuzzed out guitarwork that still manages to be bright and sharp percussion work that is more likely to punctuate a driving riff with dexterous cymbal work than monstrous low-end. But it’s the band’s live show that feeds the band’s growing reputation as straightforward purveyors of unpretentious, undeniable rock ‘n’ roll.
Live Picks: 02.09.2012 – 02.15.2012
02.10: Yob + Thou – The Big Top
Within a steadily rising community of artists and music heads striving and waiting for New Orleans’ national DIY comeuppance lies Thou, a different animal altogether. This Baton Rouge/New Orleans-based black and sludge metal hybrid has, since its inception in 2005, enjoyed the exact opposite type of success: acknowledged locally with no larger a profile than any other under-the-radar act, they have managed to build a hefty – even semi-legendary – following outside the state of Louisiana, embarking on nationwide tours with surprising regularity and launching cross-Atlantic jaunts nearly as often.
Live Picks: 02.02.2012 – 02.08.2012
02.02: Native America + Netherfriends + Pals – CIRCLE BAR!
For the recently un-re-initiated, Thursday night’s showcase may be the perfect excuse to check out Circle Bar’s new digs: Native America has grown from Sun Hotel drummer Ross Farbe’s found sound side project to a surging space pop trio, churning out a prolific stream of bouncy, fitful tunes and accompanying them with exquisitely precise and energetic performances. They are joined by Chicagoan Shawn Rosenblatt’s full-power one-man psych-pop orchestra Netherfriends, and local jam/folk band Pals, who went on a late-2011 tear following their showstopping supporting slot for Washed Out at One Eyed Jacks in October.
Live Picks: 01.26.2012 – 02.01.2012
01.26: Big History + Gold And The Rush + Chilldren + Spirit Animals – Tipitina’s
Gold and the Rush have come out of the gates guns a’ blazing, one revelatory performance after another, their concentrated southern rock authenticity noticeably more raucous each time they take the stage. Representing the next wave of local independent and underground music – a wave that is more than ready to answer the call of a rapidly solidifying musical tableau surrounding Loyola University – this young transplant band seems primed to blaze a trail of rock and roll through the entire city of New Orleans.
Live Picks: 01.19.2012 – 01.25.2012
01.21: Rotary Downs + R. Scully’s Rough 7 – One Eyed Jacks
While there is no wrong time to ever see greatest band in the universe Rotary Downs specifically, there is never a better time, in general, to see any band as when they are embroiled in the creatively grueling and inspiring task of writing and recording a new album. As the band will head to Lafayette in early February for initial tracking of their 6th full length album – and 5th with longtime co-conspirator and Grammy Award-winning Louisiana native Ivan Klisanin – Rotary Downs’ next run of shows, kicking off on Saturday at One Eyed Jacks, should be just about as ferocious as local live music gets.
Live Picks: 01.12.2011 – 01.18.2011
01.14: Caddywhompus + B L A C K I E + /fucks/ + Proud Father + Habitat + Choi Wolf – The Red House and The White House
Though he’s technically known as a “rapper and record producer”, B L A C K I E’s musical vista (a striking meld of thrash, noise and hip hop) is about as rhythmically and instrumentally concrete as an early Kluster record. Instead of wrapping himself in the languorous comforts of a particular genre, he’s spent the better part of the last half decade perfecting a kaleidoscopic array of strange samples, disorientingly-cut beats, and streaking fuzz while drawing listeners in with an abrasive – though alluring – vocal delivery and a sincere, unapologetic adherence to sociopolitical dissidence.
Live Picks: 01.05.2012 – 01.11.2012
01.08: Choi Wolf + Boogie Nazis + Pancake – The Big Top
With Choi Wolf, Byron Chance injects his established talent for melding execution and panache into hardcore punk, where he and drummer Rob Landry have made an art of firing through intentionally short, invigorating bursts of brutal energy. At only around 9 minutes long, a Choi Wolf live show often finds the band creating pure pandemonium while aurally pummeling the audience so efficiently that Chance and co. are back at the bar enjoying beers before anyone has had enough time to realize what just happened.
Live Picks: New Year’s Eve Edition, 12.31.2011
Black Lips + Jean-Eric + KG Accidental – One Eyed Jacks
In what will easily be the most inimitable and raucous of all events to ring in the new year (and ironically the most New Orleanian), Aquarium Drunkard has brokered a brilliant redux appearance of Atlanta’s own Black Lips, essentially an encore of their Lundi Gras show this past March – a concert that marked the flashpoint in a year that was ultimately slammed with unforgettable performances. Among a sea of Mardi Gras costumes that saw Jacks as sardine-packed as it’s ever been, the these feral, psychedelic garage punks became hosts to an overwhelming mosh pit of split heads, bruised knuckles, sweaty armpits and runny makeup.
Happy Holidays From Barryfest!
With Chanukah in full swing and Christmas just a few days away, in lieu of our weekly live picks we wanted to take this opportunity to wish you, our dear readers, the very happiest of holidays. We’d also like to thank every one of you for your support during these, our first 11 months of existence. We started Barryfest with a very simple goal – to document the diverse music of New Orleans and beyond – and with every like, share, comment, email, retweet and mention, you have all helped us along the way.
