Introducing…
The lullabies of summer
Hannah Levine
Issue date: 5/1/09 Section: Arts
I'll admit it. My timing is a bit awkward, starting a new column in the last issue of the semester. A more logical idea might be to wait until September-but who knows, these guys could be uber-famous by then and you'd miss seeing them rock out Brooklyn basements and dive bars in all their earnest glory. I wouldn't want that to happen. I'd feel guilty, and Jewish guilt is not an ailment to be taken lightly. So, here are some bands you'd be absolutely imbecilic not to check out this summer:
…Brightblack Morning Light
We don't condone drug use here at The Envoy, but if you're going to have stoned sex, Brightblack is your soundtrack. I imagine the experience would be almost as phenomenal as sex underwater to a Mazzy Star song. Best-friend-duo Nathaniel Shineywater and Rachel Hughes may have started their band in a tent in the middle of the desert, but they are slowly gaining a following out here in civilization (i.e. hipsterville). Pitchfork called their bluesy psychedelic sound "a shape shifting slumber party" (and I must add "a shape shifting slumber party where everyone has slow sex"). Here are some places to see the Light before everyone and their mother start fornicating to songs like "Star Blanket River Child":
On the Internet: www.myspace.com/brightblackmorninglight, www.thebrightblackmorninglight.com
At Webster Hall: June 10th, 10 p.m. (125 East 11th between 3rd and 4th)
At Studio B: June 11th, 10 p.m. (259 Banker Street, Brooklyn)
…Ava Luna
I couldn't dream up a band as irresistible as Ava Luna if I tried. Frontman Carlos Hernandez is charming in the nerd-who-could-probably-take-over-the-world-with-his-pinkie-finger kinda way. The band started as his solo project in 2002, but expanded when he got the idea to form a girl group, a la The Ronnettes (remember "Be My Baby")-but with an edge. "We bought the cheapest synth and drum set we could find and played them like computerized electro-punk," Hernandez said, "all the while listening to the likes of The Screamers, Adult., Silver Apples and Prince."
The now six-piece band has a sound that is hard to describe in a sentence-doo-wop harmonies meet punk sensibilities-on a spaceship headed towards Mars. Hernandez's clever lyrics and crooning vocals are backed up by three females with gospel-like voices: Felicia Douglass, Judnick Mayard and the truly soulful Siheun Song. Add Alex Smith on drums and Nathan Thompkins on synthesizer, and you get one of the most unique cross-genre bands in the universe (unless there's some crazy shit going down on Jupiter).
Ava Luna have gone through several reincarnations, but always maintained their idiosyncrasy. While their more recent music features powerful guitar riffs that compliment even more powerful vocal melodies-they nearly shook down the house when I saw them at Danger Danger Gallery in Philly--their earlier sound was subtler in its emotional tenor. "The Tears Flow Plentiful (In The Land Of The Dead)" is a lovely acoustic track with a gentle harmony and an amazing chorus: "If you've got a reason to stay, then I hope you will share it with me/Cause' we're all gonna die and they say you should let the dead be/So child, close your eyes, and we'll get there eventually." When I complimented Hernandez on the track, however, he said he no longer performs that "Bright Eyes ripoff." Modest, Carlos, modest. Ava Luna have such a distinctive sound, they couldn't rip off anyone if they tried. Here's where to hear them this summer:
On the Internet: www.myspace.com/avalunaband
At Bowery Poetry Club: May 8th, 8 p.m. (308 Bowery between Houston & Bleecker)
At Hillstock Festival: June 6th, 6 p.m. (108 Emerson Place, Brooklyn)
At The Tank: June 20th, 8 p.m. (354 West 45th between 8th and 9th)
At the Make Music New York! Festival: June 21st, 2 p.m. (Maria Hernandez Park, Brooklyn)
...Gregory and the Hawk
Singer songwriter Meredith Godreau is cute as a button. Her soft and spacey voice will make you want to take her home to live inside of a shared Snuggie with you (forever and ever...), but you'll have to settle for her vulnerable, mellow acoustics instead. Godreau is currently taking her lullabies (and her pseudonym, Gregory and the Hawk) on the road, with stops in Florida and Toronto in May and Europe in June and July, so you won't be able to catch a New York show until the leaves change color. Luckily, there are plenty of places to hear and download her music-best played while catching fireflies, kissing sheepishly in hammocks or signing peace treaties with the monsters under your bed:
On the Internet: www.myspace.com/gregoryandthehawk, Gregoryandthehawk.com, cdbaby.com/cd/gregoryhawk
Enjoy the summer sounds. You can expect more bands to check out before they blow up in the first fall issue. Please send all thank-you notes to Thomas Hunter 211. And my favorite candy of all time is Sour Patch Kids (preferably sandwiched in between Swedish Fish), in case you're wondering.
…Brightblack Morning Light
We don't condone drug use here at The Envoy, but if you're going to have stoned sex, Brightblack is your soundtrack. I imagine the experience would be almost as phenomenal as sex underwater to a Mazzy Star song. Best-friend-duo Nathaniel Shineywater and Rachel Hughes may have started their band in a tent in the middle of the desert, but they are slowly gaining a following out here in civilization (i.e. hipsterville). Pitchfork called their bluesy psychedelic sound "a shape shifting slumber party" (and I must add "a shape shifting slumber party where everyone has slow sex"). Here are some places to see the Light before everyone and their mother start fornicating to songs like "Star Blanket River Child":
On the Internet: www.myspace.com/brightblackmorninglight, www.thebrightblackmorninglight.com
At Webster Hall: June 10th, 10 p.m. (125 East 11th between 3rd and 4th)
At Studio B: June 11th, 10 p.m. (259 Banker Street, Brooklyn)
…Ava Luna
I couldn't dream up a band as irresistible as Ava Luna if I tried. Frontman Carlos Hernandez is charming in the nerd-who-could-probably-take-over-the-world-with-his-pinkie-finger kinda way. The band started as his solo project in 2002, but expanded when he got the idea to form a girl group, a la The Ronnettes (remember "Be My Baby")-but with an edge. "We bought the cheapest synth and drum set we could find and played them like computerized electro-punk," Hernandez said, "all the while listening to the likes of The Screamers, Adult., Silver Apples and Prince."
The now six-piece band has a sound that is hard to describe in a sentence-doo-wop harmonies meet punk sensibilities-on a spaceship headed towards Mars. Hernandez's clever lyrics and crooning vocals are backed up by three females with gospel-like voices: Felicia Douglass, Judnick Mayard and the truly soulful Siheun Song. Add Alex Smith on drums and Nathan Thompkins on synthesizer, and you get one of the most unique cross-genre bands in the universe (unless there's some crazy shit going down on Jupiter).
Ava Luna have gone through several reincarnations, but always maintained their idiosyncrasy. While their more recent music features powerful guitar riffs that compliment even more powerful vocal melodies-they nearly shook down the house when I saw them at Danger Danger Gallery in Philly--their earlier sound was subtler in its emotional tenor. "The Tears Flow Plentiful (In The Land Of The Dead)" is a lovely acoustic track with a gentle harmony and an amazing chorus: "If you've got a reason to stay, then I hope you will share it with me/Cause' we're all gonna die and they say you should let the dead be/So child, close your eyes, and we'll get there eventually." When I complimented Hernandez on the track, however, he said he no longer performs that "Bright Eyes ripoff." Modest, Carlos, modest. Ava Luna have such a distinctive sound, they couldn't rip off anyone if they tried. Here's where to hear them this summer:
On the Internet: www.myspace.com/avalunaband
At Bowery Poetry Club: May 8th, 8 p.m. (308 Bowery between Houston & Bleecker)
At Hillstock Festival: June 6th, 6 p.m. (108 Emerson Place, Brooklyn)
At The Tank: June 20th, 8 p.m. (354 West 45th between 8th and 9th)
At the Make Music New York! Festival: June 21st, 2 p.m. (Maria Hernandez Park, Brooklyn)
...Gregory and the Hawk
Singer songwriter Meredith Godreau is cute as a button. Her soft and spacey voice will make you want to take her home to live inside of a shared Snuggie with you (forever and ever...), but you'll have to settle for her vulnerable, mellow acoustics instead. Godreau is currently taking her lullabies (and her pseudonym, Gregory and the Hawk) on the road, with stops in Florida and Toronto in May and Europe in June and July, so you won't be able to catch a New York show until the leaves change color. Luckily, there are plenty of places to hear and download her music-best played while catching fireflies, kissing sheepishly in hammocks or signing peace treaties with the monsters under your bed:
On the Internet: www.myspace.com/gregoryandthehawk, Gregoryandthehawk.com, cdbaby.com/cd/gregoryhawk
Enjoy the summer sounds. You can expect more bands to check out before they blow up in the first fall issue. Please send all thank-you notes to Thomas Hunter 211. And my favorite candy of all time is Sour Patch Kids (preferably sandwiched in between Swedish Fish), in case you're wondering.
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