Mr Rhythm Returns!

André gets ready to do NYC in grand style this weekend
"Legend" is a term that's bandied about all too often in our 21st century garage punk circles. How many time have you seen show ads for some totally unknown 60's garage band with one single under their belt being referred as "legendary" ? Or maybe it was a band like the Queers. Famous, yes; Long-running, yes; legendary, no.

The same cannot be said of André Williams, who returns to New York this weekend to promote his latest project, a BOOK of all things. Mr. Williams, responsible not only for "Bacon Fat" but a host of some of the best r'n'b & soul records from the 50's to the 70's, is a legend's legend. Even Ike Turner might look over his shoulder at André. This is the guy behind "Funky Judge"; "Twine Time" and so many other 45s spun by virtually every r'n'b and soul DJ in this town EVERY weekend.

That he is a legend then, is not in doubt, but can he perform? Well, we're going to find out this weekend at 3 separate Norton-backed events to push the book (which Nick Tosches also had something to do with)... In case it doesn't turn out so well, or "Mr Rhythm" gets to that bottle of Bacardi a little too early on, there's plenty of action to be had elsewhere, so don't despair. This first weekend of February bodes well for our next 6 weeks of Winter-- cold outside, but heating up around town!

TONIGHT (FRIDAY):

The action is beginning at the same time all over town, so try (hard!) to be in multiple places at once.

Our suggestion would be to start off with Andre Williams & Nick Tosches reading at St Mark's Church on e 10th St. It's free and should be innarestin' enough.

Then hop the L train at 1rst ave and take it one stop to Bedford. Over at Williamsburg's Spike Hill venue, the live 60's style garage/ye-ye bands Electric Mess & Les Sans Culottes will be putting on quite a show on the narrowest stage in town. Cover is $5 (we believe?) and it's a hop and a skip (not even a jump) from subway.

After that, you've got a choice:
- stay in Brooklyn, heading North on Bedford until it becomes Nassau Ave, turning right at Eckford St and hitting rockabilly dj gig ABC Rebel Night at Greenpoint's Warsaw (FREE)

- get back on the L train, head BACK to Manhattan, and check out Smashed! Blocked! this month with guest DJ Peppermint Twist as well as a live pantomime performance of André Williams. Will this be any good? Will you be able to see André over the heads of the blackberry/trenchcoat mafia? Hard to say, but it's free and at Beauty Bar.

SATURDAY:

Even more to do than Friday!

Starting early, check out 60's soul revivalists the Sweet Divines at BAMCafe in middle Brooklyn. It's free (we think) and at BAM around 9 o'clock. While you're down there (heh heh) head over to Tip-Top Bar & Grill for another André-thon, this time with Dave the Spazz as head DJ. Our guess: a way funner event than the sure-to-be-packed S!B! the night before. No cover here either.

Afterwards, think about Williamsburg (HARD!) -- there's a lot going on up here. Over at Public Assembly, you've got Heavy Trash (Jon Spencer + Matt Verta-Ray) for $13 if rockabilly is what you're feeling. OR you could be a little different and check out an interesting-looking DJ party in Bushwick at the "Wreck Room" (haha) on Flushing Ave. It's called "Space is the Place" and promises 60's/70's psych/soul/garage/punk grooves and is no cover. We're all for NEW nights, so dig!

You can also get freaky at Union Pool on Saturday with Golden Triangle and the K-Holes, the latter of whom are headed south for Mardi Gras. So show your tits and stuff. $?

If on the other hand, you'd like to keep it simple, check out Jumpy's Soul-a-Go-Go night at Huckleberry on Grand St. It's also free, and you'll know how to dance to the usual great grooves.

Well, that's it for me as Marcus has promised to take over Sunday's doings. Expect his post earlier than usual tomorrow. See you out there chilluns!

SHIMMY

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Welcome to Clusterfuck City

Yep, it's full on CMJ time. Bands are rushing around town, shelling out dollars hard won from construction jobs, trust funds and unemployment checks just to get to a venue you've never heard of at 7:30 sharp to play to 5 NYU volunteers who think rock'n'roll is pretty darn passe.

I think I can speak for all of us at GPNYC when I say that we think the CMJ festival should go away forever. This rigmarole never pays any dividends for 99.9% of the bands who participate, and those that it does benefit already had blog buzz or a record deal before they got here. In other words, it's just the exhaust pipe on the hype machine-- you knew what was coming and guess what-- here it is!

That said, we know some of you are going to some shows, so we picked out the ones where for the most part there might be at least TWO bands you'd want to catch. After all, if I tell you that the Smith Westerns are playing 6 shows tonight, all of them with other bands you won't like, how will you know which show to go to and when? Given that timing is legendarily dicey at these things. So forget those one-off 10 band bills with ONE band that you'd want to see. Instead, try your hand at these.

For those of you seasoned enough to opt out of this travesty of a "festival", there are also some non-CMJ goings-down to enjoy.

FRIDAY:

Let's start with the weird-- New York's own Black on Brown do a pretty goddamned strange version of "I Heard It Through the Grapevine". I really don't know how to classify their music, and I don't know what it sounds like live, but I think this show will fill your weird quotient. Naturally, it's at Tommy's Tavern in Greenpoint-- 9PM doors and it's FREE.

Sticking with Brooklyn, how about a blast from the past-- the mighty TRASHMEN make their Brooklyn debut (hard to believe?) at Southpaw tonight. $25, but it might be worth it. Word to the wise: see SATURDAY, cheaper show at the record fair.

Over at Bushwick's Lake Johnson, NYCSeen / Molly Weiss is hosting her own Anti-CMJ party featuring a number of bands including the Vandelles. I last saw them in 2006 but at the time they reminded me of the Raveonettes' sound on their first EP meeting Jesus & Mary Chain. Either way it's helluva lotta noise. $?

Back in Greenpoint, I'm DJing all night at Matchless across from Mccarren Park. I'll celebrate the lack of CMJ action at Matchless by blasting Garage, Punk, and well, Garage-Punk. Of course there will be time for a short Gospel Set (I'm thinking around midnightish) and some doowop-y Halloween tunes if you haven't had enough of those yet.

Over in Manhattan, REAL GONE is on a different day this month and features Jay Banerjee & the Heartthrobs (members of the Anything People), the Subway Surfers and GetSet. FREE and Great DJs spinning all nite.

We're not sure about J. Toubin's Home Sweet Home gig this week, seems he's booked into various afterparties. I'm sure you'll find info on his various sites.

CMJ things:

Brooklyn-- Electric Shadows @ "Colonel Records" showcase / DON PEDRO (not sure of time or $?); Austin's Harlem (featuring Jose ex-Gondoliers) and the Dutchess & the Duke @ Vice's Afterparty Showcase / PUBLIC ASSEMBLY (rsvp only?)

Manhattan-- The Bongos (Hoboken power pop) & the Fleshtones at Hiro Ballroom (possibly the lamest "fancy" venue in the world) for the small price of $20...

SATURDAY:

Here's a tip. Head over to the WFMU Record Fair on W. 18th st. Admission is $7, there are more dealers here than you'll ever need (or get to) AND you get two good shows to boot on Saturday: 2PM you've got the TRASHMEN assumingly doing "Surfin' Bird" and at 4PM Jon Spencer & Matt Verta-Ray's HEAVY TRASH. Just try not to spend all your money. Please. It's hopeless.

DJs Fine Wine & Jonathan Toubin will be doing a new thing at N8, the new -old- Supreme Trading in Williamsburg on (you guessed it!) North 8th st. Guest DJ Josh Styles. FREE?

Correction: Dig Deeper is NEXT WEEK! -shimmy

So that means Fine Wine won't be at The Green Berets @ Dig Deeper -- yep, they just had to have one of these during CMJ. Yikes. Gotta admit, not too impressed with what I hear of these guys, who are a blip on the collector's radar. They also promise to perform both classic "and modern" sounds. Southpaw. Hmm... $12?

CMJ thingies

Brooklyn-- Turbo Fruits apparently at Union Pool; Golden Triangle, K-Holes & more at Don Pedro ("Special Guests" are warned so we're assuming Black Lips/KK&BBQ)

Manhattan-- Golden Triangle & Pissed Jeans @ Mercury? This could be the early show. Just a guess.

SUNDAY

CMJ is OVER! Rejoice!

The Dirty Shames certainly will at their interesting on-a-boat gig at OKTOBERSHIP at Pier 40. $10 -- 6-11PM.

Also happening, the live debut of the Almighty Defenders, the supergroup comprised of the Black Lips and King Khan & BBQ Show, at Maxwell's in Hoboken. Not sure if they'll actually play the Saturday night show at Pedro, so this might be your only chance to catch em. From what I've heard of the record, it's kind of like the Traveling Wilburies but with... the Black Lips and King Khan & BBQ Show. In other words, you won't hear something totally new but it's still enjoyable. The price of entry, $17, is markedly less so.

Last but not least, Andy Maltz and/or Dave the Spazz will be helming a post-record fair DJ set at Union Pool in Brooklyn. Thank god it's free because you're definitely broke after this weekend.

SHIMMY

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It's raining PR men! Hallelujah?

The Angel Sluts play two more shows in town this week.

Yeah, it's CMJ week, but does that really change anything? Believe it or not, connections are not just for sellouts and poseurs. Some of your (and our) favorite bands have connections and can get a gig or two this week. Go out and support them!

Broke? Lots of free shows this week too. Smaller venues and lesser-known bands have to compete with CMJ, right? The booze must flow. Feel free to take advantage.

Monday

Tennessee punks The Angel Sluts are everywhere. For the third of their four consecutive shows in New York they are embedded in a bill at the Trash Bar in Williamsburg. They're on third (of five). Over at The Bowery Electric local garage rockers Dead Phones share a show with Des Roar, Brothers and The Knew. That one is probably a free show.

Tuesday

The big event of the evening is called the Panache Booking and New York Night Train CMJ Showcase (PBNYNTCMJS). It doesn't abbreviate well, at least not in English, but it features some great local bands including Heavy Trash, Stalkers and Golden Triangle spread across both floors of SPH. It's $10 and if you want to go, get your get tickets in advance.

If those bands or that price tag are not your thing you can always check out the Angel Sluts (assuming you aren't sick of them by now) at Otto's Shrunken Head. They're on at 10pm after Meghan Wolf and Living In Polaroids (LIP) This show is free.

The official Anti-CMJ "Panic Room" will be at Bar Matchless this Tuesday night. It is also known as Hot Dog!, and features DJs spinning all sorts of music: 50's and 60's R'n'B, Doowop, Gospel, Soul, Funk, Garage Rock, Punk, and whatever else they feel like, basically. No cover, 2-for-1 drinks all night, from 8 'till late.

Wednesday

Which for today shall be referred to as "Black Hollies Day". They're playing a show, which is free despite being CMJ-branded, at Cake Shop. Why? Well, it starts at noon, though the Hollies are on after 5pm. Show up early to catch Turbo Fruits and many other bands. Or, just be patient and catch The Black Hollies, Nouvellas and more at Knitting Factory Brooklyn in the evening. That show starts at 7pm and Nouvellas are on first. The show is also $10 and has advance tickets available, which once again are a good idea.

In late-night free stuff we've got the usual this week. Motor City Bar hosts New York Night Train Wednesdays, its regular punk/rock/hard stuff night. Botanica has Mr. Fine Wine's night of classic Soul grooves. Both are no cover.

Thursday

Edit: Of course, we forgot about Don Pedro! Impose Records is throwing a party at DP every night of CMJ, but they have an especially good lineup on Thursday featuring Smith Westerns and local garage rockers The Beets and Girls at Dawn.

No way, nothing on a Thursday? Yes, as far as we know there is not one show worth seeing on Thursday. If you think we missed something (which is totally possible) e-mail us at garagepunknyc@gmail.com

Marcus

Anyone know what "CMJ" stands for? It's not "Country Music Jamboree" is it? Terrible acronym! (TA)

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