Your Underbrook hosts are taking the stage tonight.
If you’re reading this, then you clearly value music on campus (or maybe you just think I’m cute and funny…or maybe I forced you to), so going to this show should be a matter of principle — of respect for the three individuals who have given you something to do with your Saturday night that enriches your musical side.
Principles aside you are clearly going to this show for its content as well.
Expect to hear your old favorite and plenty of new songs from the new album Nolan says is about halfway finished.
You already know that Plume Giantis amazing. So I don’t need to tell you how their well-crafted three-part vocal harmonies sustain and release tension so that you can almost taste the dissonances, how the high energy fiddle solos and well-grounded guitar parts move the songs effortlessly along, or how this campus loves Eliza, Nolan and Oliver as musicians, as patrons of the arts, and as people.
So I’m going to talk about Carline Smith and the Good Night Sleeps now.
This group is a lot of fun to listen to and a tasteful example of genre mixing. I’m not certain how their electronic and new wave aspects will translate to Underbrook’s setting, but the show should bring out their folkier elements. It’s clean, fun music that will keep you interested.
Bands go on at 8 in Saybrook entryway H. Don’t miss a second.
Great, because tonight you're going to be hearing a lot of them.
Underbrook Coffehouse is hosting two tree bands!
First, The Willow and the Builder, a folk band made up of Richard Miron BR '13 and Wesleyan's Adrian Simon, plus other Wesleyan instrumentalists and Yale singers. The band is releasing it's first album at the stroke of midnight on Oct. 10, but if you go to the show the band will give you a supersecret code to download the album free NOW.
After these budding trees show their stuff, NYC band Tall Trees will play. I went briefly to their website. I don't think I've ever heard anything folkier. Washboards and whistling. Oh man.
Underbrook Coffeehouse should be a fun time tonight. Just let yourself be a kid again and sing along about bubblegum and underwater teaparties. If you've been fasting, be sure to bring some change for coffee, tea and cookies—especially fitting for the youthful lyrics.
In case you can't handle all the tree-hugging, come to the tree free afterparty with Jamestown, The First Town in America at 342 Elm after the Coffeehouse (probably around 10).
If you're still up in the air about tonight's coffeehouse, here's a sneak peak.
The Willow & The Builder's album has some good tracks, but is overall hit or miss.
Richard Miron and Adrian Simon have without a doubt the most adorable band dynamic I have seen on this campus, so the coffeehouse is probably worth going to just for that.
I really like the song "Cut it Down," because it effectively weaves several different musical lines to create a musical scene of a tree reflecting off of water (see album cover). The rich, emotional viola part provides the substance of the song which the vocals later add to. The keys and drums pounding out chords and steady beats keep the piece moving forward and the listener engaged, while the flute adds interesting highlights.
Tracks such as "What's Next" and "A Vast Emptiness" (the title is fitting) use basic chord progressions, sparse textures, and soft vocals that make for a generally boring listening experience. "A Vast Emptiness" captures a different kind of listener with its storytelling style and voice. It feels like an interlude during a scene change of a musical puppet show. "What's Next" picks up a bit when the backup vocals enter.
Backup vocals are an essential component of one of the band's hits "Rosaline." It starts out a bit slow, but the full, soulful vocal lines and bluesy keys really iron out the harmonies. This song is going to sound fantastic tonight with such a big chorus.
Maeve: awesome, tree-loving vocalist
Yale singers tonight include (sorry I'm not up to putting in their class years today) Marina Keegan, Cuchulain Kelly, Tobias Kirchwey, Noah Kleinberg, Paul Leo, Anna Miller, Robert Ramaswamy, Maeve Ricaurte, Steph Rivkin, Chloe Sarbib, Grace Steig, Mary Stottele, Wan Joo Teo, Nine Tigers, and Sharif Youssef. The other instrumentalists are from Wesleyan, but Oliver Hill BR '12, one of Underbrook's co-hosts, will play viola for the band tonight. (I'd like to see even more strings in "Mansion Man" because the strings are easily the best part of the song and could be built up even more.)
Some of the tracks, such as Teahouse Treehouse, are really fun and creative. The joyful, childlike lyrics describing the treehouse "though it's really not that high, it's somewhere to go," with upbeat rhythms will put a smile on your face.
But this childlike cheer sometimes feels as if it goes too far. In "Oh Willow! (Why Wallow!)" the lyrics tell a story of a dream, an interesting principle. But during the dream, the cheery piano riff and exciting lyrics become cliché and tounge-in-cheek almost to the point where the listener feels like s/he is at the circus (not that there's anything wrong with circuses...). When the dream ends, the sadness that insues is also cliché (but at the other end of the spectrum.) Overall, it's a fun song with some creative and humorous images but a bit over the top. I'd like some unconventional chords thrown into the mix.
The most memorable song on the album for me is one I remember liking at lot in concert last year—"Heartache."
The sixtenth notes in the keyboard, dramatic chords, and emotional vocals bring power to the music that surpasses that of other tracks. Lyrics such as "heartache, don't come near me...longing, your days are numbered," present a vivid and very real emotional process: coping. The song also has a nice, punchy ending after some longer, sustained lines.
Two weeks ago we looked out over a community of musicians and music enthusiasts all gathered around steaming mugs and candles, surrounded by art and enfused with folk music.
Photo by Richard Miron
Underbrook Coffeehouse is genius.
And it's going down again tonight same time same place 8pm Saybrook Underbrook.
So if you’re a Yale student by now you might have some idea of what you’re taking this term (hmmmmmm or maybe not), but before you dive into that fluid mechanics problem set how about a free concert?
After all, the year hasn’t actually started until the music scene kicks off.
This is actually in my room...
Unfortunately for this procrastination technique—and fortunately in every other way possible!—it is kicking off this Saturday, with not one, but two, events.
OMGNOWAY.
First the YCC Fall Festival is running from 11am until 2pm on Old Campus. The event features two YMS bands—The Black Mariasand The Keep Calm.
The Keep Calm struts down Old Campus
Here’s the line-up:
The Black Marias12-12:50
-- Caitlin Pequignot ES '14 (violin, lead vocals), Sam Gelernter SM '14 (guitar, backup vocals), Jacob Backer MC '14 (bass, lead vocals), Ethan Schneider ES '14 (drums)
The Black Marias made their big breakout at Battle of the Bands when they seriously wowed the crowd with a high energy performance of violin riffs, distorted guitar and harmonized male and female vocals, all backed by simple yet effective drum beats. The violin fits well within the rock riffs and doesn’t feel forced. In fact, it provides some nice melodic fills that keep the songs interesting (some additional drum fills might also be nice). I also really like the bluesy basslines.
The band’s cheery background vocals, and the band members themselves (sophomores), radiate youth. But lyrics are not so naïve as one might expect. Example “Sentiments” ““I never said you were special. You’re just the best that I could find.”
Ouch.
This is one band that sounds much better live than on their recordings, especially since they’re new to making them. I always love bands that give performances their all and expect The Black Marias to continue this trend.
The Keep Calm is a revamped version of Seven Locks, which won the award for the loudest cheering section at BATB. They seem to manage to bring all of Branford College to their shows. Impressive.
Seven Locks at BATB
Ishan, lead guitarist, said the band changed its sound over the summer, so a name change was appropriate. The songs are mostly the same, but the band spiced up the bass parts. I approve.
Instead of intense rock, the sound is chiller. Frontman Alex Bae is a talented lyricist (so listen up!)—straightforward, interesting, genuine—and the riffs are super catchy. I have a few suggestions for this group, but I will save them for after the performance. I will say that adding a bit of reverb will help round out the sound.
Download their stuff here. (you have to “like” the page, sneaky, but you can unlike it later if you so choose) Warning: If you listen to “Disappear” or “Overcast” it will be stuck in your head.
Seven Locks playing “Pasadena,” which you should hear tomorrow at BATB last year. Notice loud cheering.
YCC Events Coordinator Katie “bringsdafun” Donley ES ’13 said she asked the WYBC for band suggestions and Carl “radboss” Chen MC '13, general manager, suggested The Black Marias. Since Ishan is in WYBC, he volunteered his band too.Jamestown, The First Town in America had originally planned to play too.
Because of Hurricane Irene, the extracurricular bazaaaaaar was pushed back a week, as you probably realize by now, so the YCC was nice enough to offer to move Fall Fest back a week.
But this had consequences.
Jamestown now can’t make it, so the festival is a band short(er). (Hurricane Irene feel my wrath!) Katie said she might plug in a DJ instead or let The Black Marias and The Keep Calm play longer sets. And because the event is no longer on a Sunday—and there’s a rule about playing music before noon during religious services (whatifmusicisyourreligion?!?!?)—the noice can to start at 11. Wake up and hear the amplifiers!
“Stick around and enjoy the atmosphere,” Katie said. “Listening to music serves the double purpose of introducing freshman to the music scene at Yale.”
Please and thank you.
The YCC was also originally interested in having Plume Giantplay at Fall Fest (I mean why wouldn’t they be), but because PG is really busy working on their new album, they won’t be doing as many concerts this fall.
The members of Plume Giant will be busy in another way.Which brings us to kickassmusicevent number 2.
The PG members are kicking off the grand opening of their Underbrook Coffeehouse concert series, which runs every other Saturday from 7:30-9:45ish (bands go on at 8) in Saybrook Underbrook(entryway H) and features one Yale and one non-Yale band and artwork, maybe poetry too. AWESOME!
This week the artwork will be by Rebecca Schultz SM '12. Don’t ask me what she does but I bet it’ll be cool.
Even Artichokes Have Hearts, a tamborine-uke duo with Sarah DeLappe BR '12 and Chloe Sarbib SY '12 will set the mood with heartfelt uked-up songs. They’re fun, but don’t expect to be jumping up and down to the riff. It’s a coffeehouse, after all.
Even Artichokes Have Hearts at Relay For Life 2011
Anthony daCosta, a folk musician from NYC, will then take the stage. Check him out here. The Washington Post thinks he’s “promising.” Not really my style, but it should be interesting.
Anthony DeCosta. Photo by Jake Jacobson.
Even if you’re not into these particular artists, I would at least go to hang with music people, get some coffee, and see what this series is all about.
Coffee is 50c and cookies are 25c. Mmmmm. Caffeinate yourself.
