A Bit Of Craic With The Voxys

The Voxys: March 12 @ Mercury Lounge, New York, NY

About a month ago, I informed all that The Voxys gained a new fan, me! Thursday night, I had the pleasure of seeing them perform again. The band, Julian Colin Sylvester (guitar/vocals), Trevor Murphy (guitar/vocals), William McCormack (bass) and Chad Flewwelling (drums) took the Mercury Lounge stage as part of the 2009 Craic Fest. For those that aren't familiar, The Craic Fest is an annual festival that presents a cultural feast of Irish film and music.

I was really looking forward to seeing The Voxys again. There aren't a lot of bands around that inspire that in me. Those that do, well, you read about them here ... like now. The Voxys are a brilliantly fun band. They have a sound that has them knee deep in the waters of raw garage rock. At the same time, they're reminiscent of 60's Brit pop complete with driving jangly guitars and danceable rhythms. At times, you almost expect to see them wearing matching suits and mop tops. Their live energy inspires and encourages you to bop around.

They kicked off their ten song set with "Bang Out of Order." It set the tone perfectly for the rest of the show. The whole set was great. I'd have to say the highlights of the night for me were the Beatlesque "Sunshine At Midnight" and "Wake Up Penelope." My only complaint is I wish they could have played longer!

They left me with a big smile on my face; a smile that saw me home while bobbing my head to remnants of their set, a set that continued playing in my head long after the band had left the stage. Sure, I garnered some strange looks on the train ride home but, I didn't care. I had a head full of The Voxys and that folks isn't a bad thing to have!

Set List

• Bang Out Of Order
• Champagne Charlie
• Sixth Floor
• Uncle's Gaff
• Zee Germans
• Sunshine At Midnight
• Dirty Protest
• Pirates
• We Die From That
• Wake Up Penelope
  

The video ...
The Voxys - Sixth Floor (live)

www.myspace.com/thevoxys
www.thevoxys.co.uk

An Horse - Rearrange Beds

I've been listening to Rearrange Beds, the first full-length record from Australian indie group An Horse for a couple of weeks now. The duo Kate Cooper (vocals/guitar) and Damon Cox (drums) have put together a clever batch of catchy songs.

Cooper's vulnerable, charmingly snarling vocal delivery meshes well with the fuzzy brand of indie pop they deliver. I'm particularly fond of "Postcards", "Company" and "Scared As Fuck" which contains my favorite line of the whole album, "But I got so scared, that you might be, a better me than me."

The digital version of Rearrange Beds is already available but the physical album will be released March 17. It's well worth a listen especially if you're a fan of fuzzy, catchy pop songs.

If you're in the New York area, you can catch them live at Mercury Lounge on April 18.

Track Listing

• Camp Out
• Postcards
• Company
• Horizons
• Rearrange Beds
• Little Little Little
• Little Lungs
• Scared As Fuck
• Shoes Watch
• Listen

www.myspace.com/anhorse
www.mercuryloungenyc.com

From The Platform: Tafari Kyjuel

Last night I had a night out on the town. My evening started out with a ride on the subway ... the most common mode of transportation for me. I got off the F train at 2nd Avenue and encountered music. I was a bit early so I had some time to sit and listen for a few minutes. The young man playing was Tafari Kyjuel. I asked if I could take a few photos and he indulged me.

Killola Robbed While On Tour

The good folks known as the band Killola have become victims of robbery. They lost equipment and merchandise when some sticky fingered criminal type busted into their car in the wee hours and jacked their stuff. In an effort to replace what was lost and pay for damages, they're printing up some new tee-shirts. So, if you want to help them out and show some support, pick up a tee-shirt ... or two. They're not only a great band but really nice people too.

Click on Lisa for more info about what happened and to pick up a shirt.

Pete Doherty To Release Solo Album March 24

So, Pete Doherty (Libertines, Babyshambles) is releasing his first solo album, Grace/Wastelands on March 24. I've never been the biggest fan of Doherty's. All of the annoying media overkill and beyond cartoonish wasted rock star antics bored me and left me not all that keen to listen to his work most of the time. But, I do like some of the stuff the Libertines released. That being said, I've had a listen to "New Love Grows On Trees" and found that I rather like it. I'm actually curious to hear the rest of the album now.

Click the image to get a free download of "New Love Grows On Trees."


For more info & tour dates ... click on image.


http://www.facebook.com/pages/Pete-Doherty/49047047926

Tickets Go On Sale This Week For Upcoming Shows In The New York Area

One Sale Wednesday, March 11

May 16 -- Peaches at Webster Hall
www.websterhall.com

On Sale Friday, March 13

May 1 -- Tesla at Wellmont Theatre
www.wellmonttheatre.com
May 1 -- India.Arie (pictured left) at Grand Ballroom @ Manhattan Center
www.mcstudios.com/boxoffice
May 26 -- A Camp at Bowery Ballroom
www.boweryballroom.com

June 4 -- Doves (pictured below) at Terminal 5
www.terminal5nyc.com
June 18 -- Madeleine Peyroux at Town Hall
www.the-townhall-nyc.org
July 1 -- MGMT at Celebrate Brooklyn! Prospect Park Bandshell
www.briconline.org/celebrate
July 21 -22 -- Dave Matthews Band at Nikon at Jones Beach Theater
www.jonesbeach.com
August 17 -- Aretha Franklin at Radio City Music Hall
www.radiocity.com



On Sale Saturday, March 14

May 31 -- The Bangels -- Wellmont Theatre
www.wellmonttheatre.com
June 30 -- Explosions In The Sky at Central Park SummerStage
www.summerstage.org

On Sale Monday, March 16

August 3 -- Depeche Mode at Madison Square Garden
www.thegarden.com

6 Questions with the Rockaphones Klas Eriksson

In January, I happened upon a Swedish band called the Rockaphones. I listened to the songs they have available online and became intrigued. Now, I've listened to other artists from Sweden before ... ABBA, Sahara Hotnights and some others. But, none of them involves a banjo! This is something that immediately made me curious. So, my curiosity led me to Klas Eriksson (bass, vocals, trombone) who was kind enough to answer my questions and tell me a bit about the Rockaphones.

Quirky NY Chick (QNYC): I came across your music on Amie Street but I don’t know much about you. Tell me a bit about the band. How did you come together?

Klas Eriksson (KE): We met at the music store in Bålsta, north of Stockholm. Marcus [Filipsson] owned the store first and Thomas [Björklund] bought it from him a couple of years later. I was just the regular customer. Thomas and Marcus wanted to start a band with an acoustic sound and they needed a bass player who could bring some outside influences, so they asked me and we started jamming and arranging some song ideas by Thomas. Both Thomas and Marcus had a background in rock and I came from the jazz and reggae direction. It all landed in some crazy country/rock/reggae with acoustic guitars. We played original songs by Thomas and we did some rearranging of covers too. We started playing together in 2001 and in 2007 we finally found Fredrik [Dermer], a drummer we could consider a genuine member of the band.

Around New York ... March 9 - March 15, 2009

Upcoming shows in the New York area ...

March 9 -- Amie Miriello at The Living Room
www.livingroomny.com
March 9 -- Air Waves / Lady Bright / Dizzy Spells Martian at Cake Shop
www.cake-shop.com
March 9 -- Lonnie Plaxico Group at Blue Note
www.bluenote.net
March 9 -- Heather Nova at Joe's Pub
www.joespub.com
March 9 -10, 12 - 14 -- The Allman Brothers Band at The Beacon Theatre
www.beacontheatre.com
March 10 -- Chin Chin at Union Pool
www.myspace.com/unionpool
March 11 -- Leon Russell at B.B. King Blues Club & Grill
www.bbkingblues.com
March 12 -- Enter The Haggis / Stand / The Voxys (pictured) / Audio Fiction at Mercury Lounge
www.mercuryloungenyc.com
March 12 -- Throwing Muses at Music Hall of Williamsburg
www.musichallofwilliamsburg.com
March 12 -- Eli Paperboy Reed & The True Loves at The Bell House
www.thebellhouseny.com
March 12 -- Andy Stack at Caffe Vivaldi
www.cafevivaldi.com
March 12 - 14 -- The Pogues at Roseland Ballroom
www.roselandballroom.com
March 13 -- BLK JKS at Union Hall
www.unionhallny.com
March 13 -- Bang Camaro / Tab The Band / Kittens Ablaze at Santos Party House
www.santospartyhouse.com
March 13 -- Sparlha Swa at BAMcafé Live
www.bam.org
March 13 - 14 -- The Saw Doctors at Nokia Theatre
www.nokiatheatrenyc.com
March 14 -- All City Concert Choir at Saint Francis College
www.tinyurl.com/sfcmotley
March 14 -- Butch Walker at Webster Hall
www.websterhall.com
March 14 -- Jolie Holland at City Winery
www.citywinery.com
March 14 -- Care Bears On Fire (pictured) at The Bell House
www.thebellhouseny.com
March 15 -- Heavy Trash feat. Jon Spencer & Matt Verta-Ray at Mercury Lounge
www.mercuryloungenyc.com
March 15 -- AC Newman at Bowery Ballroom
www.boweryballroom.com
March 15 -- Simply Red at Radio City Music Hall
www.radiocity.com
March 15 -- The Wailers at The Fillmore New York at Irving Plaza
www.irvingplaza.com

15 Questions with The Voxys

Last month, I had the pleasure of seeing The Voxys perform. They put on a fun, energy filled set that won me over. So, with one show under my belt and repeated plays of their EP Bang Out of Order, I decided, as a new admirer of their music, I should find out more about these guys. I sent off a batch of questions to the band, Julian Colin Sylvester (guitar/vocals), Trevor Murphy (guitar/vocals), William McCormack (bass) and Chad Flewwelling (drums) in a bid to satisfy my curiosity. Nice fellas that they are, they agreed to indulge me.

Quirky NY Chick (QNYC): Some of you are from Ireland, am I correct? Who’s from where?

Trevor Murphy (TM): Yep, I'm from Dublin.

Julian Colin Sylvester (JCS): I grew up in a sheep farm in Patagonia. From there to a caravan.

William McCormack (WM): Kildare, Ireland. I have more in common with Julian (sheep) than I do with Trevor.

Chad Flewwelling (CF): I am from Flint Michigan, a long, long way from Ireland.

(QNYC): Tell me a little about the band. How did you come together?

(TM): We first got together in early 2008 when Julian and I bumped into each other in the bar at a really dull gig (the band will remain nameless). We mutually agreed it was time to start a band playing the music we wanted to hear. Shortly after that we made contact with bass player, and fellow Irish man, William. We got stuck into writing songs. Fast forward 6 months, along came drummer Chad. We all hit it off instantly and within a few days of meeting Chad we booked a recording studio and started recording.

The Voxys To Play 2009 Craic Fest

The Voxys will be taking to the Mercury Lounge stage, March 12, for a bit of merriment. I know where I'll be next Thursday!Also playing will be, Enter The Haggis, Stand and Audio Fiction.

www.thevoxys.co.uk
www.myspace.com/thevoxys
www.thecraicfest.com
www.myspace.com/craicfest
www.myspace.com/enterthehaggis
www.myspace.com/standland
www.myspace.com/audiofictionband
www.mercuryloungenyc.com