Spring Fling (perhaps the most random-ass article in the history of HBR)

Hey, it's March. I know there's still snow everywhere, but guess what? It's less than a week until the clocks spring forward. Honestly, it's my favorite day of the year. Some of you complain; "oh, we lose an hour, we have to get up early, wah wah..." Well guess what? You're ass is going to feel just as hungover and shitty waking up at noon on Sunday morning as it would have felt to wake up at 1. IMO, the only real crime is that NYC bars effectively close at 3am on Saturday night, but it's becoming exceedingly rare that I'm out at that hour.

Also, I think the day when we get an extra hour and bars effectively stay open till 5am, should be a holiday where we stay out until 5am, BUT, I don't think we should spread the word too much, cause I want it to be chill and not full of dickhead frat-boys.

Doe is the real deal (more on them later)

Anyway, it's always a weird time when winter starts to fade, but it's surely not springtime yet. So here's a weird collection of some shit that's going on, has just come out, an interview, some shit about Wednesday's show... And away we go!

The Meaning of Life released Diamonds and Junkfood a week or two ago. Give it a listen. Texturally similar to their earlier albums, but with an added funk, it's a step in a new direction. Wow Wow Wow is the track. Oh, they play ZeroFest this weekend too.

GRIZZLOR is noisy metal post punk punk. They are loud and from CT and playing Acheron this Friday. This is the show to go to if your a headbanger but way more interested in counter-culture than Metallica.

Since we're on the topic of shows, we (HBR) are throwing a show this Wednesday, 3/4. It's an unofficial ZeroFest show and will probably be the best show of the week. It's at Trash (which is closing). Trash was the place that looked the most (cause it changed the least) like the Williamsburg I met 10 years ago. It was never a super desirable place to play; it's wasn't a joint that broke bands, or a place where you'd run into even D-rate rock and roll celebs (though I did see Dee Snider shooting a B-movie out front one evening). BUT, literally every musician in my generation (born mid 70's through mid 80's) played there (and probably had a good time). Here's the link to that show.

Oh, and the second ZeroFest is happening this weekend too. Should be a good time, just like the last one. Four days of local bands, March 5-8. Bars, DIY spaces, all types of venues! I mean, just look at these guys, don't you want to hang out with them?

#bloodfeudpostponed

New video from The Meaning of Life (and more!)

Brooklyn three piece (and Hearts Bleed Radio favorites) The Meaning of Life released a video just before the holidays and I wanted to make sure you guys didn't miss it. "I Want To Do With You What The Spring Does With Cherry Trees" (a nod to Pablo Neruda for all you South American lit. majors out there) is dream pop with a danceable bass line and metronomic drumming that feels right whether you're the type who likes to shake your ass, or stand in the corner staring at your shoes. Punctuated by ringing guitars and smooth, echoey, ethereal vocals, the track is classic TMOL with a slight rhythmic twist. A step in a new direction, yet you wouldn't mistake them for another band.

Whatever is behind that door is kept safe by TMOL

The video itself is a mix of eye candy, symbolism, absurdism, and flat out rage. Shot throughout NYC and featuring some local musicians, the visuals lock in with the driving beat and bass line. The smashing of instruments is becoming a theme throughout TMOL's video work, and personally I love the contrast between their sweet and pretty tunes, and this unrestrained act of aggression. Check out the video below.

Dialogue From A Silent Film releases "Grey Skies" video.

Dialogue From A Silent Film is post-punk indie-goth trio from Brooklyn, NY. Back in November, they released a video for their new single "Grey Skies." Shot one afternoon in, on, and around Pet Rescue (which lies squarely in a no-neighborhood industrial area where Williamsburg meets Greenpoint meets Queens and Newtown Creek),  the video follows the band through a somewhat abandoned warehouse complex, eventually giving way to the almost Montana-esque big sky of the building's large, flat roof. I sat down for a brief chat with vocalist/guitarist Daniel Kasshu. Here's the transcript (the video is at the end):


Hearts Bleed Radio: Grey Skies is the new video from Dialogue From A Silent Film. What's the concept behind the video?

Daniel Kasshu: The concept is, well, three guys being angst-y and loitering around Pet Rescue. Or something like that. ACTUALLY, I think it's a bit more about being lost. Katrin pretty much directed us as she felt matched the song's atmosphere. I think she did a great job with it.

HBR: You shot the whole thing in Pet Rescue? How long did it take?

DK: It was a nice simple shoot, all of us (myself, Brian, Brandon, Katrin, and Zak) all met at Pet Rescue in the early afternoon, drank coffee, hung out, and shot until the evening. The whole thing probably took about five hours.

Dialogue in full concert glory.

HBR: So it was just you being directed, moved around, etc... and then Katrin disappeared into the editing room and that's that?

DK: There was a LOT of joking around, too. I mean, of course. The best part was when I slammed myself in the face with my guitar. The video was actually edited by Jennie Vee, who did it a great job and really quickly, too.

Eastern Hollows release video for "Summer's Dead" and hit the studio!

Eastern Hollows are a great local band who are hopefully poised for gaining more popular and critical attention. It seems to be a busy spring for the Brooklyn-based quintet; we were lucky to have them perform at showcase #12 (3/14/14) and hopefully will get them again for a show in the future. Easter Hollows sounds part shoegaze, part C86, and part post-punk. Imagine a poppy guitar driven British band the 80's and add more washy reverb, and better/more modern guitar pedals. They are familiar, but not stale. Interesting enough, but simple enough to be catchy. Jeremy and Travis were nice enough to exchange some emails with me regarding their newest video, which was released last week.

                                 

Hearts Bleed Radio: This starts out with very muted colors, cuts of the city... I was preparing myself for another "band on a roof" video, but it really takes off and becomes colorful and exciting. Where did the inspiration come from? How did the concept evolve?

Jeremy (drums/percussion): The concept and idea evolved naturally from the aesthetic that we have followed on all of our artwork to date - colorful images always involving flowers. The design and artwork all came from Cassandra Gibbons (she is also the unnnamed hooded figure in the video placing the flowers). She is a great artist and has been responsible for all art direction by offering up different samples and concepts for us to choose from. This video was her idea that she developed along with the director, Julian Kauffmann. "Giant paper flowers that grow and eventually take over the entire city" was the main idea.

HBR: The song is titled "Summer's Dead," which I assumed meant "Summer IS Dead." Upon watching the video, I guess it means, "The Dead belonging to Summer." Correct? What is the song about? (and thanks for inadvertently teaching me a grammar lesson)

Travis (lead singer/rhythm guitar/lyric writer): "Well, it was meant as "summer is dead." Not ownership. I thought it could be either depending on the context. Maybe I need a grammar lesson. It was loosely about a Smith's lyric I had always heard wrong and about the time of writing the song. Summer was just ending, getting sentimental about a great summer and that lyric. [Smith's] lyric is: "I want the freedom and the guile"---I always thought it was guide and not guile. This is in "I Won't Share You" I loved the idea of wanting both freedom and guide because that's how I feel all the time. Wanting freedom but then unsure what to do with it.

HBR: How long did it take you guys to shoot? Any interesting stories from production?

Holiday Party!!! (plus some bands to check out)

I've been so overwhelmed lately; it's really insane. I went from unemployed to over-employed in about two weeks, not to mention the band stuff, and blog stuff and the HOLIDAYS, (which always sneak up on me like a weightless ninja on a dark windy night)... There's a lot of great music I wanted to write about that I just didn't get around to. I'm not perfect. So to make up for that, I'm throwing a party this Friday, 12/20. You're all invited to come and be imperfect with me.

It took so long to get Baron to pose with the bow!

Before we get to the bands playing on Friday, I want to mention a couple of tracks...

Easy Lover, "The Sweet"

This track is just fucking beautiful. It's so lush and smooth, but distorted, wrecked, and cacophonous but closer inspection. A minimalist drum track drives this rainforest of ripping guitar feedback and synth swells. Vocalist Kali Holloway's powerful voice sounds like a love child of Martha Reeves and Nico. The outro will be stuck in your head, long after the tune is finished.

Madam West, "Darlin'"

A short, driving, dance-y number that's been stuck in my head for the past week. Todd Martino's rhythmic keyboard riffs punctuate this hectic song. Lead singer Sophie Chernin sounds crazy in love ("crazy" being the operative word) with the song's subject. Her voice is incredible, give this track a listen when you need to get yourself moving.

Marta from The Meaning of Life talks videos, cats, and CMJ

  As promo for 10/17 Hearts Bleed Radio CMJ Showcase #1, my band Big Quiet was going to record a collaboration with The Meaning of Life. Unfortunately, we couldn't make the time to get it recorded in time, so you're going to have to wait till, well, who knows when. But it's gonna be an original song, and it's gonna be sweet! Anyway, instead of a song right now, you get an interview, and a song in the future. You can see both bands (as well as FAN-TAN, EULA, and Heavy Birds) on Thursday, and another great bill (I set it up, so I'm biased...) on Saturday 10/19. So check out this interview with The Meaning of Life's singer/bassist Marta DeLeon and get pumped for the festival!


Hearts Bleed Radio: So, I've known you guys for awhile, but I'm not sure exactly how TMOL got started. How did you and Christian meet?

Marta: Somewhere between J-Date and the Bensonhurst Times? I answered Chris's ad for a female singer who sounded like Talk Talk's Mark Hollis being tickled by Jeff Buckley.

HBR: You seem like such a good fit for each other, it's hard to believe you met that way. What was it like when you first sat down to play together, and how is it different now?

Marta: I'm always a little scared meeting strange men in remote areas of Brooklyn BUT Chris's silliness translated through email. I was glad he also seemed to be a intuitive and creative player at the end of the B6 bus ride. We played for a couple of hours mostly originals. We were going to do a Velvet Underground cover I think to break the ice. Our approach today is similar. We start playing in the practice space with our adept current drummer San Lajeen and form a verse and maybe a chorus piece of the song. Then we make fun of each other while one talks of an obscure sitcom and or metal band. San grew up in Kalmyk and Chris in Chile so that makes the pop culture POV really fun.

Just another day at TMOL practice...

HBR: We did a piece on the Laura V video. Now that it's been out for awhile, are you thinking of making more videos? I kinda think you guys should do a movie.

Marta: Sure and something much different than Monty Python right?! The video really let us express the absurdity, color and cinematic qualities that we feel in our heads when play and write music. We are inspired by so many different images, vintage and futuristic I'd love to make something like "The Man Who Fell to Earth" type video/mini movie next time. These things take time and a little bit of bling.

HBR: Yeah, that's true. I'd like to see a four song EP, where like, you make videos for each song. Then, if you watch them in a row, it all actually goes together somehow. Anyway...
Are you working on anything in the studio right now?

WHO'S MINI NOW!?!?!? (not miniboone)

  MiniBoone has long been one of my favorite local bands to catch live. They make every show feel like a party; high energy, danceable grooves, and plenty of sing-a-long moments that pull even the most tired and burned out concert goer off their barstool and onto the floor. The band consists of Doug Schrashun, Craig Barnes, James Keary (guitar, keys, vox between the three of them), Anthony Aquilino (bass) and Drew St. Aubin (drums), and they bring the complete package. Big group vocals and huge chords, and all the way down to pokey palm muted rhythmic riffs. I was super excited when I heard they were coming out with a full length album.

The guys in their natural, glowing, irradiated state.

  MiniBoone's self titled debut album catches a lot of the explosiveness of their live performances, probably about as much as humanly possible. The album peaks around loud gang vocals and climatic choruses; it kinda breathes in and out between them and the staccato punctuated verse grooves. I guess I'd say the album captures about 85% the energy of their live performance, which is good reason to catch a live show and by no means a knock on the album. But the nice thing about this album for me is how well done the kinda sweet/tender soft parts are. These guys can lay down next to you and drift off to sleep. They aren't just party animals. They have a soft side.

  The opening track, "The Superposition of Human Affection," is a spastic rocker that clocks in just under two minutes. These guys have a sense of song-craft that is really as well tuned as any pop artist out there. The following track, "I Could," adds a little more diversity, while maintaining the bands trademark textures. The guitar lick over the second verse kills me. MiniBoone made a video for it, check it out below.

Laura V. video from The Meaning of Life!

  The Meaning of Life is more full, and lush, and deep, than a three piece really has any business being. If you're listening to Play Fuego and think it's studio tricks, I got news for you, I've seen them live and they pull it off, almost effortlessly. I've always felt that there was a sort of supreme beauty within an electrical circuit, a flawless math of humming electrons, a loop of echo and oscillation, an om made of ohms... Christian Gallardo coaxes that akashic entity out of his guitar rig like a snake charmer with an entranced cobra. With Gallardo's guitar providing the backbone of the band, bassist/vocalist Marta DeLeon drifts between drawn out melodic lines, and ornamental accents ad lib. DeLeon is one of the best lyricist around. Her deft use of imagery leaves the listener wondering if she's a surrealist or a symbolist, yet wholly satisfied, regardless of which conclusion is drawn.

  

Christian feels no pain from rose thorns.

  The Laura V. video officially drops today, and it's a perfect fit for the sensual, yet guarded, single off the Play Fuego EP. The "Instagram meets cabaret"-style video drifts from the absurd to the overtly sexual, and shifts between shots of the band on a beach, and a small group of people at dinner party (or perhaps a couple at dinner, depending on how you choose to see it). Anyway, it's stunning. Deep and artful, yet self aware, absurdist, and at times funny, the Laura V. video is probably as close to a visual representation of TMOL as one could really get. Check out the video at the bottom of the page. I sent Marta and Christian some questions via email, and here's what they had to say:

Hearts Bleed Radio: Is Laura V. a real person? Where does the inspiration for the song come from?

Marta: Christian called it Laura originally after Laura Palmer from "Twin Peaks" as a nod to his affinity for "her" and for us to have something to call our new jam in the practice space yelling over loud amps. The song is dedicated to a close family friend, Laura Vasalo who is deceased like the fictional Laura. It's not directly about either ladies. But I guess to me, both were laughing smiling ladies in the high school hallway surrounded by a group of friends. A lady's name as a song title never gets old.

HBR: Marta, as a lyricist you rely heavily on imagery. I feel like in Laura V. there's a battle between the spider and the halo. I see the spider as representing temptation or the guilt of giving into said temptation. Wearing the biggest halo, and/or waiting the longest to run is the other side of the coin; a partner is trying to have the upper hand (or possibly even do the right thing) in an obviously failing relationship. Is that accurate? Is it more open to interpretation? Or did I miss the point completely?

Marta: Thanks! I never put those two together as a narrative in the lyrical lines literally but I like listeners to project their own emotions and interpretations of what the song means. I think pop songs lend themselves also to that quite well. Using pop references words like "spider" or "red dress" can be open-ended yet emphatic. A spider could be menacing or helpful and protective like in "Charlotte's Web". A collage of emotions, whimsy and longing are the common thread. Someone who waited for the perfect love and when it showed up with all it's complexities they ran away. Not too get too deep, too much bodega Redbull at 11:30 pm.

Lost Gloves, Power Harmony, compact car packing gold medalists

 Hey everyone, we're getting close to "go time" on HBR showcase #6! It's Thursday, August 1st, and it's going to be the last one of the summer (I need a break to work on writing reviews of all the wonderful submissions that I've been receiving). I met Brian Goodheart at Hearts Bleed Radio Showcase #3 (oh! the power of internet networkings) and he (guitar/vocals), along with Rebekah (keys), Mike (bass) and Pete (drums), constitute the band Lost Gloves. We're happy to have them batting second tomorrow night, and we think you'll enjoy their set. I had the pleasure of chatting with them last weekend. Here's the transcript:

Hearts Bleed Radio: For starters, someone give me a brief history of the band.

Brian: Pete? I think you should take this question.

Pete: OK. It all started when I answered a Craigslist ad that Brian put up. That's right, we might be one of the few bands that actually started up the old fashioned way, with strangers meeting via classified ads. For a few weeks it was just the two of us being polite and seeing if the musical chemistry would work, which it did.

HBR: So Michael and Rebekah came from Craigslist too?

Pete: Brian knew Rebekah from a previous band, actually so he brought her in and for a few more weeks it was just the three of us. A happy little family.

Mike: And then...

Pete: Mike came on recommendation from a friend. After that, all politeness ceased and we became Lost Gloves.

Mike: And I forgot to bring my bass to my first rehearsal, which is usually not a thing you do. But somehow I conned them into letting me play with them. Sorry, first tryout. I demonstrated my musician chops by being a total flake.

HBR: I almost left my guitar and my bassist's bass in the laundromat yesterday, so I understand how that goes..

Pete: He lives up to all the bass player jokes!

Mike not pictured... Probably doing something weird.

HBR: So, did you guys kinda know the sound you were after, or did it come together from like, feeling each other out? Was there a vision? If so, who had it?

Mike: As we practiced more and more we also realized that we all genuinely like each other which was disturbing.

Brian: Lost Gloves' sound has been a work in progress since the beginning. Its been a source of frustration and self doubt, but also a lot of great self discovery and bonding as a band. I think those new songs we recorded that we'll be putting out on a 7" in the next few months represent the first time we've all kind of landed on a sound we like.

HBR: Rebekah, you've been quiet, this question is for you.. Who's your biggest influence? Where are you coming from musically?

Rebekah: Well, it seems to change a lot and I'm not sure I could really pinpoint one band or genre that really helped forge our sound. We all come from different musical backgrounds--I grew up playing classical piano and Mike taught himself bass--but somehow it seems to work... Personally, lately I've been listening to a lot of Marnie Stern, but I'm not sure that's had much of an effect on anyone else.

Brian: Oooh, Stephen Perry likes Lost Gloves on Facebook!

Mike: SCORE!

HBR: Haha, I didn't realize that I hadn't liked the band yet, sorry.

Mike: This isn't just because we are doing this interview, IS IT STEPHEN?

HBR: Do you like the newest Marnie Stern album? I've been on the fence about it.

Rebekah: Yeah, I'm totally into it.

Mike: I do as well.

Rebekah: I really like how poppy it is.

Mike: It's definitely a push towards a more pop sound.

HBR: I just remember being like, in a crappy mood, and listening to it and being like, "It's not as guitary as I want it to be."

Brian: Yeah, she's streamlined a bit on that album, and I think it works.

Libel's new video! and Showcase #5 and #6 info!

  Hey gang, I think my liver has finally recovered from the Northside weekend, and it's time for us to get rolling on our next batch of interviews! I'll start with Sunset Guns and Sharkmuffin, both of whom will be performing at HBR showcase #5 at Fort Useless. But right now I'd like to mention Libel, who we've booked to headline HBR showcase #6 at The Grand Victory on August 1st. It's looking like the show will be their LP release, and we're super lucky to have them on the bill. Libel is a tight post-punk trio based in Brooklyn. Here's a shot of them performing at Muchmore's, taken by yours truly...

Possible second career as a band photographer?

  They've released a video for the single "This is Love", and though it's remarkably simple, it suits the song well, and ends in a very mysterious manner. The camera follows lead singer/guitarist Gavin Dunaway as he zig zags down a staircase through a bombed out industrial building. From the opening shot of a destroyed room at the top of the stairs, to the climatic end scene where Dunaway opens a door into a bright white light, he seems to be driven by an unknown motive. Though the motive is undefined, the sense of purpose on Dunaway's face is clear, and the viewer feels compelled to follow him. Check it out below:



  In my mind the white light at the end is an exploding A-Bomb that annihilates Dunaway and the crime scene at the top of the stairs that he had spent the preceding several hours cleaning up. But that's just me, you decide for yourself.

Shot, directed, and produced by Daniele Dandaddy. Check out his work ---> www.dandaddy.com

Check out HBR Showcase #6, featuring Libel ---> here.

Like Libel on Facebook ---> here.

RSVP for HBR showcase #5 ---> here.

And don't forget to like Hearts Bleed Radio on Facebook ---> here.

That's all for now folks, see you at a show!

Breaking Oceanographic News

Oceanographer, home from the expedition... happy.

Our sources confirm (what? you didn't think I had sources?) that Mark Kelley of The Roots is joining the Brooklyn indie band Oceanographer. I'll have to track down Mark at some point and grill him on his decision, but in the meantime we can watch this super 8 music video and imagine a driving, thumping bass-line underneath.

                              

OH, and also, Oceanographer is making their first television appearance, this Friday, at 9pm on the Artie Lange Show (Directv ch. 239), and playing Mercury Lounge on Monday the 10th!

Like Oceanographer on Facebook ---> here.

Like Hearts Bleed Radio on Facebook ---> here.

AND, don't forget to check out the HBR Northside Showcase ---> here.

Coming for me? MEEEEEEE??

What Model Citizens is a local electro-synth-y indie noise pop band. Did that make sense? 'Cause that's what they are... A convergence of several distinct styles. The brainchild of songwriter Alex Musto, WMC has released a new video for the single "Coming For Me".  Effortlessly weird, almost gracefully strange, the video feels like an alternate remake of "Sunglasses at Night" (which I consider to be an awesome video BTW), co-starring The Mystic Knights of the Oingo Boingo.  Keep your eyes peeled for some of my favorite Myrtle J area haunts, Bar Bizarre and Silent Barn.  Enjoy!


Coming For Me by What Model Citizens from Nerd Rage Film on Vimeo.

Check out What Model Citizens on Facebook  --->  Here

Like Hearts Bleed Radio --->  Here

And RSVP for the Hearts Bleed Radio Northside Showcase --->  Here

Catch you down the trail!

Old Monk's "Seymour: Video

Here's a picture of Old Monk.  I drew myself in as a pirate.  I'm on the right.

Ok, Ok, so the guitar solo at the end of this is like, epic, Slash standing in front of a church style awesomeness...  but it's also 8-bit and incredibly nerdy.  Anyway, Old Monk rocked out at HBR #3 last weekend, and I just wanted to pass on the new video to "Seymour", which premiered yesterday on Brooklyn Vegan.  They threw in some pop culture references, so keep your eyes peeled for them.


Behold, the pixelated glory of the Seymour video:





Check out the interview we did with Old Monk  ---> Here.

We'll be starting up the next round of interviews soon, as we inch closer to the Hearts Bleed Radio Northside Showcase!  Click here to RSVP!

Sleeping Contest Official Video

The Planes released our first ever music video on Friday, and celebrated with a show at Don Pedro in Brooklyn.  We're really happy with the way it turned out, and owe a huge debt of gratitude to Ricky Camilleri of CamLin Productions.  Ricky is an old college buddy of mine, and it worked out that he was free to make the trek up to Northampton, MA to shot some footage of us performing at The Elevens.  Unfortunately, Gavin and Daniel couldn't make the voyage with us, so we enlisted Kate Niemczyk (of Northampton's The True Jacqueline) to play bass, and we performed as a trio.

On the way into town, an old abandoned (and for the most part totally gutted) factory complex caught our eye.  I don't know what they used to make there, but it was a sprawling complex with a canal running underneath that at one point spun the turbines that powered the place.  Here's the google maps streetview, but it doesn't really do it justice.  If anyone knows what they used to make here, let me know, cause I'm super interested in old factories/industry.

We found a big open area, played the song on Ricky's iphone (which is hidden in my front jacket pocket), and did our thing.  I can't remember if we did two or three takes, but it must have been one of the quickest and most painless video shoots in history.  Soon after, we met up with Kate, ran through the songs in her apartment and went over to the club.  Ricky shot us playing, mixed it with the factory footage and some found VHS footage, and the Official Sleeping Contest Video was born!

This video was shot on an old VHS camera from 1987, which explains the overall late 80's-90's feel.  But we dig it that way, it's where we came from, and it's kinda how we sound.  I bet we shot hardcore shows at the teen center back in high school with this model camera at some point.  I don't know if Ricky just bought that camera, or if it's been sitting in his parents basement for 25 years, but either way, it worked perfectly for this project!

You should check out more of Ricky's work at CamLin Productions.

Check out Kate's band, The True Jacqueline.

And remember you can stream (free) and download (free or donate if you like) all of our first three releases at theplanesnyc.bandcamp.com!