Holy Hell.
It’s not often that I can’t remember most of a concert because my mind was in another place (no, not due to drugs or other substances) but due to the simple fact that the stage presence was disgustingly hyptnotizing. Last week I saw the hauntingly rocking Kills here in London; a gig I’ve definetly been [...]

Two quick things:
There is nothing your humble promoter hates more than the words “ThIs show will sell out!”  When I hear that in a radio ad, or read it anywhere it hurts my soul.  The closest I’ll ever come to that is right here:  We went on sale with Three Girls and their Buddy tickets [...]

Recently I came across a sampler for the brooklyn label Kanine records. With the popularity explosion of Chairlift, largely due to landing their song “Bruises” in the new ipod nano commercial, I was intrigued enough to give some of their other artists a listen. And I am amazed. Not only did they release the debut [...]

The incredible Delta Spirit will debut in Ithaca at Castaways on Wednesday, February 18th. The band has been touring the land in support of their latest, Ode to Sunshine. Advance tickets for the 18+ show will be $10.00 and go on sale next FRIDAY 12/5 – something truly to be thankful for… via this link here. [...]

Coming to London I was a bit skeptical about the music scene, coming from places like Ithaca, Rochester, and even the city, where each scene is so different and vibrant. In my mind I figured it would just be generic big city garage rock shit spewing from venues all over. Holy hell was I wrong, [...]

Indie legend and ex-Soul Coughing frontman Mike Doughty will appear in Ithaca Friday, January 23rd at Castaways in a acoustic duo configuration!  The show will be seated with standing room in the rear and that limits capacity so advance ticket purchase is strongly recommended for this limited seating engagement.  Advance tickets will go on sale Monday, November 24th [...]

Femi Kuti has just released another fantastic album, Day By Day.  I usually leave the World Music things here to Megan, but this album really grabbed me.  The familiar themes are here – Justice, Unity, Equality and the dance grooves we’ve come to expect from traditional Afrobeat music.  What Femi does better than any other [...]

I think the State is still shaking.  Plaster is still slowly crumbling from the walls in the wake of the Avett Brothers’ departure late Friday night.  They were still taking photos and signing albums in the street when I left the venue slightly before midnight.  What they did inside is still reverberating and won’t subside for [...]

Portugal. The Man was kind enough to stop by the ICB studios last monday and perform a few songs from their new album Censored Colors on the Eclectic Revolution. They were all really nice guys (and girl!) along with being wonderful singers. With just a toy piano, acoustic guitar, and assorted percussive objects, they crooned [...]

It might have been under-attended, but the best shows usually are.  This phenomenon creates the buzz and sets up the next play.  It starts the “you shoulda been there’s” traveling around like wildfires.  This past Sunday was just such an experience as Cassandra Wilson and her amazing band filled the State Theatre in Ithaca with perhaps the [...]

What a year!
I am thrilled to announce the FINAL Popcorn Youth concert of 2008. It has been an exciting year for live music in Ithaca, and I couldn’t be happier to present — one of the most innovative, focused, and formidable improv duos around — in our last concert of the year. Local electronics improviser Aaron Phillip Tate will open [...]

Goldfrapp, oh be still my heart.
last night I went to the beautiful Brixton Academy to see the wonderful band fronted by Alison Goldfrapp. I went in with no expectations, as to be honest, I was in an awful mood. At 9 o’clock Alison’s backing band took the stage, all 8 of them, yes that’s right,  it’s [...]

If you didn’t see this – you should – over and over – it never gets old.  
 
As funny and right on as advertising gets.  I’m not a Sprint fan, (I was once an ambassador though – story for another time), but ingenuity like this will surely help them fight for the number two slot [...]

You read that correctly… the show of the year is here!  Just confirmed yesterday, the second annual “Three Girls” tour will grace our fair city this February 9th at the State Theatre.  This is an astounding lineup of performers and we at Dan Smalls Presents couldn’t be happier that we have been selected as a [...]

After last spring’s unexpected wall-to-wall sellout at the State Theatre, we confirmed our suspicions that Ithaca is an indie-rock mecca.  That show and others like it (Andrew Bird, for instance) cemented our fair town on the “we should play there” lists of the best touring acts.  So with that in mind, we have secured the [...]

Dear President-Elect Obama,
I’m very happy that you won the election.  I voted for you, and spent a good deal of time on the phone with other people trying to convince them to vote for you as well.  As someone who works in the arts and specializes in international music, and who travels abroad fairly regularly, I [...]

If you’re not from Upstate, NY (And by this I don’t mean Westchester County!) you probably have no idea that Syracuse has a pretty active music scene. If you’re from Upstate, you likely think that its emphasis is on the blues. And while the blues certainly has a strong base in Syracuse—punk and indie music [...]

V I D E O H I P P O S
SATURDAY NOV. 15

 
with Caution Children & Elsa and the awesomeAWESOMES
J.A.M. Dorm (Cornell’s North Campus)
doors 9 pm
6 $
 
 
Inspector Gadget’s gotta watch himself, Videohippos have got [...]

Meat Puppets II is the second album by the Tempe, Arizona band the Meat Puppets.  Whereas their first album pissed off the punk kids because these three long-haired country-looking cats from Arizona (Arizona?!?) played thrash and hardcore with unintelligible lyrics, this album spat back in these naysayers faces… the truest punk esthetic.  MP II covers a broad [...]

The NY band O’Death’s third LP begins ominously with the fingerpicked fiddle on “Lowtide” harkening the chaos about to ensue.  Its slow ride into the panicked melody to follow best characterizes this band that defies description.  They take the best of Old Crow Medicine show but offset that with the darkness and morose yet contemplative lyrics that [...]