Week in Rock: Siren to CMJ Edition
3 photos
<strong>Kanye, Not Jay-Z, Makes Brief Webster Hall Appearance</strong><p>Hey, that's not Jay-Z! The rapper <a href="http://gothamist.com/2009/07/30/rumor_alert_jay-z_playing_webster_h.php">was rumored</a> to be a special guest at last night's Diesel party at Webster Hall, but the crowd got Kanye instead. And he only performed one song (with Clipse)! The rest of the night went on as planned, with not-so-surprise peformances by The Roots, Lykke Li, Terror Pigeon Dance Revolt (that band sounds terrifying!), Heartsrevolution, <a href="http://www.brooklynvegan.com/archives/2009/07/noisettes_playe.html#more">The Noisettes</a>, Theopholis London, Cobra Starship and Passion Pit. Word is that, unsurprisingly, The Roots stole the show. <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uWkCK5LT6BY">Here's some video</a> from Kanye's performance; from the looks of it, higher quality stuff was being filmed and will hopefully find its way onto the internet.</p>
<strong>Spank Rock Brings the Beach to the Bridge</strong><p>This is pretty much what we feel like half way through Siren Fest every year, which is why we played it smart and didn't go this year! Here's what we missed: <a href="http://icecreamman.com/2009/07/siren-music-fest-2009/">The Ice Cream Man</a> was in town, describing the scene with more outsider eyes and romantically describing the scene as a "Blend old school Las Vegas and Hunter S. Thompson, and a beach in Brooklyn with amusement rides that are older than your grandfather." Some highlights included A Place to Bury Strangers, Amanda Blank, Built to Spill and Spank Rock... but the real show happened a few hours later <a href="http://www.brooklynvegan.com/archives/2009/07/spank_rock_play_1.html">on the Williamsburg Brige</a>. The rumor mill was in full effect and anyone with a Twitter account knew that Spank Rock would be playing a midnight set on the pedestrian pathway. We followed the show on <a href="https://twitter.com/amritsingh/status/2717637561">Amrit from Stereogum's Twitter</a>, because we are lazy, and after 1 a.m. he reported that nearly 200 people were bouncing around the bridge. The big surprise: no one got arrested.</p>
<strong>Save the Date!</strong><p>It's still July but somehow we are already working on our annual (and unofficial) <a href="http://gothamist.com/tags/gothamisthouse">CMJ show</a>! We just set the date today, and nailed down some broader details... and during a humid, stormy season, it's sort of nice to daydream about October. The show will be held at the Bell House in Gowanus again, and this time we're only doing one day/night: Thursday October 22nd. The show will start a little after 5 p.m. and go all night long. There will be food, bands, deejays and maybe even a comedian. </p><p>If you want to put your goods into our gift bags, or hand them over for a giveaway, or set up a bake sale, or drive over your delicious food truck, or hang up your art, or be involved in any way... <a href="mailto:jencarlson@gothamist.com">email us</a>! </p>