CMJ 2009 – Part 1
This week has been lots of craziness as the 2009 CMJ Music Marathon has descended upon New York City! This year seems to be mostly about finding new bands and talent, since I haven’t heard of a majority of the bands that are playing this year. While it makes enthusiasm ahead of time a little low because you never know what you’re going to get with any new band, it makes new discoveries that much better when you see an act that put on a good show and has some good tunes that make you dance around!
Let’s start with Tuesday. I had to cover a showcase at the Cake Shop, and while I wrote down little snippets about each band I saw, the only band that really impressed me was the Hospital Bombers, who were much poppier than the other bands that played after. They are definitely a soundtrack to a breezy summer day laying out in a field somewhere, and I like the occasional female vocals and the violin is a cute touch as well.
Hospital Bombers @ Cake Shop
I also saw Surf City and Male Bonding later that night at Cake Shop who were both good and I did enjoy them as well, but perhaps I’d enjoy their recorded stuff more than seeing them live (without knowing their music ahead of time, anyway).
Andrew WK @ NYU Kimmel Center
On Wednesday I went to see CMJ’s keynote speaker, Andrew WK! You already know that I love Andrew WK, so of course I was going to be at his panel! He gave a brief introduction and then pretty much opened the floor to questions for anyone to ask. He still dispelled his AWK wisdom, which is to believe in yourself and do what makes you happy, something I try to live by as well! It’s always nice to hear some reinforcing positive messages when it comes to things like that. But there were definitely parts of his talk that were funny as well. You never know what you’re going to get when Andrew WK gives a talk!
Bang Bang Eche @ Studio at Webster Hall
Later that night I saw another lineup of bands, but none impressed me until Bang Bang Eche. They’re roughly about 17 years old from New Zealand, and what caught my eye first was how energetic they (especially the lead singer) are. From the bands I saw earlier that night and the night before, none of them really rocked out when appropriate. This kid was all over the stage and jumped into the audience! Their music seems pretty complex for kids of their age, so I think that adds to the appeal, plus it’s just plain good and gets you up and dancing! I’ll definitely be looking for some music by these guys.
Bodega Girls @ Crash Mansion
Moving on to Thursday where I first saw Boston’s Bodega Girls after work. Note: there is only one girl in the band, and she doesn’t do much but try to dance sexily (is that a word?) onstage. Anyway, my friend Leila had seen them the night before and liked them, and it turned out that I shared her enthusiasm! Their first song, possibly titled “I Won’t Write You A Love Song”, was super catchy and dancey and it made me think I had heard it around somewhere before. I ended up dancing through the rest of their set, and I am excited to hear more from them!!
pow wow @ Cake Shop
I was able to quickly catch a few songs of the band pow wow. I don’t know anything about them, I just thought the description of them in the CMJ booklet sounded like something I’d like, and I saw that they only seemed to be playing this one show all week. I’m glad I was able to see even the three songs I did, because I loved their cute poppy sound, and it had all the girls dancing adorably in the venue. Might I mention that everyone in the band was adorable, including the girl guitarist who wore heels and a nice classy dress, and I kinda wanted to be her! I need to find out more information on them and get some music ASAP!
Hockey @ Mercury Lounge
Finally, my night ended at Mercury Lounge where I got to see probably one of the bigger buzzed bands at CMJ at this year, Hockey. I have their album and generally enjoy it, but live they sound much much better! Plus it’s also an automatic dance party! Everyone there seemed to be super into their set and it got pretty sweaty by the end of their set. Lots of energy plus catchy songs equals a great set! I wouldn’t mind seeing them play again, and perhaps with a longer set next time.
So those were the highlights of the past three days for me. Stay tuned for CMJ 2009 – Part Deux!