July « 2010 « Knox Road

In Case You Missed It: Week In Review

It was a short week for the whole crew here at Knox Road as we prepped our Siren coverage with some unanticipated delays. You should see us return to form in the coming days, and hopefully you’ve enjoyed your past week regardless – we know how important Knox Road is to you! … […]

Abby

Abby’s Road postponed until next week

Dear Friends,

Man. I had every intention of having some substance for Abby’s Road today. I’ve been bouncing around the apartments of friends in Munich for the last 5 days and living out of a suitcase. I slept in a flat with an Ian Brown light fixture and Paul Weller portrait on the wall. […]

Jon

Cymbals Eat Guitars @ Siren

Cymbals Eat Guitars played the penultimate set at the Stillwell Stage (the stage that isn’t the main one, derp) on Saturday, so I was surprised that the turnout wasn’t terribly big until they were nearly done. But, on the other end, there was a couple who looked to be in their 50s with cell phone cameras in the photo pit, smiling paternally as they got close to take pictures. The band’s parents? ADORABLE.

The band started the set by playing a handful of new songs — one of them, apparently, “is so new” — that sounded pretty good. Not a far cry from the winding, twisted quiet-loud sung-yelled tracks the band is known for, but solid all the same.

However, at points during the set I had to really pay attention to figure out how to wrap my head around the song being played. The songs are so unpredictable that, unless you know exactly what’s coming next, it’s hard to latch on. So the performance was decent, and as energetic as it probably could have been, but maybe the crowd’s unfamiliarity with the music lead to the largely lukewarm response. Maybe the music just doesn’t translate terribly well to a live setting, especially a huge, outdoor live setting in 93 degree heat. Maybe I’m just insane and they completely brought down the house*.

Cymbals Eat Guitars – “Wind Phoenix” [MP3]

*They did not completely bring down any houses, to my knowledge.

More photos after the jump.

Continue reading Cymbals Eat Guitars @ Siren →

Jamie

Holy Fuck @ Siren

Holy Fuck didn’t turn heads at Siren, it threw them back in ecstasy. The experimental/psychedelic/dance band is known for their often-improvised instrumental jams, and they brought everything out in their festival-closing set Saturday that seemingly took the crowd by surprise. The thousands-deep slew of people moved like nobody was watching and like they themselves couldn’t stop themselves.

Frontman Brian Borcherdt spent a lot of the set playing with a metal contraption covered in cranks and levers that he ran a long spool of film through to create an eerie squeaking that punctuated each song. The rest of the band channeled the emotions as they kept the steady, rhythm-heavy songs pumping along.

Holy Fuck was one of the only bands at Siren to move the crowd to such a fervor, and they did it with the ease of any veteran act. Is this the return of the jam band? Or the evolution of what it means to jam?

Holy Fuck – “Latin America” [MP3]

More photos after the jump.

Continue reading Holy Fuck @ Siren →

Jon

Matt and Kim @ Siren

A lot of good things have been said about Matt and Kim‘s live show, and their performance at Siren isn’t going to change that. The pair’s main stage-ending set at 7:30 p.m. attracted a massive crowd, which packed the long, narrow street serving as general admission space as well as the fenced-off kiddie park stage left.

And for a band that consists entirely of keyboard and drums…holy shit. Matt kicked things off by launching into a hype man MC routine, which the crowd ate up. Their songs — a combination of originals and short vignettes of popular rap tunes — were delivered with an absurd amount of gusto, and the two performers could physically not be having more fun. Kim wore an endless grin while pounding away on her drumkit, as if smiling for every camera thrust into the air, and Matt regularly jumped around and pumped his fist when he wasn’t using both hands to play his instrument.

And, hey, they played surprisingly tightly too, for all their theatrics. It was a thrilling show, for both the physicality of it and the fact that neither Matt nor Kim seemed to play too sloppily. The fact that they were headlining a festival at a stage with its back to the ocean and famous boardwalk, mere minutes from where they’re from, just made all the music go down that much sweeter.

Matt and Kim – “Daylight” [MP3]

More photos after the jump.

Continue reading Matt and Kim @ Siren →

Jon

Heeeeeeeeeeeeeere’s Siren!

As you all know by now, this past Saturday was Siren Fest, a free, day-long, two-stage concert extravaganza normally held right below the Coney Island Boardwalk. Hell, the main stage is even in the shadow of the famous Cyclone coaster. It’s all very neat, except for the fact that in an astonishing move, […]

Lee

We’ll be right with you

Sorry for the delay, guys. Siren Festival Coverage will be up soon, promise! Editing photos has taken a bit longer than expected. Continue to check back, and follow us/me on Twitter or Facebook for post updates (and, you know, to talk shop).

July 20th, 2010 | Tags: Delay, Sorry, Video | Category: Video | Comments are closed |

Lee

In Case You Missed It: Week In Review

I’ll be brief because you’ll soon be getting a slew of reviews and photos from us from The Siren Festival. What you may have missed below. [Image via]

Monday: Hands release video for “Hold” Let’s Colour Project commercial: Jónsi’s “Go Do”

Tuesday: I Am The Dot

Wednesday: [MP3] The Cascade: “Super Television”

Thursday: […]

Lee

[MP3s] Your Siren Music Festival Preview (2010 Edition)

Photo by James B. Hale/Knox Road from Siren Music Festival 2009

Taking a page from last year’s pre-Siren coverage (for photos and reviews of every act last year, check here), here’s your 2010 preview in mp3s. I, unfortunately, won’t be there this year. Jamie, Jon, and helpful contributor Brittany will provide […]

Jon

[MP3] Andy Clockwise: “The Casanova (Remember Love)”

I had never heard of Los Angeles-based Andy Clockwise before popping open the ol’ Knox Road mailbag this morning. And now that I have heard of the group, I’m better for it. For serious.

See, lately I’ve been favoring songs that are all massive towers of instruments and hyper-emotional vocals, and they’re great, seriously, […]