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Loads of rebels, rockers and record reps
shake-up The Big Apple

CMJ Music Marathon 2011
Various clubs
New York, NY
October 18 - 22, 2011
Dry The River
Dry The River
Hands
Hands
Mother Feather
Mother Feather

Story and photos by Tony Bonyata

Anyone who thinks rock music is dead either doesn't listen to college radio or, obviously, has never attended NYC's annual CMJ Music Marathon. Both have been huge longtime supporters of new emerging acts of all genres (with obvious leanings towards rock, or indie rock as it's often referred to these days).

The CMJ Music Marathon is put together by the College Music Journal, who publish a weekly music industry magazine that not only uncovers new young talents, but also compiles a weekly music chart from reporting college radio stations across the nation (kind of a Billboard Top 200 for hipsters).

Last week the CMJ Music Marathon celebrated 31 years in The Big Apple and it was, yet again, a huge success - filling Lower Manhattan and Brooklyn both day & night with literally tens of thousands of music fans, bands and industry professionals. Trying to navigate even a fraction of the 1300+ bands performing in more than 80 venues around town would be a daunting task for even the most weathered NYC club-goer. So instead of picking all the acts I really wanted to see (and, brother, were there plenty) I instead laid out a more organic and free-flowing map - hitting one club, catching an act or two (or three) and then hopping to the next closest venue. Of course, there were a number of acts that were definitely sleepers, but with so many great new talents in town, why rip on these bands that you'll never hear anyway?

There were a number of acts that did leave a lasting impression on me, such as the Virginia based trio Eternal Summers who delivered an impassioned set of feral punk rock. Drummer extraordinaire Daniel Cundiff transported these blistering short blasts of songs into amphetamine-fueled bliss, while their new bass player, Jonathan, added fluid bass lines that often broke into their own complex leads. Singer/guitarist Nicole Yun proved to be the trio's anchor as she furiously attacked her guitar while staring down her audience, seemingly one by one. Surprisingly, the threesome eschewed much of the material from their 2010 full-length, Silver, in favor of showcasing the insanely harder-edged material from their forthcoming release on Kanine Records. It definitely paid-off.

Not too far off in style was the Nashville-based garage-rock trio Pujol, who despite playing an early Saturday set at The Cake Shop, packed the small club with a feverish audience that more than once turned into a crowd-surfing moshpit, especially during the song "Mayday" from their recent album Nasty, Brutish and Short. No wonder, considering the trio's raw and immediate style of garage-punk, spiked with catchy pop hooks. Performing right before Pujol was the band Bleached who, led by two attractive blonde female singer/guitarists, plowed through a smile-inducing set of bouncy three-chord pop-punk that would've made Joey & Dee Dee proud.

Running in-between sets I managed to squeeze in the last song of indie rockers Abadbad's set at Googie's Lounge. Hard to base an opinion on just one live number, but considering the band's terrific sound and energy, I'll definitely be checking out more from these guys soon.

Sea of Bees (aka singer/songwriter Julie Ann Baenziger) took the stage on Friday at Rockwood Music Hall and delivered a hypnotizing set of stirring acoustic indie-folk ballads including gems such as "Wizbot" and "Gnomes" from her recent album Songs for the Raven. Baenziger's quirky and cute-as-a-bug stage banter drew her enraptured audience in closer, while her wistful and mesmerizing voice didn't move mountains as much as it slowly melted them away by the end of her engaging set.

Tapping into the current craze of Golden Era '60s and '70s R&B, spearheaded by the likes of the late Amy Winehouse, Fitz & The Tantrums, Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings, et al, Kendra Morris led a stage sprawling band - horns, rhythm section and a pair of female background singers (natch) - into a fantastic set of passionate soul and rousing R&B late Friday night. Whether the R&B trend will continue or not is yet to be seen, but one thing is for sure, Ms. Morris has a commanding voice and presence that would easily translate into any genre.

I wasn't prepared for this performance to be bettered (at least that evening), but immediately following her set was a mind-blowing performance from the NYC-based act Mother Feather. This self-proclaimed pop cock-rock band morphed early'70s glam rock with shades of heavy metal thunder and even a splash of theater that spoke - no, shouted volumes to the packed venue. Fronted by the lovely and sassy Ann Courtney, the singer created a stir as she sensually gyrated her hips in time with some truly great tunes from their recently released self-titled EP, such as the sexy funk of "Trampoline," the snakey bump-and-grind of "747" and the infectious and swirling dance-pop of "Beach House."

Saturday the online music magazine Reverb (the online music offshoot of The Denver Post), hosted a strong day party at Fontana's that featured the Denver-based electronic duo Flashlights, who turned on the small but eager morning crowd with their icy synth grooves and singer Ethan Converse's decidedly warmer vocals. They were followed by the LA-based band Hands who turned in an impressive set of left-field indie-rock, before one of the fest's buzz bands this year, 1,2,3, took the stage. The Pittsburgh indie quartet ran through wonderful takes of songs from their latest album New Heaven, including the ridiculously infectious numbers "Confetti," " Scared But Not That Scared," and crowd fave "Work."

Of course, with time and logistics weighing heavy, I did miss out on a number of new acts I had my sights on, such as Givers, Yellow Ostrich, Weekend, Dum Dum Girls, Reptar, Pepper Rabbit, Caveman and Gross Magic (the latter who unfortunately canceled all their US shows just prior to the fest), but just knowing there are dozens of great new bands forming as I write this that will undoubtedly be showcased at next year's Music Marathon, I feel content knowing that this thing called 'rock' ain't going anywhere soon.

Related articles:

CMJ Music Marathon 2011- Preview story
CMJ Music Marathon 2006 review and photos - October 2006
CMJ Music Marathon 2004 review and photos - October 2004

Dry The River
Dry The River
Mother Feather
Mother Feather
EMA
EMA
Eternal Summers
Eternal Summers
Eternal Summers
Eternal Summers
Flashlights
Flashlights
Tops
Tops
Abadbad
Abadbad
Sea of Bees
Sea of Bees
Lady Lamb The Beekeeper
Lady Lamb The Beekeeper
Pujol
Pujol
Pujol
Pujol
Royal Baths
Royal Baths
1,2,3
1,2,3
1,2,3
1,2,3
The Lakeside Lounge
The Lakeside Lounge
Kendra Morris
Kendra Morris
The Del-Lords
The Del-Lords
The Del-Lords
The Del-Lords

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