Cleveland International Film Festival @ Beachland Ballroom

Sunday, March 23rd! This is going to be an amazing night.  Two great bands, in two great films, in a house of music.  Check these out:

Mistaken for Strangers: Music Documentary on The National / 6pm / $14

I have music from The National, but I can’t say I’m an intense fan.  But I love how this trailer takes a turn to be about family drama about the actual filming of the documentary.  Sold.

The Ballad of Shovels and Rope / 8pm / $14

I’ve seen Shovels and Rope before, and you can’t get much more genuine than these guys.  This trailer shows it.  Here’s a picture of them performing in the Beachland from 2012:

Video Day

The Presets Goodbye Future battle it out on the dance floor with Goodbye Future. Pillar Point’s dancer is battling it out on the street in Dreamin’. Lykki Li goes somber in Love Me Like I’m Not Made of Stone (but I love her anyway).

Bonus: TEEN’s Not for Long, a “psche-pop” band with a new album coming out in April

The Naked and Famous (3/10/14)

Unfortunately, I’ve been under the weather this week - so my assignment for this show was to just grab some great pics.  Gemini Club opened and the were a lot of fun!  Love these pop/dance shows… 

The Naked and Famous were superb.  All kinds of good energy coming from these guys, and the audience was responding.  And speaking of the audience, the best way to describe them was “upper middle class”.  Probably the most upper-middle class that I’ve ever seen.  I won’t hold it against 'em.

Frontier Ruckus (3/9/14)

The House Concerts have been popping up all over Cleveland Heights lately.  This one was in a great house near Cedar-Fairmount, on a Sunday night… and as a first, there were openers!  Seeing Frontier Ruckus in such an intimate atmosphere is the best way to see them.  The conversations, the sound, the saw, the dog that humped everything that moved… it was all spectacular.  And big thanks to that guy randomly passing out beers.  The only downside was the lighting for photos, as I didn’t want to use a flash.  (iPhone vs. DSLR)

This Weekend! Cellar Door Rendezvous Festival @ Beachland Ballroom

Wish I could go… 

“As a testament to the strength of the Cleveland music community, we decided not to book any bands from last year’s event with the exception of the artists on our label, to prove just how much is happening here.” said Cellar Door’s  Justin Markert (Last year’s festival featured The Modern Electric, Herzog, Bethesda, Nights, Humble Home, and more.)  “We can’t say it enough: There is so much great music in this city and it’s our mission to do everything we can to get it into the eyes, ears, and consciousness of everyone in the Cleveland area and beyond.”

Link to an article with more info:http://cellardoorcle.com/site/2014/01/15/cellar-door-rendezvous-2014-announced/

Kickstarter: PONO Music Player

Neil Young has been popping up here and there with this project, but it wasn’t really until SXSW coverage that I realized he’s gotten this far with it!  After watching this video - I’m ready to jump on board!  That’s quite the long list of celebrity endorsements.  I wanna hear what I’m missing!  And congratulations on such a successful (and still happening) campaign!

Video Day

Some good stuff for this snowy March day in Cleveland.  Starting off with this great video by Calvin Love, particularly how it’s filmed.  Next up is Crying for No Reason from Katy B’s new, fun dance album.   Finally, Death Vessle takes on a Tim Burton / Wes Anderson feel with their new video for Mercury Dime

Bonus: The Faint do menacing better than anyone I know, and this video just proves it.

Tomorrow: Naked and Famous @ House of Blues

Before we get to The Naked & Famous, I’d like to mention that Gemini Club is opening and these guys are pretty fun!  Get there early..

The Naked & Famous are a pop/rock band from New Zealand, with a larger than life sound to them.  Should be a great show for the House of Blues.

Spazmatics (3/8/14)

Scoundrel’s!  That’s the name of the bar in Berea where this 80’s cover band named Spazmatics played.  Not my idea, but I’ll jump on anything - and with the rule to document *all* live music experiences, here it is.  I’ll be brief.  Basically just put 4 guys on stage, decked out in total nerd gear, and have them cover the best of the 80’s songs… The ladies loved it!  

Though my friend pointed out that they never really sang complete songs, mostly just repeated the chorus.  I guess you can’t expect much from a party cover band.

Noah Gundersen (3/7/14)

Road Trip!  It was a treat getting to head south for a show at Musica, particularly getting to eat at Crave beforehand!  We got there right on time (early for Cleveland shows) and already missed the first opener. We walked into a nearly packed house!  We did catch some Kris Orlowski who was almost as fun as his mustache.   You could tell that both he and Noah Gundersen were pleasantly surprised for such a robust turnout in Akron, OH.  Noah brought a band on stage with him, that really rounded out his sound and gave some great diversity to his music, ranging from solo acoustic to full band jams.  His voice was amazing too… Check it out.

Water Liars (3/3/14)

Serendipity often plays a role in discovering new music.  I caught that Austin Craig (my last house concert performer) was opening for this band called Water Liars.  His involvement was enough of a reason to give them a listen - and I was sold immediately.  But before that, let’s talk openers.  It turned out that Austin must have changed plans because there was a new guy on the bill, along with Humble Home.  I can’t say that either were going to get me to rush up there.  I did end up catching most of Humble Home’s set.  meh.  Their bassist is stunning, like I’d almost go again to see him play.  Otherwise, the vocals need work.

Water Liars cleared off the stage and laid down some great songs.  I just love their rock-folk-reverb thing they have going.  I would easily put these guys up there with my Alt-Country faves, like Deer Tick and Blitzen Trapper.  Toss in a bit of Sprinsteen and you’re getting closer.

Video Day

Cut Copy’s (incredibly boring) 3D Printed video for We Are Explorers - but I applaud their concept. Next up is a flashier, kinda fun video for Stepdad’s Got The Bite.  Finally we have Diego Garcia (who’s taking himself a little too seriously) in his video for Tell Me.

This week’s bonus is getting campy, with RuPaul’s new video for Geronimo.

Tonight: Water Liars @ Beachland Tavern

This is going to be an awesome show tonight.  I’ve been binging on Water Liars the last couple days, and have been enjoying every minute of it.

Check their stuff out!

Lydia Loveless (2/27/14)

Catching Lydia Loveless last night was such a treat.  She’s a little powerhouse of a performer, with alluring blend of passion, grit, and strong femininity.  See what you missed (or maybe didn’t).

What was also fun was that I posted this picture from the Tavern bathroom on my Tumblr page (thezenderagenda.tumblr.com) which got quite the attention, with reblogs from Mac himself, as well as Arctic Monkeys and MGMT!

Video Day

Starting this week is a beautifully shot (and creepy) video for Children of the Night by Isaac Delusion.  Next up is Danish artist MØ with a slick, yet odd video for Don’t Wanna Dance.  Then… Phantogram with an incredible bass line for Fall in Love.

Bonus, is a slightly older video from my favorite Colombian band, Bomba Estereo!  Now I have to grab the album…