Hercules & Love Affair @ Studio B: Raise Me Up

Last night The Music Slut was fortunate enough to catch the first ever live performance from Brooklyn's disco revivalists, Hercules & Love Affair. Shockingly, the collective managed to surpass our atmospheric expectations. For nearly an hour, DFA's latest signees stunned the sold out crowd with arresting vocals by Nomi & a slew of different players tackling keyboards, saxophones, drums and a wide range of electronics. Simply genius! Hercules & Love Affair will bring their voodoo overseas later this month and throughout the summer for myriad festival gigs. To view those dates and to learn more about the band, visit their MySpace page immediately. A half dozen photos, the full setlist & an MP3 follow.









Setlist: True False/Fake Real. Shadows. Blind. I'm Telling You. Athene. Classique #2. Precious Little Diamond. You Belong. Raise Me Up... Hercules Theme.

MP3: Hercules & Love Affair - Hercules Theme [alt link]

CSS In BK 4 Free!

Wooo!

Best news I've heard all day. It seems as if the folks over at Going.com are sponsoring the show on August 3rd at Studio B with Cansei De Ser Sexy, Shout Out Out Out & Dirty On Purpose. RSVP here for FREE admission.

MP3: CSS - CSS Suxxx

Lady Sov Loses it at Studio B

We just received an email from our friend Igor over at Driven By Boredom directing us to his blog where he tells all the sad sad details of last night's Lady Sov show at Studio B.

"She said she was broke and didn’t want to go on. She was like “I don’t know what I am doing, what song is next?” Then she did another song and just sort of broke down. She said that she had been playing the same songs for two years and that she was sick of it."

The rest is a hell of a little read and just completely shocking. Broke? Are you serious? Can't Jay-Z help a girl out? Sounds like somebody has got to go home, have a cup of tea and eat some beans on toast with mum for a while.

Sorry to those who paid to see her, but at least they got to see two of New York's finest that night, Prof Murder and The Glass, who in my opinion, are much better than the pint sized rapper and worth the cost of admission alone.

Art Brut & O'death @ Studio B 4/18: I Haven't Slept in About 4 Days

Two of my favourite bands played Studio B on the 18th. I only wish that this combination was as winning as it should have been. A number of factors attributed to this less than stellar night: hangovers ("I haven't slept in two days!" declares Art Brut's publicist outside before the show), Studio B getting the bands onstage late, Studio B opening the doors really late and probably most significantly, the timid all ages crowd (sorry).

As unfortunate as all those factors are, Art Brut and O'death are really consumate professionals at this point in their careers. They know that the audience has come to see them act crazy and even if they cannot feed off of a frenzied audience, they still put in an effort to entertain.


This was my...4th? time with Art Brut. I chose this show over Ratatat at Webster Hall. Call me crazy, but the thought of not seeing Eddie Argos as he blew through town was too much to handle. An Art Brut show makes me intolerably happy.

The band previewed some new tracks, which I am sure I will come to love. Eddie cracked a joke about one saying that we had never heard it since it had not been purposely leaked.



As always at Studio B, crazed fans feel it is necessary to jump onstage. Here comes the inexperienced concert goers part. There was one failed attempted by a boy to get up next to Eddie. He only succeeded in nearly breaking my hand that was lying on the speaker as his boot smashed ontop of it. It is still killing me. I turned around, fists blaring but realised he was 15 and I better not.

To those wondering if I stayed for Soulwax. I did not. That would have involved another line and ten bucks I didn't have after Studio B kicked us all out after Art Brut.

Photos from Lo Fi Fnk, Datarock & The Presets @ Studio B 3/30

Datarock rocked, the Presets set it off and even though I didn't catch all of their set, Lo Fi Fnk captured my heart. With their little Mickey Mouse hats and fun, happy electronica, Lo Fi Fnk bring the joy back to dance music. Starting April 28th, they will be touring all over Europe, including one of my favourite cities, Arhus, Denmark.

Datarock were incredibley photogenic and a great group. Though what possesses people to get so violent at Studio B dance shows, I will never figure out. I almost feel as if these people think that they have to act this way to have fun. But elbowing me in the head and nearly shoving me to the ground just makes me want to kick your ass, not dance.

New rave dance music from Scandanavia, don't think it could get any better. Denmark, Sweden, Norway- I love it all.

I enjoy The Presets, I don't love The Presets. I find the music a bit forced, a bit too dark.

Shot of the sweaty, insane crowd that drove me to the side of the stage (where one asshole ran up to the sound board and tried to mess up all of the buttons and knobs). Best part of standing on the side, when a member of the crew ran onto the stage from the back and tackled a guy who had climbed on stage, diving into the crowd with him in his arms.

Klaxons & Bonde Do Role @ Studio B (Matt's Take): Nothing Matters When We're Dancing

Stagedivers landing on their skulls, grown men strangling each other by the throat, sweat (literally) bouncing off the keyboard's keys, and about 287 photographers/videographers. Welcome to Klaxons @ Studio B.

Even though the encore-less set was just three quarters of an hour, the intensity of last night's Klaxons show was surreal. The NME darlings took to the stage and all hell broke loose. Each track played like a modern day anthem. Focusing almost exclusively on their debut full-length, Myths Of The Near Future, Klaxons dropped the pressure, took us around the world, and transformed a house of jealous lovers into a house of raving lunatics.

I think even Klaxons were surprised at the crowd's fanaticism and often giggled to each other during the set. Being in the front few rows for this gig was a test on your endurance, strength and hydration (it was scorching at Studio B) - kudos to all who made it through with little/no long-term damage.

Highlights of the set included 'Atlantis To Interzone', 'Magick', 'Gravity's Rainbow' and of course, 'Golden Skans'. As marvelous as their debut is on record, the live versions of those tunes are ten times as exceptional. A truly ace show. Klaxons, I beg of you to come back to Brooklyn ASAP!

In a recent interview with MTV's The Urge (who incidentally put on the show last night), the trio answers with the following when asked if they really believe that the world will end in 2012: Of course we do. We're going to design T-shirts that say "12 12 12." Then watches that say "countdown to apocalypse." They're not going to tell the time, just the countdown. How can you not love these guys? More on Urge's upcoming nights/mission can be found here.

Setlist: The Bouncer/Atlantis To Interzone/Hall Of Records/Totem On The Timeline/Golden Skans/As Above So Below/Two Receivers/Magick/Gravity's Rainbow/It's Not Over Yet/Isle Of Her/Four Horsemen Of 2012

MP3: Klaxons - Atlantis To Interzone

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Though I only caught the latter half of Bonde Do Role's set, I know I'll be back for more. Try to imagine CSS, 2ManyDJs, old-school sample-heavy hip-hop and Peaches in one convenient musical bubble and you're somewhat closer to arriving at BDR's sound.

Straight outta Brazil, BDR brings the pre-party, party, and after-party. A terrific opener for Klaxons, if I don't say so myself. Check out more on Bonde Do Role over at their MySpace page!

Patrick Wolf @ Studio B: The Libertine Swings Into Brooklyn

Yesterday was the second of two consecutive evenings spent with Patrick Wolf. Whereas Thursday's show (review here) served as Patrick's return to Manhattan, last night was Patrick's introduction to Brooklyn.

The main differences between Thursday's show and Friday's shows were: 3 outfit changes v. 2 outfit changes, a minor change in setlist (see below), a disco cover as Patrick's encore, and yes, if you can believe it, moshing during 'The Magic Position'!

Patrick was once again limited to a 40-minute time bracket of which he utilized quite well, squeezing in a total of nine tunes during the course of his time on stage. Of particular note was 'Bluebells', which I was hoping he'd play at Hiro Ballroom but neglected to - it sounded electrifying last night.

Patrick even threw in a new track entitlted 'Blackbird', which according to the troubadour, was inspired one drunken morning after having an in-depth conversation with a blackbird by his windowsill. The tune, while if not completely then at least partially, rags on Justin Timberlake. In fact, Patrick made it more than obvious that JT was his target by busting out a few lines from 'Sexyback' within 'Blackbird' - the crowd A.T.E. it up.

After the moshing subsided once 'The Magic Position' ended and the band left the stage, Patrick and the gang returned for a disco cover of 'Feels Like I'm In Love' (originally performed by Kelly Marie). I've read a few articles stating that Patrick has a newfound obsession with the '70s genre and he surely made that blatantly clear last night. Requesting some strobe lights, Patrick pranced around the stage with his signature dance moves, and suddenly we were transported thirty years back in time.



All in all, another stellar show. Unfortunately, The Music Slut is failing to make this weekend a Patrick hat trick, as Sondre Lerche is on the schedule for this evening. MisShapers, let us know how he does amongst the sea of asymmetrical 'dos!



Setlist: Overture/Get Lost/Tristan/The Bluebell/Bluebells/The Libertine/Blackbird/The Magic Position//Feels Like I'm In Love

MP3: Patrick Wolf - Overture

The Presets @ Studio B (Matt's Take): Are We Friends Now?

Well, are we? That's what Sydney's insanely talented electro duo, The Presets, was asking Brooklyn last night amidst a swarm of flying bodies, fist raisers, and sweat-drenched attendees somewhere around 2am.

Whereas Friday night's LCD Soundsystem show (review here) had a happy-go-lucky dance-till-you-drop vibe to it, last night's Presets show was a little more, actually a lot more, violent in nature. So much so, that Jen and I scurried over to the soundboard area on stage left after just three tracks. With that said, The Presets were fantastic, albeit visibly confused by the savage crowd themselves.

Julian and Kim wasted little time before busting out the big boys. Singles 'Are You The One' and 'Girl And The Sea' were both played within the first six songs of the set, as was the ridiculously amazing 'Kitty In The Middle' (MP3 below), which incidentally may be my new favorite track of theirs.

There's something about The Presets that truly sets them apart from 'the competition', but it's somewhat difficult to describe. I think one of the major reasons why I adore The Presets is that while their live shows are an adrenaline-inducing cyclone, their recorded material is just as flawless and captivating. Quite the accomplishment if you ask me.

Their debut LP, Beams, is a rollercoaster that you never want to get yourself off of. Well, at least I don't - hell, I want a front-row seat! For info on all their releases, including early EPs prior to Beams, check out the 'Sound & Vision' section on their official site.



Datarock lovers, not to fret. Jen's extensive review (including some amazing photos) on its way, be patient. As for The Presets, their final US date in the indefinite future is tonight at Sonar in Baltimore, Maryland. I expect all of you within 100 miles to shake your tailfeathers and hop down to the show!

MP3: The Presets - Kitty In The Middle