Now that the holidays are over (!) and 2009 has begun (!!), I thought I would share my last two reviews of 2008: Bon Iver and Ingrid Michaelson, both at Town Hall. The Bon Iver show was one of the best shows I’ve seen in 2008 and Ingrid Michaelson wasn’t bad either, but her voice and the screeching of her fans did tend to wear on me. Dominick did a great job of taking photos under challenging conditions, so please do take a look!
Love is All Review
I’d been hearing a lot of buzz about the Swedish group Love is All for the past few years and I was excited to check them out when they opened for Of Montreal in October. I was even more excited when I got the chance to review them properly when they were headlining at the Bowery Ballroom this past Sunday. Dominick and I were talking about our top five shows of 2008 and Love is All’s set are definitely on my list. They are legendary for bringing an intense amount of enthusiastic energy to their live performances and this one was no exception, even though it clocked in at just over 40 minutes! You can read my full review for Venus Zine and my thoughts about the Crystal Stilt’s opening set here and see more of Dominick’s lovely photographs.
Corita “False Maria” Video!
For the past few months I have been playing guitar and singing in a new new band called Corita (for the artist and former nun Corita Kent) with my new and old friends Nick (drums), Marisha (guitar and vocals), and Aileen (bass and vocals). I am so excited to share the video of our song “False Maria” with you all. Marisha filmed this and her husband James recorded us for her school project, so exciting! More from us soon, but for now, enjoy!
False Maria
NaNoWriMo Victory!
I’ve kept it quiet for some and talked endlessly about it with others, but this month I was a proud participant in National Novel Writing Month or NaNoWriMo for short. I’ve been cheered on all month by my housemate Lauren, friend and neighbor Keight (both past NaNoWriMo winners) and pen-pal Rob (a participant this time), my co-workers Lyndsey, Alisa, and Jerimiah, and was given the courage to push on by my family in the last stretches while my parents bragged to my grandmother, “Eleanor’s writing a novel.” Yes, it is true. I did it and it’s done. The novel has no title. I don’t know the genre. I hope it is literary fiction, but it may just be chick-lit. In any event, it is over 50,000 words long (51,156 to be exact) and it exists. It centers around a young, American 20-something named Hannah who moves to Paris after college to prove she’s not sublimating her dreams and all that follows. Will it ever see the light of day after this month? I have no idea, but it’s done! I think it’s an experience ever writer, even those like me who don’t usually write fiction, should go through. It imposed a creative discipline on me and showed me that I can get up at 7 a.m. to write. It made me look for all the possible opportunities in the day to write, and I got to create a whole reality based on, but not exactly like, the one I live in and the things I have experienced. I can’t wait to do it again, but I think I only have one novel in me and this was it.
Blitzen Trapper, yay! Iron and Wine, snore.
On a freezing cold Monday I walked half-way across Manhattan to see Blitzen Trapper and Iron and Wine play at the cavernous Terminal Five. I had not heard of Blitzen Trapper before, though they hail from Portland, Oregon, a city close to my heart. For anyone who loves classic rock from the 1970’s, murder ballads and American roots music, they are a compelling new band. They were opening for Iron and Wine, who, while he certainly writes novelistic lyrics, is not that interesting. I honestly don’t see what the big deal is, and besides, it turned into a big, sickening swoon fest for the couples in the audience. To read what else I have to say and to see Crissy Lush’s photos, check out my review here on Venuszine.com!
I Love Mondo!
My new favorite thing to do the first and third Friday of every month is go to Mondo at Don Hill’s. Admittedly, Don Hill’s is a lame bar, but Mondo is an awesome indie rock dance party where they play the best, most danceable songs. They play all the songs I secretly wish I could dance to when I listen to them on my iPod on my morning commute. They also recently played at First Saturday and I loved it (as evidenced by the totally dorky photo here that Dominick took). Dominick shot their set at the Brooklyn Museum and also shot the party last week at Mondo and they are some of the best night life photo’s I’ve ever seen, but of course, I’m biased.
New Favorite Blog
R. bookmarked a his favorite blog for me and I really appreciate it! Bikesnob NYC! So hilarious! So much writing, how does this guy have time to make all his charts and graphs that comment on the state of the world, or at least the state of cycling, all through bike-related nerdiness. I especially like the post about Velibs in Paris and the Great Hipster Silk Route.
Uh Huh Her at Irving Plaza
The other week Dominick and I went to see Uh Uh Her at Irving Plaza. I personally do not like the name (though I do like the PJ Harvey album they are named for), but the crowd there was really into them and their shiny outfits. They didn’t seem to be phased by the radio-ready quality of the set either. You can read my review here and see more of Dominick’s super slick pictures.
Creating Space and Community: Riot Grrrl and Visual Art Article
Following up on a long time personal interest and involvement, I interviewed four artists: Stella Marrs, Nikki McClure, Becca Albee and Amy Yao, about their art making process and, many years later, their thoughts about how Riot Grrrl (all of whom touched or were touched by this movement in some way) related to their art making. I’m so happy how this story came together and you can check it out here on Venuszine.com. The image above is an installation by Becca Albee. Many thanks!
Abe Vigoda and Telepathe Review
Last week I went to see Abe Vigoda and Telepathe open for Diplo at my least favorite New York City venue, Webster Hall. I hear its a New York City landmark, but I cannot stand the fake “Egyptian” decoration. Go figure this would make a museum educator crazy. When I first saw these bands together over the summer at South Street Seaport I swore they were both like 18 years old, as there was gangly limbs and youthful noodling everywhere. Imagine my surprise when I heard one of the ladies in Telepathe is 32! Could have fooled me. Anyway, both bands were engaging in completely different ways and you can read my review here. I really love Telepathe’s circular, loopy drones. They are kind of the band version of the film Celine et Julie Vont En Bateau. Despite my curiosity and being a fan of his recorded work, I skipped out early when Diplo came on, as it was a little too house music for me and since he put his DJ booth on the floor, I couldn’t even see him twiddling the knobs.
Killerfemme 