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/ / / / / CONCERT REVIEW

NOISEttes / LIVE IN NEW YORK CITY

:: Oct 24 : This Side Up Sounds / I Rock I Roll CMJ Showcase @ Rehab, Lower East Side

[ setlist: The Count of Monte Christo . Scratch Your Name . Atticus [NEW TRACK] . 24 Hours Ago [NEW TRACK] . Don't Give Up . Wild Young Hearts [NEW TRACK] . Beat of My Heart [NEW TRACK] . Sister Rosetta (Capture The Spirit) ]

Short, but sweet gig by UK three-piece NOISEttes in New York's Lower East Side during the annual CMJ music marathon. The set marks the trio's first US appearance in almost a year as the band hid away for some time to record and finish their upcoming sophomore album.

Shingai was as bright and charismatic as ever on vocals and guitar, taking sips of beer right out of the hands of concertgoers up front. Plus, Dan noticeably showed more power and a greater handle on his instrument. Seeing them a year prior and catching their set today, there is definitely an improved and assured tone to this performance.

They also debuted four new tracks from their titled-but-yet-to-be-announced sophomore LP. "Atticus" was a confessional, semi-gothic number with a haunted spirit. My standout favorite was "24 Hours Ago" a danceable, new wave laden ode to short but meaningful love. The bridge and the instrumentation on that tune was amazing. There was a spirit in it that just made me bounce and shake around in appreciation. "Wild Young Hearts" and "Beat of My Heart" also had great energy. And continued on in the vein of their smashing debut.

Posted by Devon at 05:32 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

/ / / / / CONCERT REVIEW

SAM SPARRO / LIVE IN LONDON

:: October 04 :: Shepherd's Bush Empire, Shepherd's Bush

[ Setlist: S.A.M.S.P.A.R.R.O . 21 Century Life . Cut Me Loose . Hot Mess . Money . Sally/Sex Shooter . Sick . Black & Gold . Pocket . Gypsy Woman (She's Homeless) (Crystal Waters Cover) ]

Lively closing show by indie music's man of the hour Sam Sparro. He wrapped up his multidate UK WONKY POP trek in London at the famed Shepherd's Bush Empire venue. The place was sold out and the vibe was celebratory as he closed his tour.

The show started with the eponymous track S.A.M.S.P.A.R.R.O. which was sung by three really charismatic gospel-like singers on backing vocals. They really filled the stage and gave each of the songs life that night. In between songs they'd break out into old school dances, doing the Running Man and the Roger Rabbit with the crowd screaming along in full camaraderie.

Sam was good vocally, he managed to be charismatic and charming on stage and you could tell he cared about his fans and his audience. During one point, a concertgoer threw orange undies on-stage adorned with Sharpie-inked messages of adoration. Sam gleefully accepted and offer up some laughs at the randomness of the gift. Moments like this just warmed up the show throughout.

My favorite moments of the show had to be the back-to-back jam session of "Sally" and "Sick." The band was going and everything was in full tilt. The lyrics, the lights, the music all came together for a delicious aural experience.

Plus, "Black & Gold" -- the song Sam has come to be known for -- was the ultimate part of the already great night. The entire house was on its feet for it and were singing every line when he held his mic out into the audience (including myself). I was moving around the venue getting a feel for the place and the crowd and scores of refreshed, calm faces were dancing, chanting along with drinks in hand and whistling on from the rafters.

As if it weren't already a great show, Sam finished the gig with a few more tunes from his debut and brought down the house with a rousing, fleshed out rendition of Crystal Water's '91 classic "Gypsy Woman (She's Homeless)." His big-voiced background singers accentuated on every note and even filled in with vocal pieces from Soul II Soul's "Back To Life." It was such a good show that as people left the venue one girl filled with joy screamed out "I want to be Gay!" as if it was just simply unfair that she wasn't. At least for that night, we could be anything we wanted.

Posted by Devon at 09:41 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Wonder where the updates gone? The Pocketrock blog is amidst a comprehensive, all-encompassing revamp. The site is taking some down time from music updates to fully devote itself to its new identity and next evolution, entitled, POCKETROCKL:FE -- a brand-new lifestyle portal dedicated to dance music, style and buzz. Expect an entirely new design, a new server, innovative new features and, of course, the newest in dance, electronic, indie and pop music. A slue of new projects and collaborations are in the works with this restructuring, so stick around and keep your bookmarks loaded for our return. Launch date will be announced very soon. Stay tuned.

Posted by Devon at 06:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The Futureheads / Radio Heart (2008) [music video]

Second video from The F'heads forthcoming release This Is Not The World.

Posted by Devon at 06:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

::: CONCERT REVIEW

CALVIN HARRIS / LIVE IN NEW YORK CITY

:: April 28 :: Bowery Ballroom, Lower East Side

Setlist: Conjoined Shin . Certified . Disco Heat . This Is The Industry . Acceptable In The '80s . Merrymaking At My Place . Neon Rocks . Backdoor . Jerusalem . Colours . Vegas . I Created Disco . The Girls

Asskickery was on hand Monday night as electro-Scot Calvin Harris descended upon the Bowery Ballroom for a sold out gig following his hotly anticipated Coachella debut. The gig marked Calvin's second New York appearance (this time with a new drummer and official co-guitarist Irving -- whose visa issues prevented him from making it first time out). Scores of colorful kids and dance addicts of all types filled the hall. The crowd got warmed up by the sounds of UK DJ Burns who spun a crowd-pleasing mix of current indie dance favorites.

Calvin opened up his sizeable set with two instrumentals (including a brand new track "Conjoined Shin") flourishing into the electro-rock banger "Disco Heat." The track killed. Guitarist Irving rocked out to the song and the entire band was jumping. It was some rock star madness going on in the building.

The big singles "Merrymaking" and "Acceptable In The '80s" were, of course, fan anthems which the crowd shouted word-for-word.

It was a true dance rock party by the show's midsection. An impromptu dancefloor got underway, with Calvin debuting two new tracks -- "Backdoor" and "Jerusalem." The latter brimmed with all the sheen of a midseventies disco tune, equipped with the sounds of violins and bass guitar. "This is Dance Music!" Harris shouted as an energetic team of revelers cheered him on.

If he titled his LP "I Created Disco" in jest, it surely was the case towards this point as the front section of the audience was reveling in full delirium. Calvin and his band would not let the energy go or die off. Even when you thought "Colours" or the title tune were over, he continued to let you have it, groove after groove, commanding the crowd to jump, lights signaling on and off in motion -- demanding the most from the already sweaty crowd.

Finishing with "The Girls," it was evident that he owned the night. Mr. Merrymaking needed no microphone as the whole building pretty much drowned out his croons (even before the verses began). Giving it his all until the end, the closer was a kinetic send off to an already exuberant show. As the closing show of his full U.S. tour, it was one I didn't want to end and hope to catch very soon again.

Posted by Devon at 06:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Alphabeat / Fascination (2008) [youtube video]

Great new music from Danish indie pop act Alphabeat. They are currently amidst a national tour of the UK and this single is all the buzz on MTV UK. This single feels like being slapped in the face with a sunbeam. Love it.

Posted by Devon at 06:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

/ / / / / LONDON WEEK

M83 has returned with a heady offering entitled "Saturdays=Youth." The album, which is a tribute to M83's upbringing as a child and as he says, "the last time when everything made sense" is out in stores April 14th. Its lead single "Couleurs" is as atmospheric as they come, you can completely get lost in the rhythm and absorbed in the synths in the roomy tune. The album does bring about great colors when played, and you can get a better sense of the album by checking out the tunes on his myspace player.

M83 / Couleurs (2008) [zshare mp3 download]

Posted by Devon at 06:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

/ / / / / LONDON WEEK

Hot Chip / One Pure Thought (2008) [myspace video]

The latest single from Hot Chip's Made In The Dark album "One Pure Thought," finds the fivesome getting very Monet in their video, but even moreso bringing the indie collective a proper dance pop song. There's great references to Nile Rodgers and the Macarena ...all in one stanza. I just love when songs pay homage to Nile because he's underrated enough as it is in the development of dance pop, new wave/rave and dance rock music in general. So "One Pure Thought" is a thinly veiled tribute of sorts to his legend. Not the most memorable of videos, but for me, it's all about the tune.

Also, the original version of the track is so good, it rarely calls for a remix, but if you like, here's a dancehall tinged version offered up by Toddla T:

Hot Chip / One Pure Thought (Toddla T Remix) (2008)

Posted by Devon at 06:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

/ / / / / LONDON WEEK

I'm travelling to London in a few weeks time, so I've got lots of British stuff on these days. This band in particular, Mr Hudson & The Library, has been garnering a lot of repeat rotation on my player. I was kinda-sorta playing this and/or humming this all weekend. Great spring album. Looking forward to the sights and sounds of London -- from Camden to Shoreditch, Fabric to Astoria.

Posted by Devon at 06:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Three recent pictures have surfaced of the NOISEttes via their official myspace in Austin, Texas. The trio recently performed at the city's famed South By Southwest festival and are in the process of recording new material, although no release date has been set. They're performing April 18th at the Camden Crawl festival in London. Along with an Electric Picnic appearance slated for summer. Stay with POCKETROCK as more updates develop.

Posted by Devon at 06:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

A danceable evening got underway as Groove Armada performed to a sizeable house at New York's heralded Cielo nightclub in the Meatpacking District. Lots of favorites were performed including "Superstylin" and newer cuts such as "Love Sweet Sound" and "Get Down" (which was my highlight of the night). Their remix of Justice's "Phantom" also got the highly international crowd moving as high hands and loud claps greeted every bass thump. Nowhere near a Lovebox Weekender, but pretty darn close for a workaday Tuesday night.

Groove Armada @ Cielo [flickr photo album]

Posted by Devon at 06:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Lykke Li / Little Bit [youtube video]

Hot new sensation out of Sweden. Lykke Li combines sugary-sweet vocals and funked out electro beats on her latest offering "Little Bit." Note to Chewing Gum diva Annie, stop sleeping, someone's trying to steal your thunder in Scandinavia!

Posted by Devon at 06:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Cicada were the buzz of 2006 with their self-titled debut album and the hot dancefloor cuts "The Things You Say" and "Electric Blue." They are still making the rounds around the globe doing DJ sets, and can be heard on their latest DJ mix spinning delicious electro-house and indie dance grooves. One song in particular I like from their new 30 minute mix compilation is a new reworking of Janet's 1986 classic "What Have You Done For Me Lately." It retains the same funkiness of the original and updates it for an indie audience. Worth the download. They've stated on their myspace that they're currently "busy working on a new album." So it's best to keep up with their myspace for more updates.

Cicada / March 2008 30 minute DJ Mix [free mp3 download]

Posted by Devon at 06:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)