Kings of Leon reigning over Webster Hall

I have to say that 2008 was a great year for live music in New  York City.  While some smaller clubs closed or were renamed a few times, the energy and the talent I have seen on stage this year has been one of the best I remember.  Now I have seen so many shows that ranking them was quite difficult, but I at least wanted to list my top ten local music gigs of 2008, in no particular order.  So here goes:

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2U getting the crowd riled up!

Stephen, Ian, Stephanie and I all headed up to the Gael Pub for the 2U gig on Friday night 12/12 after pre-gaming at Town Tavern for Free Beer Friday with the MNL crew. In case you could not figure it out, 2U is an excellent U2 tribute band. They played two sets and more than delievered for the ten dollar cover we paid to get in, especially if you got a free drink ticket at the door like I did. Although it pained me to pay $5.50 for a light beer bottle after that.

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first of many What's In a Name get-togethers at Rockwood

My good friend Emily Zuzik kicked off her “What’s in a Name” series at Rockwood Music Hall on Sunday 10/26 and I was happy to attend just after watching the Eagles dismantle the Falcons at Town Tavern.  Each musician who showed up had a few weeks to write a song that contained the word “outside” or at least had that theme.  And the result was a couple musicians (Scott Stein, Felix van Dyk, Jeff Litman, Eddy Lee Priest, Ben Carroll, and Shanna Zell) and some local music fans like Paul and myself sharing some intimate moments and pretty crafty songs.

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ENDI playing a great set at National Underground on 11/1/08

After trekking my way to the Meadowlands last Saturday and getting disappointed at the Red Bulls letting Houston tie the first leg of their MLS playoff game, I headed back to the city for ENDI at the National Underground on the L.E.S..  It was lead singer Dara and her sister Nikki’s birthday gig.  Nikki made the trip from DC for the event, which was a nice surprise.

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Patrick Thomas playing a great set at the Living Room 10-11-08

I finally was able to see Patrick Thomas live at The Living Room after hearing his album a few weeks ago, and I was glad I did! 

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So while I was waiting in line for the sneak preview of Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist on Tuesday, someone handed me a flier about a Battle of the Bands at Union Pool sponsored by Columbia Pictures, Mandate Pictures, and the L Magazine that was hosted by Project Jenny/Project Jan (which is playing a set tonight at Public Assembly and stars as the band Are You Randy in the movie), and judged by Uncensored Interview (phew!).  As a further FYI, Union Pool is one of the many music bars in the city that Nick and Norah go to - but they call in Brooklyn Pool in the movie.  Moving on.

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Weezer rocking MSG

Unfortunately I got to MSG last Wednesday early enough to hear Tokyo Police Club and Angels & Airwaves - both disappointments. Tokyo Police Club looked like they were playing to a high school gym - MSG was EMPTY! So it was just hard to get into them from Section 208. Might have liked them better in a smaller venue. As for Angels & Airwaves, they were just boring. No passion. Frankly, I expected more.

But then, Weezer took the stage and captivated the audience with its infectious pop rock. They wasted no time in letting the crowd know they would play the old tunes by immediately launching into “My Name Is Jonas”, a huge hit from Weezer’s incredibly popular debut Blue Album, followed by “Pink Triangle” from 1996’sPinkerton, the album many Weezer-heads (or something) are obsessed with.

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Kings of Leon presiding over their minions at Webster Hall

All I can say is WOW.  I am tempted to just leave it at that because words can’t explain the show that Kings of Leon put on at Webster Hall last Tuesday.  No wonder the resale market price for tickets was so high!  A recent fan myself, I had never seen the band before.  I now think I might never miss a show again.  Having just released the amazing Only By the Night the day of the concert, I only heard each of those songs once before the set.  But it didn’t matter.

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Marwood belts it out to a packed Rockwood

Benji Marwood Rogers played to a packed house at Rockwood Music Hall Friday night.  Some people were forced to even sit on (not at) the bar itself to make room for more people to stand.  One of the main things I love about Rockwood Music Hall is that musicians support other musicians, and they did not disappoint me on this night. 

Other local singers Emily Zuzik, Nell Bryden, and Leslie Mendelson all came out in support.  And Marwood played quite the rousing set, including crowd favorites “Bartenders”, “One Mile Down The Road”, and of course “Soulless” with thankfully a remixed version of “Milkshake” - which the NYC crowd will just never let him NOT play.  Toward the end, he played a new track he dedicated to his New York faithful, where he was able to include his favorite phrase “loving your work”. 

Please head to Benji’s website and buy his stuff - particularly Live at Rockwood 2006-2007 - you will thank me for it.

I unfortunately just missed a set by Patrick Thomas, whom people raved about.  I said hello after the set, and he went so far as sending me an e-copy of his CD that very minute.  And I listened to it today.  Very impressive stuff.  I will definitely be heading to his CD release in October.  Finally, I did stick around for James Maddock’s set as well, and he put on his usual impressive set.

All in all, it was a great night of music at Rockwood Music Hall!

Ryan McGlynn & Michael McWilliams tune up for the show

Distributed under Ropeadope Digital, Carlon has officially kicked off their “Boston to Austin” tour this week with a kick-ass CD Release party at a private loft space in Hell’s Kitchen. The space was intimate with candlelit hallways and a bar set up by nearby host Whistlin Dixies. The crowd was 1/4 Grey Dog staff, 1/4 friends and family, 1/4 groupie and 1/4 industry and media for an all around melting pot of what the Carlon fanbase has become.

Carlon nailed it on the head when they chose the title of the album, “Johari Window” because it’s definition is synonomous with the deep personal feel of many of the album’s tracks and lyrics. Via Wikipedia, you’ll find that a Johari Window is a cognitive psychological tool created by a couple of really smart scientists back in 1955, used to help people better understand their interpersonal communication and relationships.  Who knew?

Well, if you haven’t heard Carlon before, you must. If you have, then you know that Carlon is THE band in today’s up-and-coming NYC bootstrapping local music scene. From the strong lead vocals of Michael McWilliams & Ryan McGlynn, to the hard rocking snare of Milo Venter and to the deep soul bass of Jared Pollack, Carlon is ready to take on the Nation with their cool, smooth Franz Ferdinand/Radiohead vibe.

Thanks guys for bringing me into your crazy crazy world. For upcoming show schedule click here.