Favorite Shows of 2011
My final tally for 2011 in live music comes to just under 120 shows attended, and over 300 bands seen, many multiple times. I started with the intention of making my usual list of 10 favorites plus a few honorable mentions, but had to swell it to a top 20 - truly, I was lucky enough to see and photograph a bunch of incredible shows this year. The list, and links to more photos for almost all of them, below! Please note: this list is excessively wordy, superlative-ridden, and un-proofread, because that’s how I roll.
1. Sufjan Stevens, My Brightest Diamond @ Celebrate Brooklyn (August 2)
Sufjan Stevens brought out the neon for two final epic Age of Adz shows at Prospect Park this summer. 180 degrees removed from his usual introverted folk, the Adz material is, in my opinion, his strongest, and the accompanying show is a masterwork, a celebration of the body electric with lights and dancers and giant inflatable balls soaring into the audience. Take Impossible Soul, an epic length song spanning 25 minutes and incorporating a dizzying array of moods and styles, that still manages to gel together as a cohesive unit. Drop aforementioned inflatable balls into the crowd during the song’s climax. Cue a breakout of dancing, of faces split wide in ecstatic grins, a rush of positive energy. That would be the whole evening in a nutshell, where not only the music, but the showmanship, the whole spectacle, was amazing, which is what made this my very favorite show of the year.
More photos here on BrooklynVegan.
2. Wild Flag, Yellow Fever @ Rock Shop (March 5) (+ October 18 @ Bowery Ballroom w/Eleanor Friedberger, Hospitality)
One of my favorite live music moments ever took place at this show. It went as follows: I was standing against the small, low stage at the Rock Shop, right in front of Carrie Brownstein. This in and of itself is a cause for eye-bulging glee, as Carrie is incredible and an idol of mine going back to the days of Sleater-Kinney, who I never was able to see live. Then, as I crouched down to get a particular angle to take pictures from, Carrie leaned over me and started rocking out on her guitar right in front of my face. My memory at this point stops following a linear timeline and jumps to exclamation points of ecstatic bliss. This tiny Brooklyn show was Wild Flag’s first in NYC and it was incredibly exciting; while their debut album doesn’t always do it for me, their live show is raring and ready to go.
More photos from this show here and of their Bowery show here on BrooklynVegan.
3. Our Concert Could Be Your Life @ Bowery Ballroom w/Ted Leo, St. Vincent, Dirty Projectors, Dan Deacon, Titus Andronicus, tUnE-YaRdS, Wye Oak, Callers, Buke and Gass, Citay, Delicate Steve, Grooms, White Hills, Yellow Ostrich (May 22)
Any show with this many bands slated to perform short sets is almost guaranteed to have some delays and organizational snafus, but from my vantage point at the stage this went down basically without a hitch. Bringing together an excellent and eclectic group of current musicians, including many of my favorites, to cover classic bands from Michael Azerrad’s book Our Band Could Be Your Life, this tribute show either looked like the greatest thing ever or a travesty, depending on your point of view - not that I needed much convincing, but at the end I was firmly in team greatest thing ever. Special guests and exciting moments were in plenty, but the number one highlight of the night was definitely Annie Clark covering Big Black. With her trademark shock of curls slicked back, Annie looked as sharp as a knife, and she attacked those covers with an animal ferocity. Major highlight number two was a medley of Nirvana covers performed by an assortment of band members, particularly Merrill Garbus’s perfect (to my ears) cover of Lithium. Then, lots of people crowdsurfed. It was really refreshing to me to see the inclusion of so many lady-fronted bands, especially considering the source material was sort of lacking in that department - hopefully this is an indicator that the landscape is shifting, that rock is becoming less of a boy’s club.
More photos here on BrooklynVegan.
4. Jeff Mangum, A Hawk and a Hacksaw @ Paramount Theater (October 3) (+ ATP I’ll Be Your Mirror w/Portishead, Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy, Battles, The Horrors, Oneida, Public Enemy, Deerhoof, Anika, DD/MM/YYYY @ Asbury Park Convention Center, September 30-October 2)
I’d only been to Asbury Park once before this year-at 15, my friend Doreen and I went down to the Convention Center to see Blink 182 and Silverchair (I know, right?). Waiting in line outside on that chilly day in autumn I remember looking around at the desolate ocean and dilapidated, seedy buildings and my imagination instantly being captured. I was therefore happy to have an excuse to take a trip back down, particularly to attend my first ATP event. I’ve always enjoyed reading accounts of people’s experiences at All Tomorrow’s Parties, reportedly a haven/fantasy camp for real music lovers, but the lineups of the previous New York evens skewed mostly a little too noisy, a little too experimental for my tastes (yes I’m boring, whatever). This year the promise of performances by Jeff Mangum and Portishead were enough to get me to buy a ticket. Of course I took advantage of the opportunity to see Mangum twice, once on the first night of ATP and again at a separate but still ATP-affiliated show the Monday after. The Monday show was the really perfect one for me, which found Jeff chatty and asking us to sing along, and members of A Hawk and A Hacksaw coming out to join him for a rendition of The Fool like I’d only ever heard on record before. Traveling down to Asbury Park by train, a trip that takes over two hours for me, felt a little like a religious pilgrimage, also a little ridiculous, but isn’t an experience I would trade for anything. Then there was the point during ATP proper when I spotted Jeff in the crowd while Public Enemy was soundchecking. He was standing with some people just minding his own business in his usual plaid shirt and hat, and I walked over and kind of circled the whole group a few times trying to work up the nerve to say hi. Finally I darted in, whispered thank you, and darted away again-but not before he shook my hand and patted his chest above his heart. Cue Amanda melting on the spot.
Otherwise ATP was a mixed bag for me musically, but a really fun time in general. I saw Portishead on Saturday night right at the front and watched in awe as Beth Gibbons crowdsurfed and ran along the barricade giving hugs and touching hands. Some of the noisier bands I could only take in small portions, and left wondering what enjoyment people really got out of them aside from the deluge of painful, punishing volume. Wandering around the autumn beach, running into people I knew everywhere, and sitting by a bonfire were nonmusical atmospheric highlights, as well as the many entertaining opportunities for people-watching.
5. Sharon Van Etten @ Bowery Ballroom (January 8) (+ April 16 @ Music Hall of Williamsburg w/Megafaun, She Keeps Bees)
I had a good feeling that after selling out Mercury Lounge and The Rock Shop, Sharon Van Etten’s next step would be to headline and sell out Bowery Ballroom. This slow-burning but steady rise to success, which has now gained considerable momentum, couldn’t have happened to a more deserving person: Sharon is one of the sweetest, most genuine and gracious music type person I’ve had the pleasure of meeting, and that’s aside from her gorgeous, heartrending songs. This evening at Bowery Ballroom felt like a celebration of her success, with lots of vocal friends and family in the audience, and few eyes remaining entirely dry. The ending cover of Strange Currencies was just the icing on the cake of a perfect night.
More photos here on A Heart is a Spade.
6. PJ Harvey @ Terminal 5 (April 19)
PJ Harvey doesn’t come to New York very often, so hearing she’d be playing one of my least favorite venues didn’t stop me from desperately wanting to go. I’ve been listening to the enigmatic Polly Jean since I was a teenager and had never seen her live. For the sake of nostalgia I would’ve loved for her to be in full guitar goddess mode, but PJ Harvey wouldn’t be herself if she didn’t constantly defy expectations and do her own thing. Terminal 5 can be a miserable place to see and hear a show, but from the vantage point of the VIP balcony and the thrilling proximity of the photo pit (where, I confess, I maybe almost started hyperventilating at being omg so close to PJ Harvey omg!) her quiet but commanding voice and presence were captivating. The Let England Shake material is incredible and her strongest in years, but the highlight of the night for me came in the encore during Angelene (also, the first PJ song I ever heard).
More photos here on BrooklynVegan.
7. SXSW Backyard BBQ w/Erland and the Carnival, Great Lake Swimmers, Josh T. Pearson, Lost in the Trees, One Hundred Flowers, Strand of Oaks, The Loom, The Luyas, Yellow Ostrich (March 18)
I went to SXSW for the first time this year and was unprepared for the amount of activity concentrated around Sixth Street, where it seems that out of every other building you pass you get a blast of music bowling you over on the sidewalk, all mixing together into a cacophony under the sun. It’s probably not surprising, then, that the highlight of my week took place three miles north of the bulk of the maddening crowd, chilling in a backyard with a treehouse and bbq and a bunch of bands I know and love playing, organized by Muzzle of Bees and the lovely folks from The Loom. The Luyas were joined on violin by Sarah Neufeld of Arcade Fire, which augmented their sound appreciably. During Lost in the Trees I climbed up into the treehouse and shot the band from between the branches, feeling very clever and probably suffering from a certain degree of heat-stroke, but that’s okay. Last to play was Josh T. Pearson, and the setting couldn’t have been more perfect. After some good-humored sniping with a heckler (seriously Josh T. Pearson is unexpectedly hilarious apart from the somber nature of his songs) the crowd grew so quiet that the only audible accompaniments to Josh’s gentle finger-picked guitar and gravelly, emotive voice were crickets and the chirping of birds. A perfect transcendent moment as the sun began to descend and the air began to finally cool.
More photos here on BrooklynVegan.
8. The Antlers @ Knitting Factory (May 6) (+ May 19 @ Music Hall of Williamsburg, May 20 @ Bowery Ballroom w/Little Scream, December 10 @ Webster Hall w/Suuns)
It was difficult to choose which of the four times I saw The Antlers play this year was the best. They’ve easily become one of my favorite bands live and on record, and because they’re from Brooklyn we’re lucky enough to see them multiple times in a year as they return home from tours. The December Webster Hall show was particularly exciting as it was the largest space the band had headlined and sold out in New York, and they totally owned the large space, sounding huger than ever. Both the Music Hall and Bowery shows mid-May with the delightful Little Scream opening were great as well. But my pick has to go to the free, 1 am show at Knitting Factory, where I heard The Antlers play their new album Burst Apart for the first time, followed by the perfect emotional punch in the gut encore of Two and Wake, aka also my two favorite songs off Hospice, aka sobfest all the time. I deliberately chose not to listen to any of the leaks or streams of Burst Apart beforehand and let this show be my first experience with the songs, and was really happy I did - The Antlers sound great on record, but live they’re enormous and enveloping, to the point where on Rolled Together, while totally sober, I started freaking out about how absolutely amazing it sounded.
So many Antlers photos this year! Webster Hall show, Music Hall of Williamsburg show, and Knitting Factory show photos on BrooklynVegan, and Bowery Ballroom show photos on A Heart is a Spade.
9. The Weakerthans (performing Left & Leaving), Dinosaur Bones @ Bowery Ballroom (December 8)
The Weakerthans are one of my favorite bands ever so I was incredibly excited when they announced a run of four shows at my favorite venue, Bowery Ballroom, playing each of their albums from beginning to end plus a collection of other favorites. My first instinct was to go to all four shows, but the week in December when they were scheduled was already a busy one so I knew I’d have to settle for just one (me and my first world problems). Left & Leaving edges out slightly ahead of Reconstruction Site for the title of my favorite Weakerthans album; in my opinion, Reconstruction Site marks the point where more character-driven, less personal songs start making an appearance. Which isn’t a bad thing, but Left & Leaving, taken as a whole, is still their most personally resonant collection of songs, for me. So it was obviously a delight to stand in the middle of a crowd of fervent fans, singing along to every word like they’d done on headphones and in their bedrooms countless times. What set The Weakerthans apart for me is the strength of their lyrics; while they touch on familiar themes of loneliness, dysfunctional relationships, and transitions, they always leave off on a hopeful note, which is perhaps what makes their songs so anthemic for a certain sort of sad-tending person (like me).
More photos here on BrooklynVegan.
10. Zola Jesus, Panopticon @ Le Poisson Rouge (October 19)
With the release of Conatus, Zola Jesus traded her mop of black hair and drape of black clothes for bleach-blonde and white, but lost none of her intensity. Under kaleidoscope lights she paced back and forth across the stage, belting and moaning, all the while holding the audience spellbound. It’s unusual for me to see such a memorable single performance amidst the noise and activity of CMJ, but this show was so good that while it ended fairly early, with plenty of time to head down to the Lower East Side and cram myself against more little stages in the sweaty dark, I chose to call it a night instead and let my elation sink in.
More photos here on BrooklynVegan.
11. St. Vincent, Cate le Bon @ Webster Hall (November 3)
There’s always been something a little cool, a little removed about Annie Clark. She shreds away at her guitar with eye-widening technical skill but behind that porcelain skin and those red lips you can feel something being held back, a set of sharp teeth waiting to devour you if you get too close. There’s undeniable power in the dichotomy between appearance and the maelstrom of sound and noise that sometimes issues from that guitar, and Annie certainly exploits that well, but I’d never really seen her cut lose. Until, that is, in the climax of her Webster Hall show she flung herself from the stage during Your Lips are Red, crowd-surfed with her guitar, then returned to her feet to sing “your skin’s so fair it’s not fair,” cool as can be as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened. Is it any wonder we’re all so fascinated by her?
More photos here on BrooklynVegan.
12. CSS, MEN, EMA @ Webster Hall (October 22)
By Saturday, the final night of CMJ, I was fading fast and questioning whether I had the stamina necessary to make it through a high energy set from CSS. Pushing your body to its limits is just what you do at a music marathon, though, and I reasoned that escape to the balcony was always an option if getting caught up in the dancing throng up front proved too exhausting. A short but powerful set from EMA kicked off the night, and I was happy I hadn’t wimped out of coming for nothing else than being there to witness it. At the end of a hectic string of CMJ performances herself, Erica M Anderson still brought her set to an epic climax with an extended version of Butterfly Knife, taking the aggression a self-injurer would unleash upon her skin and attacking her guitar with it instead, holding it out for a girl in the front to touch. It was an extremely emotionally resonant thing to me, as many of her songs are, but not something I feel I can explain much better than that - if you know, you know. MEN were energetic and fun and thought-provoking as ever-seriously, their set led to me having a conversation with the ladies next to me, strangers, about trans-identity politics which is certainly not a conversation you usually have with strangers at a show, but I digress! Then CSS came out and blew us all away. Lovefoxxx is one of the most supremely confident performers I’ve had the pleasure of witnessing, belting out slightly off-kilter party anthems for weirdos between cartwheels, tumbles, and splits. It’s impossible not to be caught up in the spectacle, and all previous thoughts of tiredness and early escapes upstairs were put aside.
More photos here on BrooklynVegan.
13. Lykke Li, Grimes @ Webster Hall (May 18) (+ November 17 @ Wellmont Theatre)
Lykke Li is a mesmerizing performer, and one who understands the value of bright and dramatic stage lights, much to my great glee as a photographer. I shot two of her shows this year and both were totally visually thrilling, as well as sounding amazing. The Webster Hall show with Grimes opening was perhaps a bit more energetic, but later in the year at Wellmont Theatre I saw the lovely ladies of First Aid Kit join Lykke Li onstage to sing Silent My Song together and almost exploded from squealing with joy. The moral of the story is see Lykke Li whenever you get the opportunity, and prepare to dance.
More photos from the Webster Hall show here, and the Wellmont Theatre show here on BrooklynVegan.
14. Rock & Roll Circus w/Ariel Pink, Amazing Baby, Saint Motel, Aska @ Damrosch Park Bandshell (January 4) (+ January 3 w/Japanther, The Pharmacy, Voxhaul Broadcast, The So So Glos, Electric Tickle Machine)
January is typically quiet for shows, but I started my year in live music off with a bang in 2010 with back-to-back nights at the Rock & Roll Circus. Held under the big top at Damrosch Park Bandshell in Lincoln Center, the Rock & Roll Circus was an utterly unique and unfortunately unsuited venue for this assortment of bands and fans, but there’s undeniable entertainment value in a good shitshow, which this certainly was. Night 1 was free and found bands like The So So Glos and Japanther urging a thin but enthusiastic crowd out of their seats and into the ring, much to the chagrin of security, who I doubt knew what to make of the scene. Accusations of rioting were tossed around but that’s an overstatement by far, just the usual moshing and rowdiness that accompanies loud bands at small DIY shows, now moved to a location where reasonable expectations for behavior were totally at odds with the aforementioned status-quo. Night 2 started off much more calmly, with paid tickets and bands kids were less likely to come lose their shit for. Kind of boring, actually, but for the circus setting and the presence between sets of circus performers. Aska was accompanied by both Nick Zinner of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs and a troupe of contortionists, a woman flew on silks, and the highlight of the night happened when a herd of white ponies trotted around the ring to a soundtrack of Keith Urban. Ponies, you guys! Then Ariel Pink came out and did a bizarre, half-assed karaoke caricature of a performance while two girls hula-hooped in the ring. He walked through the crowd, climbed some scaffolding, and after a half hour or so just walked out and didn’t come back. It may seem strange that given all the weirdness and poor organization I’m ranking these shows in my top 20 of the year, but they were really two of the most amusing show-going nights I’ve had all year, albeit not always in a good way. Also, ponies!
More pictures from night 1 and night 2 here on BrooklynVegan.
15. Wye Oak, Callers, Caveman @ Bowery Ballroom (April 14)
With the release of the amazing Civilian this year, Wye Oak graduated from being a band you catch and are intrigued by in opening spots tons of times to a band that sells out Bowery Ballroom, aka my favorite venue in the city, and sounds absolutely sublime doing so. It’s easy to lose focus of everything but Jenn Wasner as her hair billows about with the force of her guitar playing, but it’d be criminal to ignore Andy Stack doing some truly masterful multitasking, to the tune of simultaneous drum and keyboard playing.
More pictures here on A Heart is a Spade, also, pictures from Wye Oak’s Rock Shop show here on BrooklynVegan.
16. BrooklynVegan Holiday Party w/Anna Calvi, Eleanor Friedberger, New Moods @ Music Hall of Williamsburg (December 13)
The first of three BrooklynVegan Holiday Party shows, two of which I went to, was definitely my favorite. New Moods were one of the bands I caught for a few hurried minutes of shooting at SXSW and filed away as uninterested, but they were quite good this time around, when I caught their full set. My fourth time seeing Eleanor Friedberger was not much different than the first three, but every time I’m charmed by her perfect stream of consciousness pop songs and quirky fashion sense. Then a powerhouse performance by Anna Calvi, who I was slightly underwhelmed by when I saw her earlier in the year at Bowery Ballroom. Some time on the road appears to have given her much more confidence onstage, because now she melts hearts and weakens knees as she smolders and shreds away at her guitar. Hello, I’m a little bit smitten.
More pictures here on BrooklynVegan.
17. Yann Tiersen, Breathe Owl Breathe @ Highline Ballroom (February 19)
I remember waiting in line outside Highline Ballroom for this show on a terribly cold evening in February with lots of Francophiles, and how the moon was full and shone through a bare tree branch when I looked up. Breathe Owl Breathe played us some of their enchanting folk-pop, at times with props including a wolf mask and hand-puppets, to open the night; then Yann Tiersen delivered a set of strange and beautiful music from violin and electronics, mostly without words, worlds away from the whimsical fare that soundtracks Amelie. Then, turned out into the cold again, the moon still shining down on our heads, diminishing otherworldly reverberations echoing in our ears.
More pictures here on BrooklynVegan.
18. The Raincoats, Grass Widow, No Bra @ Warsaw (September 16)
Most of the time when I think of nostalgia or reunion acts I think of aging dudes playing songs that, whatever their importance in years passed, whatever new sounds they heralded or new bands they inspired, are irrelevant to me, now. Not so with The Raincoats! So many feminist friendly folks flocked to The Warsaw, which is strongly reminiscent of a highschool gymnasium, to see proof that older ladies can still rock out. Oddly, and sadly, it’s one of the only true examples of that I’ve seen in my prolific show-going.
I shot this show for BrooklynVegan but sadly the pictures have yet to make a post, so if you’d like to see them, bug BV about it!
19. Youth Lagoon, Young Magic @ Mercury Lounge (September 12)
I first saw Youth Lagoon after hearing only a couple of his tracks off Bandcamp, but I knew right away he was something special. Claustrophobic lyrics brimming with adolescent anxiety are rarely accompanied by music so tuneful and catchy, and Trevor Powers charmed the crowd at his sold-out NYC debut from the get-go.
More pictures here on BrooklynVegan.
20. Puro Instinct, John Maus, Geneva Jacuzzi @ Mercury Lounge (June 29)
The most entertaining evening I’ve ever had at Mercury Lounge started off with an old woman called Amazing Amy doing yoga poses onstage. Then Geneva Jacuzzi, a young woman dressed as a mime, paced back and forth and performed a variety of theatrical hand gestures over an iPod backing track. These were both amusing spectacles, but they had nothing on watching John Maus. He also sings over a backing track, although when I say sing, I really mean an assortment of shouts and strangled yells. I was standing at the front of the stage, directly below Maus, and was treated to a shower of spit as he yelled in fury, clutched at and pounded his chest like a man in agony, jumped up and down, sometimes on chairs, and stared out at us all with the wide-eyed gaze of a madman. I was a little afraid that he’d take a swing at me, crouched down beneath him, but mostly I was riveted to the spot. It’s a bit of a schtick on repeat viewings but you definitely need to see it once. Puro Instinct was a letdown after all that intensity, but this show still ranks as one of the most amusing nights I experienced all summer.
More pictures here on BrooklynVegan.
