In honor of the release of The Dark Knight, a movie which yours truly has been hotly anticipating ever since that first official picture of Heath Ledger as the Joker leaked over a year ago, I give you…

R. Kelly: “Gotham City” (download)

In New York, baseball is akin to religion. To many New Yorkers, Billy Joel is, too. So it was no surprise when it was announced that Joel would play the last concert at the New York Mets’ Shea Stadium.

And so, the themes of the night were, of course, New York and baseball, and Joel delivered a surprisingly long stream of hits that referenced those very things - “New York State of Mind,” “Zanzibar,” “Big Man on Mulberry Street,” “Miami 2017″ and “We Didn’t Start the Fire.” Many of the songs he played also seemed to contain indirect references, those to tradition, the past, or change, like “Allentown,” with its opening line, “Well we’re living here in Allentown / And they’re closing all the factories down.” To really nail the whole baseball theme home, he opened with the National Anthem, and played “Take Me Out To The Ballgame,” during his encore.

Billy Joel: “Zanzibar” (download)

Joel’s facial expressions were somewhere between distraction, awe and stoicism, but in big screen close-ups, his eyes looked occasionally watery. He didn’t choose to slather the audience in overwhelming sentiment, however, only mentioning how strange it was that he saw the stadium being built only to watch it come down soon, and apologizing to those who bought tickets for the evening assuming that it would be the very last show (the Mets could only offer up Friday as the additional date, he said).

The “Last Play at Shea” — or “Last Double-Play at Shea,” as he jokingly referred to it — makes Joel the first artist to have headlined all three major New York stadiums: Giants’, Yankees’ & Mets. He also brings to a close a trend started by the Beatles, when they opened their ‘65 North American tour at Shea on August 15th; which he nodded to with covers of “It’s A Hard Day’s Night” and “She Loves Me.” That show was the first concert at a major stadium and broke records for attendance and profit, proving that rock ‘n’ roll was a major force.

Speaking of major forces, it wouldn’t be a modern landmark concert event without special guests, and Joel has friends to go around. Crooner Tony Bennett came out for “New York State of Mind,” bluesy guitarist John Mayer for “This is the Time,” the Eagles’ Don Henley for the oh-so-appropriate “Boys of Summer,” and John Mellencamp for his “Pink Houses.” A white uniformed military chorus provided backup on “Goodnight Saigon.”

Joel bowed out with “Souvenir,” which almost seemed as though he had written it with this kind of event in mind.

A picture postcard, a folded stub
A program of the play
File away the photographs of your holiday
And your mementos will turn to dust
But that’s the price you pay
For ev’ry year is a souvenir
That slowly fades away
Ev’ry year’s a souvenir
That slowly fades away

Billy Joel: “Souvenir” (download)

For more pictures from T-Sides, go here. Click the jump for the setlist.

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When the Fleet Foxes performed at Bowery Ballroom last week, frontman Robin Pecknold had a cold. But unlike a downtrodden, silent Frank Sinatra, the audience might have never known it if no one had told us (either the Dutchess or the Duke - the openers - mentioned it in their stage banter, as did Pecknold himself). Pecknold’s voice was piercing, still at the shining center of the Fleet Foxes’ appeal. But more than anything, the concert proved that there isn’t just one key to what makes the Fleet Foxes so good. It’s the way the different elements combine.

Opening with “Sun Giant,” the mostly a cappella title track of their EP, the Fleet Foxes showcased one of the major things they’ve come to be known for: their vocal harmonies. Hearing them sing, “What a life I lead in the summer / what a life I lead in the spring,” it would have been easy to listen to just their voices all night long. But when they moved right along into “Sun it Rises,” the soft, ethereal folk rock was the perfect match for their lush vocals.

Fleet Foxes: “Sun Giant” (download)

Moving through songs from their full length, Ragged Wood, and the Sun Giant EP, the Fleet Foxes put on the kind of show that other bands, other audiences dream of. By the end of the third song, the audience was bursting into such loud screaming, clapping, rapturous accolade that the band was visibly taken aback. No doubt the soft-spoken Seattlites are used to tamer crowds.

When the other band members stepped back to let Pecknold perform solo, the music was stripped down and the songwriting received its fair share of attention in the form of Ragged Wood closer, “Oliver James.”

Fleet Foxes: “Oliver James” (download)

The band joined for a few more songs, and then Pecknold came out alone again for an encore of “Tiger Mountain Peasant Song.” As he confessed, “I don’t know what I have done / I’m turning myself into a demon,” the only evil that descended was the end of such an ideal performance.

Also there:
UGO
Metro Distortion
NYT
Liz & Laura
Gothamist
Raindog’s Rants

Fleet Foxes on MySpace

For more pictures from T-Sides, click here. To see the setlist and a T-Sides video of Fleet Foxes performing “Mykonos” from this show, click the jump.

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Of the many things that can be said about the performances of Dengue Fever and Rachid Taha at Central Park’s SummerStage, the biggest link between the two is a good performer’s ability to keep the audience entranced when they don’t speak the same language.

Dengue Fever are American based, but to complement the group’s Cambodian pop-inspired surf-psych-rock, front-woman Chhom Nimol sings primarily in Cambodian - though they did perform “Tiger Phone Card,” one of two songs in English from their newest release, Venus on Earth.

Dengue Fever: “Tiger Phone Card” (download)

Their album is easily one of the best released in 2008 thus far, but their live show still tops it. Their SummerStage show wasn’t quite as mind-blowing as their show at Brooklyn’s Southpaw earlier this year (Indonesian beer specials = sorry, no review), but Dengue Fever are one of the most exciting, energetic and interactive bands currently performing. With constant smiles on their faces, they jump up and down, have special parts for audience sing-a-longs, and Nimol enchants with swirling hands and exotic dance moves. The group communicates through facial expressions and body language, like a group of longtime friends or even family. In a way, watching them feels akin to being in some sort of secret club.

Rachid Taha (seen above) is a Algerian-French man with the stage presence and personality to rival any American rocker. Sauntering on-stage in a suit and fedora, cigarette in hand, he was European chic, but with the long, messy hair and stubble of a man who’s been on the road.

Singing mostly in Arabic (but occasionally French), Taha blended modern rock and pop with the sounds of his Algerian heritage. Anyone who’s been to one of the more authentic Hookah Cafes in Queens will find themselves wondering if they’ve unknowingly heard one of his songs before. The crowd was in a constant state of motion, unable to resist Taha’s charm and hand-clap dance rhythms.

Like Dengue Fever, Taha performed one song with English (though not entirely), which was his translation/cover of the Clash’s “Rock the Casbah” (he calls it “Rock el Casbah”). Combined with his casual treatment of the Algerian flag he brought on stage, one could deduce his frustrations with Algerian and or/French government, though he only remarked on George W. Bush (unfavorably, of course).

Rachid Taha: “Rock El Casbah (Clash Cover)” (download)

Openers Apollo Heights put on an intriguing and somewhat perplexing performance of dream pop and noise pop tinged with prog, soul and who knows what else, but in the shadow of Dengue Fever and Rachid Taha, they were a distant memory.

You can see more of my pictures from this show here.

Dengue Fever Official Site
Dengue Fever on MySpace

Rachid Taha Official Site
Rachid Taha on MySpace

Also there:
New York Magazine
New York Times
Prefix Magazine
Lucid Culture

She might be from Chicago, but when Liz Phair came to New York City’s Hiro Ballroom, she was treated like a hometown girl. In a city where the sex lives of its women have been turned into national entertainment, her fem-rock opus Exile in Guyville is not just embraced, it’s understood.

Wearing a vest with a hot purple bra, short shorts and heels, Phair was sexy, but not forcibly so. Often labelled as having stage fright, but looking comfortable, she acknowledged her worries in past terms, “This tour is a big deal to me–I was nervous.” She was talkative and flirtatious.  “I need a guy,” she remarked, when she needed help adjusting a mic stand. “I love guys.”

Perfectly constructed in the order of its dips and peaks, Exile in Guyville made for an ideal live set - and while the album is short on flaws, it actually improved in a live setting (save a few audience members more interested in talking about the album than listening to it). Phair has better command of her voice, though she also recognized the necessity of her drone. By now, most know the identity of the subject of her work (Urge Overkill front-man Nash Kato), but that doesn’t really change anything about its power. The same likely goes for Exile in Guyville’s supposed connection to the Rolling Stones’ Exile on Main Street. Thus far, no one’s been able to link the two, and some were frustrated that she didn’t remark upon it during the tour. By now, chances are that Phair is just a marketing ingenue.

Every moment was worth listening to. The standard album highlights delivered (”6′1″,” “Dance of the Seven Veils,” “Fuck and Run,” etc.), but it was also an ideal chance to hear some of the more delicate songs in their glory - “Canary” with its jingly piano and the swirling guitars of “Shatter.”

At the end of the album, she returned for a solo encore of “Chopsticks” and “May Queen” from Whip-Smart, her second album, her own rendition of “Wild Thing” (included as a bonus track on the new re-release of Exile) and “Polyester Bride,” from whitechocolatespaceegg.

Liz Phair: “Polyester Bride” (download)

By the night’s conclusion, two things were very clear.  Firstly, relationships between men and women have changed very little in 15 years.  Secondly, Phair doesn’t have much to worry about. “This is how I really am,” she quipped before her encore. And how she really is is quite good.

For more pictures, go here. Click the jump for video of “Divorce Song” from this show.

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The contest is over, the entries are in, and we have our winners for the Radiohead: Best of DVDs! In order to win, entrants had to submit an e-mail detailing what song they believe should have been included on the recent Radiohead: Best of release. Winners will receive a copy of the DVD and, as promised, here are their answers:

“The track which I think should have been included on The Best Of Radiohead is “Kid A.”  It’s such a marvelously kaleidoscopic track, like listening to a movie about an alien robot who comes to visit a little kid in his bedroom and tries to communicate something immensely spiritual before vanishing into thin air before that kid’s eyes.  The pictures I see when I hear this song are ever so vivid, and I guess that as I listen to it I’m that kid and Radiohead are, in some way, the robot.  It’s a lovely uplifting track that takes me completely out of space and time, away from my problems and the dreariness of my daily life.” — Peter, from Warwickshire, UK

“I think “True Love Waits” should have been included on The Best of Radiohead, and specifically the only official recording of it, which is on the I Might Be Wrong: Live Recordings. I think that it would be a very apropos complement to the collection of songs already on the disc. Even though the entire band is not involved on the track, it doesn’t have to be, which is the entire concept of Radiohead itself–the song and the feeling above all else, whether it requires electronic synths, or minimalist guitars and vocals, or if the bassist is playing the exact same line for the whole song (i.e. “The National Anthem”). It is one of the most requested songs at Radiohead concerts, and the feelings conveyed through it, by virtue of the title and lyrics alone, serve to bring the artist and audience together in sympathy (”Just don’t leave, don’t leave”). The sparseness yet uplifting chords fill out the track just enough, creating a stark contrast to the silence the song describes.” — Matthew, from Montclair, NJ

“My favorite back-to-back songs in the Radiohead canon are “Exit Music (For a Film)” and “Let Down.”  I always think of these two as a solid, singular block, but I’ll obviously have to pry them apart for the purposes of your question.
So… my pick for the song that should have made the Best Of is… “Exit Music” — not so much because I think it’s a better tune than “Let Down,” but because of the circumstances surrounding my first hearing it.  That would have been November 1, 1996, in Torrance, CA.  I had driven down there from my apartment in Marina del Rey to meet a very close female friend of mine and to catch Romeo + Juliet on its opening night.
At the time, I wasn’t aware that “Talk Show Host” and “Exit Music” were a part of the movie, but I very clearly remember listening to the latter song during the closing credits and liking the slow-build melodrama of it.  Alas — despite my well-entrenched love for The Bends (and for slow-build melodramas like ”Fake Plastic Trees” and “Street Spirit”) — I didn’t realize that “Exit Music” was a Radiohead song until the very end of the credits.  Blasphemy!  But there it was.
After the film, my friend and I had dinner together (at the ever-elegant TGI Fridays), talked about the movie, talked about our mutual love for Radiohead’s music.  Driving home again on the 405 later that night, I remember feeling that it had been as nice a night as I had had in quite a long time.  My friend and I had met in a writing program in L.A., but we were through with all that by November ‘96, and it was becoming an increasingly rare thing for the two of us to spend any time together.  In fact, I would see her for the last time just a few months later.  Bottom line: Her life went one way, mine went another.  Not a new story.  But it still saddens me that we weren’t able to maintain some kind of contact in the ensuing years.
So… even today, when I hear “Exit Music,” I think of my “lost” friend.  I think of November 1, 1996.  And I think of all the bittersweet memories I have of my years in L.A. — years that coincided perfectly with Bends- and OK Computer-era Radiohead.  Of course, if I could, I’d live those years all over again — unhappy ending be damned.” — Mike, from Livonia, MI

Congrats to the winners, and thanks to all who submitted for reading.

Radiohead: “All I Need” (download)

Nearly two years ago now, I posted a short list of songs that reminded me of my post-college trip to Europe & Asia. One of those songs, DJ Bobo’s “Chihuahua,” has recently reappeared in my life - and will soon make its way into yours, as well, if it hasn’t already.

DJ Bobo: “Chihuahua” (download)

A bit of a ridiculous song, “Chihuahua” is a silly, bouncy, dance tune that’s not actually about those yippy dogs that often get mistaken for rats and/or promote Taco Bell, but instead is about how the word “Chihuahua” makes DJ Bobo very, very happy.

I’m walking in the street and the moon shines bright
A little melody is spinning on my mind tonight
I gotcha it’s the song about chihuahua
Yeah, that’s cool alright (chihuahua)
It means fun - and a life without sorrow
Feels young - when you think about tomorrow
Say yo - when you’re about to freak out
Just go, and then shout it out loud

Nonsensical as it may be, it’s the kind of song that gets stuck in your head for hours on end, driving you insane. Kind of like “It’s A Small World Afterall.”

I first heard it two years ago on the aforementioned trip to Europe, when the tour guide used to play it to wake us up. (It was incredibly effective.) I downloaded the song as a fun little reminder, and had listened to it maybe twice since then. That is, until last week.

Before a screening of WALL-E (which was excellent), my friends and I were “treated” to a preview of the upcoming Disney movie Beverly Hills Chihuahua, which seems to be about how Chihuahuas are great warriors infiltrating our homes and destined to take over humanity. Or something. Not only does it look absolutely, completely horrible in comparison to the kinds of movies Disney has produced in the past, it uses a remixed version of DJ Bobo’s “Chiuhuahua.” Modified lyrically to make the song actually about the breed of dog, of course.

Should this seem too absurd to actually exist and, thus, you are in great doubt, here’s the trailer for Beverly Hills Chihuahua - and below that, DJ Bobo’s video for the song:

Bullz-Eye: I wrote a few concert reviews. One for the Death Cab for Cutie show at McCarren Park Pool, and the other for The Cure at Radio City Music Hall.

Popdose: I review the interesting new albums from Sigur Ros and My Morning Jacket, the very good new Wolf Parade album, At Mt. Zoomer, and the meh Wooden Shjips LP.

The Most Serene Republic: “In Places, Empty Spaces” (download)

Fourth of July is, without a doubt, my favorite holiday. Firstly, because it’s not religiously affiliated. Secondly, because it generally involves some combination of the following three items: fire, grilling meat and alcohol. All in the name of patriotism. I’m not sure how our fourth of July traditions evolved to include these potentially disastrous things together, but I’m thankful they did.

However, there are few songs that connect with the holiday for me. Sure, there are all the patriotic anthems if you want to get stereotypical. There’s really only one song that reminds me of a particular fourth of July.

While I was still summering at home on the West Coast, it was something of tradition to go out to the cabin of some family friends on Harstine Island, which is in Puget Sound. It’s right on the water, so it cools off at night, and it’s far from any big cities, so it gets really dark. Because it’s so quiet and woodsy, everyone is shooing off fireworks. You can stand on the shore and be surrounded by bright, colorful lights in every direction - including an Indian Reservation. They always delivered. Big time.

I was more or less left to my own thoughts at these holidays, and often I’d clear my mind of everything associated with my life in the cities, my life in New York, my life in Seattle, and just spend hours using as many senses as possible.  Watching the water roll in waves, skimming my hand on top of soft, pointed blades of grass, listening to the sounds of voices from far away, smelling the musk of the forest and the smoke of barbecues in the air… the taste of alcohol.

Drinking in the country is a joy, particularly because there’s little to no ramification. You have a few drinks, you soak up the surroundings, you lay down in your tent - done. Then came modern technology. Like cell phones. Bringing the possibility of a drunk dial to your finger-tips, even in the most remote of places.

One particular fourth of July, my brain found it hard to escape the mental prison of thinking about an ex.  It all started so simply, remembering what I had done fourth of July the year before. Ah yes. Last year, I was wrapped up thinking about so-and-so, because we were just starting to get things together. If you don’t cut the path off at the earliest signs, next thing you know, you’re heading full speed to a place you’d rather not return to. And there it was. The Dismemberment Plan’s “The First Anniversary of Your Last Phone Call.” On the mix CD I had made for the drive out (this was before iPod days, unfortunately). At the time, I couldn’t explain what had compelled me to put it on there, it just seemed to fit with the mood and tone of everything else I was including, so there it was. The third song.

The Dismemberment Plan: “The First Anniversary of Your Last Phone Call” (download)

Several hours (and drinks) later, I found myself, in the car, searching for my phone. I locked myself in and started singing “The First Anniversary of Your Last Phone Call” - out loud, of course. I found the phone, held it firmly in my hand, and began to scroll down to the name of my ex in the address book. I stared at it. And stared at it. I closed the phone… then opened it again. I listened to “The First Anniversary of Your Last Phone Call” on the car stereo. I had made up my mind. It didn’t matter that it was late, that my ex was in a time zone three hours later than I, I was resolved. But, as I finished listening to the song, and picked up my phone, something happened.

It broke.

I frantically struggled, turning it on and off, taking out the battery, taking out the SIM card, charging it in the lighter, to no avail. It was dead. Not only could I not call my ex that night, I couldn’t call him any other night, because no phone numbers were saved to the SIM card. Just the phone’s internal memory. Which was now dead.

It only took a night of sleep for me to decide that this was some sort of sign disguised in technological break-down and, not to mention, probably for the best.

And I was never tempted to drunk dial an ex after that.

Image courtesy Sam Rosenblatt

Now that my review of Death Cab for Cutie’s concert at Brooklyn’s McCarren Park Pool is up on Bullz-Eye, I can give an account of the upsetting events that happened afterward. You’ll want to read the piece on Bullz-Eye first, so pop on over there and read it. Don’t worry, this will still be here when you come back - and you’d better come back.

Got it? Ok.

As perfectly captured in the picture above - and in my review - the concert was forced to end early due to an impending thunderstorm. This was, naturally, a disappointment because the band usually plays very long sets. But it certainly could’ve been worse: the thunderstorm could have arrived sooner.

More disappointing was how incredibly unprepared McCarren Park Pool was for this kind of weather. One would think that a venue like McCarren Park Pool, a successful outdoor venue that has already been around for a year, would have incurred this kind of weather in the past and know how to handle it. But as some friends and I discovered, they did not.

From the stage, someone who worked there announced that there were exits in the back of the venue in addition to the main, front entrance. They were obviously trying to clear us out as fast as they could, and that’s a positive. But as my friends and I dashed to one of the back entrances, some security guard who either didn’t hear the announcement or was high on some kind of power trip told us that we couldn’t exit that way - even though the man on stage had mentioned we could. Apparently, the exit led to their “backstage area” or some such thing and he suspected that three petite women in their 20s could do a lot of damage to four men in their 30s. After we exchanged a few words about wanting to get out, he snarkily told us that we’d still be outside once we exited the venue.

As we turned to walk back towards the main exit, one of the tents that they use to cover the merch, beer and food stands came flying at us, completely out of control. We attempted to dodge it, and were only somewhat successful - one of the metal poles knocked me in the foot and hit my friend in the back. We were lucky in some regard, though, as even more people were victims of the flying tent and were knocked on the ground afterwards. We were at least able to leave the scene of the crime (through that back door we couldn’t exit through before - too little, too late).

I give McCarren Park Pool some credit for having medical attention on-hand soon thereafter for the people who were seriously injured. Still, this kind of thing shouldn’t have room to happen in the first place. The venue could have told the vendors to take the tents down back when the lightening started, well before there was any wind. Conversely, if they were worried about them flying away in a full venue, they should have kept them anchored down until the venue was completely clear.

I may end up returning to McCarren Park Pool for free shows, but I certainly don’t plan on giving them any more money or going there under anything less than perfect weather. I attempted to look for someone to contact at the venue to talk about this experience but, suspiciously, their website doesn’t have any information…

And for that rude security guard’s information: we jumped in a cab almost immediately upon exiting. So much for your “you’ll still be outside” theory.

Death Cab for Cutie: “Here Comes the Rain Again (Eurythmics Cover, Live)” (download)
Death Cab for Cutie: “Your Bruise” (download)
Death Cab for Cutie: “For What Reason (Alternate)” (download)
Death Cab for Cutie: “Bad Reputation (Freedy Johnson Cover)” (download)