The Sea And Cake Played Bowery Ballroom - Pictures, Review

Last night at Bowery Ballroom, The Sea and Cake delivered a lengthy set, complete with two encores, to a crowd of devoted fans. The show was part of their most recent North American tour, and was devoid of all pomp and circumstance. The band was traveling with no merch, and had a stage show that (as per usual) consisted of no more than four dudes playing their songs on stage.  The caveat was thus: those dudes can play their music very, very well.

To say that The Sea and Cake can deliver a bulletproof set is an understatement.  They are a well honed band to the nth degree, and their live show is akin to a more visceral version of their recorded takes. All the parts are there, and the arrangements are rock solid, but with just a touch more spice than one finds on the stereo.  In particular, John McEntire's drumming takes on a whole new character in the live environ.  When paired with Eric Claridge's unrelenting bass, it serves as an underpinning for the band as a whole.

However, by the end of the set, the well oiled machine had upped the pace to a frenetic hum, and the band began to, for lack of a better term, rock out.  It was probably the most high-energy we've ever seen this bunch, and they seemed to be truly enjoying themselves.  Hearing Archer Prewitt start to really tear into his guitar, one got the feeling that you were looking in on the more raw side of the band, the side that might bear its teeth at rehearsal space's or writing sessions behind the privacy of closed doors.

One thing remained true for the duration of the show:  these are a group of musicians who are more than able to deliver on the promise of their craft.  For the whole of the set (which consisted largely of newer material, with the occasional dip into the back catalog),  tune after tune  emerged in tip-top shape, and fell readily upon the ears of a crowd of highly enthusiastic fans.  There was no trick, no illusion, no attempt to create something that wasn't actually there.  Instead, it was completely heart-on-sleeve rendition of songs that were carefully crafted amongst the talents of the four men on stage. And therein lies the beauty of a Sea and Cake show:  it's all about the music.

More pictures in the HAD Archive

The Sea and Cake Set To Tour In November

The Sea and Cake at GAMH in 2008, from the HAD Archive

Oh, how we love The Sea and Cake. Their records are endlessly addictive additions to our home catalog, and their latest, The Moonlight Butterfly, is no exception. However, if there's one thing the band does better than making records, it's playing live. Their live sets are immaculate presentations of their distinctive, jazz influenced rock sound. Luckily, the band has decided to tour in support of their latest, with a full US tour in November. If you miss this, you're silly, and we certainly won't be making excuses for your absence.

mp3: The Sea And Cake - Up On The North Shore

The Sea and Cake - 2011 Tour Dates
Fri 11/04/11 Magic Stick Detroit MI
Sat 11/05/11 Lees Palace Toronto ON
Sun 11/06/11 La Sala Rossa Montreal PQ
Mon 11/07/11 Brighton Music Hall Boston MA
Tue 11/08/11 Bowery Ballroom New York NY
Wed 11/09/11 Union Transfer Philadelphia PA
Thu 11/10/11 Black Cat Washington DC
Fri 11/11/11 Local 506 Chapel Hill NC
Sat 11/12/11 Headliners Music Hall Louisville KY
Fri 12/02/11 The Crocodile Seattle WA
Sat 12/03/11 Doug Fir Lounge Portland OR
Sun 12/04/11 Jambalaya Arcata CA
Mon 12/05/11 Great American Music Hall San Francisco CA
Tue 12/06/11 Troubadour Los Angeles CA
Wed 12/07/11 Casbah San Diego CA
Thu 12/08/11 The Mohawk Austin TX
Sat 12/10/11 Voila Acoustique Mexico City Mexico

The Sea And Cake Drop New EP In May, Album On The Way

The Sea And Cake at Great American Music Hall, from the HAD Archive

Want to hear something so totally rad that it will make your night? The Sea And Cake have a new EP on the way! But wait! There's more! They're also in the studio working on another reocord! And they've released a free EP entitled "Up On The Northshore"! Yes. We agree, very, very good news.

The Moonlight Butterfly drops on 5/10. The cover art and free track are below. Win!

mp3: The Sea And Cake - Up On The North Shore

Treasure Island Festival Day 2 - Pictures, Review

Day 2 at Treasure Island got off to a tenuous start: the morning was quite rainy, and the festival grounds were unquestionably dampened in the early hours of the day. However, after a few (quite aggressive) downpours, the weather took the rest of the day off, and things cleared up just in time for us to start checking out some killer tunes on the "rock" day of the fest.

Superchunk

We've been really digging on Superchunk's latest disc Majesty Shredding, so we were stoked to make sure we caught their set at the festival. The band definitely did not disappoint, and have clearly been putting in the time to rehearse for this tour. Their set was ridiculously tight, and brought the rock and roll out to play right when the dreary day needed it most.

The set was a nice mix of old and new material, and it seemed like pretty much everyone taking in the show was well satisfied. With less frequent records and touring, Superchunk is somewhat in danger of being relegated to a nostalgia act, so it was nice to see them realize the full potential of their new material, and deliver a killer set that left little doubt as to their solidity as a band.

The Sea And Cake

After Superchunk's set, we headed over to catch The Sea And Cake, a constant favorite around these parts. The band, who haven't had a new record in a while, delivered a set that focused heavily on their last two, Car Alarm and Everybody.

The band was just coming off of a lengthy tour with Broken Social Scene, and did seem a tad road-weary, but nonetheless managed a killer set. They're always on top of making their tunes live up to the album versions, and the intricacy and exacting nature of their playing is always a treat.

At the end of the day, The Sea And Cake are one of our faves both on record and in a live environment. Getting to see them play a set at a show that already had so many awesome bands on the bill was like icing on the cake.

She & Him

She & Him made their way on stage to the shrill screams of a countless number of women, and from there, well...we don't exactly know what to say. Does Zooey Deschanel have a decent voice? Sure. Decent in the sense that if you went to karaoke with her, you'd probably have a good time. Decent in the sense that she should be taking up Matt Ward's time and talent? Not exactly.

Look, we know they probably love each other to death. We know that she's a movie star, and that sells records. We know that they probably both appreciate each other's talents so much. But that's not really the point. The point, is that Matt Ward is a killer musician in his own right, and when we hear She & Him it just seems so middle of the road. At the end of the day, at least for us, that's just not good enough.

Broken Social Scene

Luckily, our skepticism was soon to be overridden by the awesomeness that is Broken Social Scene. As mentioned above, the band was on the final date of a lengthy tour with The Sea And Cake. Frontman Kevin Drew was quick to admit they were dragging a bit, and the crowd was quick to respond with a solid dose of enthusiasm.

Despite being tired, the band certainly didn't let it get the best of their set, and they pulled out all the stops in delivering the rock and roll to the masses. As is custom, the band traded up on vocals and instruments, including a vast array of horns to even out the material. The set started off with a positively epic rendition of "Meet Me In The Basement", and took off from there.

In terms of the "pillars" of BSS, Kevin Drew, Brendan Canning, and Andrew Whiteman were all in attendance. The female vocals were filled out by now-regular member Lisa Lobsinger, who did a killer job on "Shoreline" and "Anthems For A 17 Year Old Girl", to name a couple. For a festival show, this one really did the trick, and the band's enthusiasm combined with a killer setlist (below) left us more than satisfied.

Broken Social Scene Treasure Island Setlist

--

Meet Me In The Basement

Shoreline

Fire-eyed Boy

Texaco Bitches

Forced To Love

World Sick

Anthems For A 17 Year Old Girl

Almost Crimes

All To All

Ibi Dreams Of Pavement

The National

As always, The National delivered an impecable set, both visually and sonically. These guys have simply got their act down, and they deliver every time. The set was timed perfectly as darkness fell on the festival, and the band emerged amidst smokey lights to offer up their own brand of melancholic soul.

That being said, The National are so well put together that it's starting to feel a little contrived. The act is always dead on, and it's always so heavy, that one starts to wonder if it's genuine. Don't get us wrong: these guys make killer records, and have an amazingly well composed live show. We just worry that if they don't switch it up a little, they might be in danger of becoming a one trick pony.

Rogue Wave

SF locals Rogue Wave closed out the night at the second stage with a set of their own unique folky-rock mix. It's a testament to the band that their material is both artistically solid and easily accessible, and the crowd that assembled clearly enjoyed taking it all in.

The set was a truly enjoyable display of the band's musical talents, and they headed right through a set of great songs such that the set passed rapidly. Ted Nesseth of The Heavenly States joined the band on stage, which was a treat as well. The band closed out the set, and the crowd promptly began the migration for the final set of the night.

Belle & Sebastian

When we heard about Belle & Sebastian headlining the festival, we were a little skeptical. Don't get us wrong: we love the band, and they positively kill in a live environment. It's just that we really couldn't figure if Stuart Murdoch and Co. would be able to deliver a set that was engaging and "big" enough to own the main stage.

Well, Murdoch was clearly dead set on proving any misgivings anyone had completely wrong, and took to the stage bursting with energy and enthusiasm. In trippy glasses and a scarf, he and the band proceeded to deliver a set that ran the gamut of their lengthy career, and had something for everyone.

While the quieter songs were a little more difficult to latch onto in the live environment, overall the band's set was well on top of things, and made sure it owned the night. One of the nice things about B&S is that their records are so restrained, and then their live show is so raucous. It reminds you that "twee" or not, these are clearly rock musicians who want to play their hearts out.

They did exactly that, and the set was a great close to a fantastic weekend.

Treasure Island Festival Day 1 Coverage

Many more photos at the HAD Archive

Broken Social Scene and The Sea & Cake Join Forces For Split 7"

Well, count us in as excited. It was cool enough that The Sea & Cake's John McEntire produced Broken Social Scene's latest, Forgiveness Rock Record, and then the two bands subsequently toured together. This week the pair outdid themselves again, and announced a split 7" that's set to drop next Tuesday. The single contains an unreleased track from each band: "Curse Your Fail" from BSS, and "Skies" from The Sea & Cake. While you could wait and snag it at your local record shop, if you just can't wait it's available at Gallery AC right now!

Sam Prekop: Old Punch Card, Sea and Cake Tour Dates

It's no secret that we're huge fans of The Sea and Cake here at HAD: not only does the band deliver a killer live show, but they've been making fantastic records for going on 20 years. As such, it's not exactly a surprise that we've dug on the solo work of the band's frontman Sam Prekop.

Prekop's first two solo records unquestionably draw upon The Sea and Cake's sound, notably in the arrangements and his distinctive voice. While the arrangements are at times more jazzy or mellow, for fans of the band, the two releases are definitely easy to digest. When we got wind that Prekop had a new record (Old Punch Card, cover above) on tap for this fall, we were expecting more of the same.

We couldn't have been more off base: Old Punch Card is a quirky, experimental, electronic adventure. Utilizing a diversified musical palette, Prekop takes highly abstract sounds, and unifies them in a way that somehow manages to have his distinctive fingerprints all over the place. No, you won't find yourself singing along to a catchy melody or hook, but at the same time you won't be put to sleep by unnecessary noise. The record is carefully calculated, artfully delivered, and unquestionably composed.

While Prekop won't be touring directly in support of the record, The Sea and Cake will be on tour this fall - and we're psyched! The band is joining Broken Social Scene for their North American dates, including a stop at Rumsey Playfield in New York, and the Treasure Island festival in San Francisco. We don't really feel like a Sea and Cake/Broken Social Scene double bill is a hard sell, but just in case you were in doubt: it's got our unquestionable seal of approval.

The Sea And Cake Fall Tour (All Dates With Broken Social Scene)

Sep 13 Washington, DC Warner Theatre
Sep 14 Philadelphia, PA Theater of Living Arts
Sep 17 Boston, MA House of Blues
Sep 18 New York, NY Rumsey Playfield
Sep 20 New Haven, CT Toads Place
Sep 21 Northampton, MA Calvin Theatre
Sep 22 South Burlington, VT Higher Ground
Sep 24 Ithaca, NY Historic Ithaca State Theatre
Sep 25 Buffalo, NY Town Ballroom
Oct 2 Chicago, IL Riviera Theatre
Oct 3 Milwaukee, WI Pabst Theatre
Oct 4 Minneapolis, MN First Avenue
Oct 6 Winnipeg, MB Burton Cummings Theatre
Oct 7 Saskatoon, SK The Odeon Events Centre
Oct 8 Calgary, AB Macewan Hall
Oct 9 Edmonton, AB Winspear Centre
Oct 10 Kelowna, BC Kelowna Community Theatre
Oct 12 Victoria, BC Element Nightclub
Oct 13 Vancouver, BC Commodore Ballroom
Oct 14 Vancouver, BC Commodore Ballroom
Oct 15 Seattle, WA Paramount Ballroom
Oct 16 Portland, OR Crystal Ballroom
Oct 17 San Francisco, CA Treasure Islands Music Festival
Oct 19 Los Angeles, CA Wiltern Theatre

mp3: Sam Prekop - The Silhouettes

Treasure Island 2010 Lineup Announced

We've been loving the Treasure Island Festival from day one. Always immaculately organized, always a great lineup, and always a beautiful (albeit sometimes cold) view of the city by the Bay. This year is no exception, as the festival organizers (Another Planet and Noise Pop) have just announced this year's lineup.

Similar to past years, Saturday is more of an electronic day, and is headed up by LCD Soundsystem, with some old school support from Kruder and Dorfmeister, and some serious action from !!!. Sunday is, once again, the "rock" day, and as predicted, Belle and Sebastian are heading the lineup. Combine that with the awesomeness of Broken Social Scene, The Sea and Cake, and The National, and well....this is gonna be good.

The Sea And Cake At Mighty In July?

The Sea and Cake at Great American, from the HAD Archive

While we have little-to-no confirmation at this point, a little bird has spouted a rumor that The Sea And Cake may be at San Francisco's Mighty on July 17th. Given that the club is usually host to DJ's more often than bands, it seems a bit unusual. Pile that up with the fact that Tortoise (namely, John McEntire) will be in Chicago that day, and well, it doesn't sound like a full band gig.

That being said, the band is doing some Canadian dates at the beginning of July, so it's not implausable, although it seems unlikely they'd rope in another drummer. Perhaps it's an acoustic set? Or a DJ set? We honestly have no idea, and Mighty's calendar isn't giving up any secrets. We'll keep our eyes posted and let you know. Stay tuned.

mp3: The Sea And Cake - Weekend

HAD's Top Eleven Of 2008

Yes, eleven. At the end of the day, we just couldn't bring ourselves to pare it down to ten, and what's the point of normalcy, anyway? Instead we decided to just give you the unfettered list of our favorite records of the year, count be damned.

This list is really our best effort to point out the records that caught our attention, and held on to it for a good long time. There are lots of other great records out there, but these are the discs that stayed with us through the year. On headphones and speakers, at home and on the road, these are albums that not only held our attention, but also changed our perspective on music and opened our eyes to a new perspective.

1. Frightened Rabbit - Midnight Organ Fight:
To anyone who's a regular reader of HAD, this record's place at number one should come as no surprise. We're simply addicted to it, in every sense of the word. The desperate vocals, the layered guitars, the outstanding songwriting, and the clever lyricism - all of them contribute to make Frightened Rabbit's latest our number one record of the year. Some pigeonhole it as emo or depressing, but we're of the opinion of their missing the humor behind the record. Its songs are a shot at the unbelievable nature of love and life in the modern world, and struggling to find some semblance of reason amongst the chaos.

 2. Plants And Animals - Parc Avenue:
This Canadian trio hit us out of the blue with a record that captures so many elements that it's painfully hard to characterize, aside from the fact that it's very, very, good. The album's tracks contain a vast range of styles, rhythms, and melodies. More than anything, they serve to lay a foundation for a band that is clearly adept at doing whatever they please. From the anthemic opener "Bye Bye", to the record's frenetic closer "Guru", this album simply begs to be listened to on repeat - what's hiding in the nooks and crannies gives more and more with each listen.

 3. MGMT - Oracular Spectacular:
Sure, it's debateable as to when this record came out. If you're a "when did the public get it" purist, then sure, it was released in digital form last year. For us, though, the record hit the streets in January, and a release is a release. But enough about technicality: this record is rock and roll brilliance. An amazingly clever tongue and cheek look at disillusionment in the face of commercialism and social norms. It's a record about finding your own way, discovering yourself, and wondering what on earth people are doing following the crowd. It doesn't hurt that the melodies are ridiculously catchy and memorable, and that Dave Friddman did a fantastic job with the production duties. The whole record comes together to be a pop masterpiece that also manages to take a stab at everything and anything conventional.

4. Evangelicals - The Evening Descends:
It's difficult to pull of experimental psychedelica in a way that's accessible to your average listener. It's even more difficult to dose that experimental psychedelica with just enough pop sensibility that your record transcends genre and defines you completely. On this record, that's exactly what Evangelicals have done: the album is a cacophonic dose of measured chaos that seems almost incomprehensible, but at the same time demands that the listener sing (or at least attempt to sing) along. Every time we pop in this disc, we have to smile at its amazing ability to unite melody with off the wall production - this is the sound of people having fun with music.

5. David Byrne And Brian Eno - Everything That Happens Will Happen Today:
To say that David Byrne and Brian Eno pose each other with inspiration is an understatement: the two have collaborated on some of the most influential and amazing records of the modern era. Given that, it makes sense that the music community at large was more than a little excited to see what this collaboration would yield: the experimentalism of My Life In The Bush Of Ghosts? The disjunct art rock of the Talking Heads? In the end, it was something different althogether: Byrne brought the influence of his recent work to the table, and Eno laid down some of his most song based work in years. The result is a record that has all the melodic and lyrical rewards of Byrne's solo career, with an underpinning of Eno's instrumentals that push Byrne ever so slightly back to the world of rock music - and it's a very good thing.

6. The Sea And Cake - Car Alarm:
Given its similarity in production and writing to last year's Everybody (our #1 of the year), it should come as no surprise to find this record in our top 10. Even the press release for Car Alarm name checked it as the clear successor to Everybody. The band was happy with what they were doing, happy to be on the road, and wanted to capture the sound for round two. In the end, they did exactly that: the album presents the same measured, well crafted pop, with some ever-so-slight tweaks that separate it from its sibling. The guitars are tougher, the percussion more varied, and the vocals more pointed. We're glad The Sea And Cake managed to get another disc out the door this quickly, and given the result we hope they don't slow down any time soon.

  7. The Heavenly States - Delayer:
It's a pretty unique experience to see a band three nights in a row, having never heard anything they've done previously.  In the case of The Heavenly States, that's exactly what happened: we caught them opening for Spoon on a killer 3 night run at the Fillmore, and were on board thereafter.  The band manages to take a degree of earnest lyricism and melody that doesn't always suit our fancy  (think Springsteen), and then temper it with just enough balls to the wall musicianship that all of a sudden we're perfectly happy to be earnestly rocking.  This record is loaded with infectious melodies, gorgeous guitar hooks, and most importantly, the soul of rock and roll.  We're waiting on the next one, States.

8. TV On The Radio - Dear Science, :
We've been fans of TVOTR since way back in their pre-album-release days, so this one was on our radar from the get go.  The thing is, while previous releases have always been great, this one takes it to a new level.  The band has managed to unify their sound in a way that perfects it, and the same time minimizes it.  Songs are more artfully layered, and the band seems less intent to be constantly firing on all cylinders.  Rather, this is a record with a solid ebb and flow, that comes together in the way a great record really should: it feels distinctly as though it should be enjoyed in one satisfying listen.  That isn't to say the record is without catchiness: the songs on the album hold their own, and frankly, it gets us thinking that TVOTR's next record could be the one that puts them solidly into the arena as both an artistic stalwart, and a favorite of the mainstream.  Next Radiohead, anyone?

9. Port O'Brien - All We Could Do Is Sing:
Port O'Brien, on their face, is something of a folk band:  many of their lyrics are sentimental, biographical, or downright excerpts from a story telling session.  Yet even in the face of all that folk sensibility, the thing that really wins us over is the fact that the band isn't afraid to rock.  Even this most sensitive moments are laced with something of an iron grip, and the band's live experience takes the album's rock sensibility and takes it to another level.  It's tough to think about them and not mention Neil Young in the same breath, except that Neil's voice (quite frankly) doesn't measure up to what Port O'Brien has to offer.   Judging by the band's live set, the next record will be a step further in the direction of searing rock and roll, but in the meantime, we're content to enjoy this gem any time we're looking for a taste.

10. Stephen Malkmus + Jicks - Real Emotional Trash:

This record's a tad difficult for us to even think of as an '08 release, as most of its songs had been heavily, heavily road tested by the time it came out.  That being said, this is a record that really needs to be recognized:  it's really the first time the Jicks have come together and released a solid record as a band.  2005's Face The Truth was clearly (and admittedly) a Stephen Malkmus basement project, that wore all the hallmarks of the singer and guitarist's idiosyncrasies.  By sharp contrast, Real Emotional Trash unifies the band (including newcomer Janet Weiss) under the guidance of Malkmus, and then allows them to truly shine.  We have to admit, we're a fan of anything Malkmus rolls out the door, so we're curious to see what the next record will bring.  Regardless of what it does bring, this record is a clear testament to the Jicks abilities, and the fact that they have graduated far beyond the simple moniker of "Stephen Malkmus' backing band".

11. The Walkmen - You And Me:
This record is the one that kept us from sticking to a simple "top ten", and with good reason: The Walkmen have released a record that manages to draw from (and learn the lessons of) every record in their catalog.  While many have hailed this release as a "return to form", we here at HAD are inclined to disagree.  While You And Me does contain many of the hallmarks of the band's first two records, it also contains a certain sensibility that is unquestionably reminiscent of the bands oft-criticized (and frankly, well-loved around here) release A Hundred Miles Off.  The band's ethereal, haunting rock has been solidly laced with a newfound pop sensibility, and what's more, many of the songs have managed to chip out a genre that is even more distinctively "Walkmen" than any of their previous releases.  In short, this is a record that realizes the promise of the band's greatness, but also manages to illustrate the journey it took to get there.

So, there you have it folks: Our top records of 2008!  Enjoy your New Year's, and we'll be sure to see you back here next Monday.  In the meantime, stay safe, and if you missed any of these records, get out there and grab them.  You wouldn't want to get behind with 2009 just around the corner!