Coming off the October release of his third full-length album, Cometa, Brooklyn-based artist, Nick Hakim, performed at Brooklyn Steel this past Saturday, Jan. 21.
Nick, joined by his incredibly smooth, regular musician accompaniment consisting of bassist Kyle Myles, guitarist Joe Harrison, and drummer Vishal Nayak, brought fresh sounds and layers to his already sonically rich vocal and backing melodies.
The night’s performance began with a few songs off the new record, blending in occasional songs from his second and debut album, also including, “I Don’t Know”, from his E.P. Where Will We Go, Pt. 2.
Midway through the gracefully blended set, show opener June McDoom joined the band on stage, providing harmonies fit for Nick’s soulfully gritty vocal style throughout the remainder of the show (not including the encore).
Later in the night, Nick’s brother Danny supplied guitar accompaniment to “Perfume”, which he wrote the chords for.
Nick and Danny Hakim & June McDoom, 2023 Photo by Parker Alexander
Some highlights of the night were a rousing performance of “Qadir”, named after his late friend, Qadir Imhotep West. Through repeated choruses, the band fully enveloped the audience, reaching out in the quiet and intimate moments, making the once industrial steel manufacturing plant feel like a personal performance in his living room, all whilst not forgetting to shy away from the crunchy, distorted guitar riffs and driving bass line.
Tomorrow night, the group heads to Philadelphia, continuing the tour through mid-February, before flying overseas in March.
Brand new, NYC-based music label 41st Parallel Records has just made their first release of 2023 with “Songs” by 3 Cards Trick. This instrumental guitar trio is the meeting of three of the most in-demand improvisors on New York’s avant-garde scene: Marco Cappelli (classical guitar), Brandon Seabrook (guitar), and Stomu Takeishi (acoustic bass guitar).
The trio’s music tastes take influence from various sources including covers, soundtracks, early music, and original compositions. Then, after some sampling with a blend of their own tastes, they land in a new unknown sound territory where everything is possible.
The all three members of 3 Cards Trick had first met back in 2015 at The Stone, John Zorn’s storied experimental music venue in New York. Since then, the trio has continued to develop its own, unique musical vision.
Marco Cappelli, also known as 41st Parallel Records, is an Italian-born, Brooklyn-based guitarist and composer. He has carved out an extraordinary artistic path between the worlds of avant classical and improvised music, fluent in both rigorous written music as well the languages of free improvisation. Marco is also member of Marc Ribot’s Caged Funk, Adam Rudolph’s Go: Organic Orchestra, and The Zone with Daniele Del Monaco.
In March 2020, the trio was ready to take off on their first ever European tour but backfired due to the worldwide COVID pandemic and lockdown. Thankfully after some time, the tour finally happened during the Fall of 2021.
Upcoming Tour Dates:
2/7 MARCO CAPPELLI – DownTown Music Gallery 6:30 pm / 13 Monroe St, New York 2/8 ELLIOTT SHARP / MARCO CAPPELLI / JT LEWIS – Shift 8pm / 411 Kent Ave, Brooklyn 2/14 ITALIAN SURF ACADEMY Fake Worlds album release show – The Sultan Room 234 Starr St, Brooklyn 2/18 w/ADAM RUDOLPH’S GO: ORGANIC ORCHESTRA & BROOKLYN RAGA MASSIVE Festival in Sons d’Hiver, Paris, France
Listen to 3 Cards Trick’s “Songs” by clicking the link here.
Esteemed punk band Bayside has announced they are hitting the road next month for their “Just Like Home Tour.” Joining them will be I Am The Avalanche and Koyo, making a stop at NYC’s Le Poisson Rouge on March 8th and 9th.
In addition to the new EP, Bayside have announced that they will be hitting the road this winter for the Just Like Home Tour. The lineup pays homage to the band’s local scene, with fellow New Yorkers I Am The Avalanche and Koyo providing support on the month long run. The Just Like Home Tour kicks off on February 10th in Houston, with stops to follow in Los Angeles, Seattle, Chicago, Toronto, Boston, New York City, and more.
Last year Bayside shocked their fans with The Red EP, as well as their cover of Kacey Musgraves’”Rainbow.” They then closed out 2022 with their latest single “Go To Hell”. With The Red EP, fans see Bayside refining their unique brand of punk rock even further. The EP’s three songs offer powerful, hard-hitting melodies that draw upon the band’s heavier influences. You can be sure that they are just getting started, with more music to come soon.
“We wanted to go out and do some places that are a little smaller than what we’ve been doing the last few years. We really cut our teeth in a lot of these venues and we can’t wait to get back to some of them for the first time in ages,” shares the band.
Bayside has deep roots in New York (they are named after the Queens neighborhood where they formed), so it is not out of place that they wrote a song dedicated to one of the state’s most famous vacation getaways. When most people think of Montauk they often have wonderful memories of their time on the beach, eating lobster with their families, or visiting the Montauk lighthouse. However, when Bayside wrote “Montauk,” they made a conscious decision to avoid all of the pleasant memories they might have had and took a more negative, yet humbling, approach to writing about the seaside town. They wanted to remind people that unfortunate circumstances can occur in amazing places, and sometimes saying goodbye is the hardest part of life.
Upcoming Tour Dates:
2/10 – Houston, TX @ White Oak Music Hall
2/11 – Dallas, TX @ Granada Theater
2/12 – Austin, TX @ Empire Control Room & Garage
2/14 – Mesa, AZ @ The Nile Theater
2/15 – Garden Grove, CA @ Garden AMP
2/16 – Las Vegas, NV @ House of Blues
2/17 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Belasco
2/18 – San Francisco, CA @ Great American Music Hall
2/20 – Portland, OR @ Revolution Hall
2/21 – Seattle, WA @ The Showbox
2/23 – Salt Lake City, UT @ The Complex
2/24 – Denver, CO @ The Gothic Theatre
2/25 – Lincoln, NE @ Bourbon Theatre
2/26 – Chicago, IL @ Metro
2/28 – Milwaukee, WI @ Th Rave
3/1 – Cincinnati, OH @ Bogart’s
3/3 – Detroit, MI @ Saint Andrew’s Hall
3/4 – Toronto, ON @ The Opera House
3/5 – Montreal, QC @ Corona Theatre
3/7 – Boston, MA @ Paradise Rock Club
3/8 + 3/9 – New York, NY @ LPR
3/10 – Baltimore, MD @ Baltimore Soundstage
3/11 – Philadelphia, PA @ Union Transfer
3/12 – Jersey City, NJ @ White Eagle Hall
To check out more by Bayside and to purchase tickets for their upcoming shows, click the link here.
As 2022 was wrapping up its final week, Patti Smith returned to Brooklyn Steel for two nights on December 29 and 30 to celebrate her birthday (which coincided with the second evening). Brooklyn Steel was flooded with fans for the shows, seemingly sold out on the evening we attended and sold out on Dec. 30. The venue’s size and layout made it an excellent atmosphere for an intimate performance.
In her true spirit, Smith’s show was an amalgamation of poetry, beauty, and fierceness wrapped in a blanket of rock and roll. The show featured her high energy songs such as “Free Money,” “People Have the Power,” and her mainstay take on Them’s “Gloria.” Earlier that day, the world had lost iconic British fashion designer and cultural influencer Vivienne Westwood. Many musicians had taken to social media to pay tribute to her, and Smith dedicated her song about sadness and loss “Redondo Beach” to Westwood after saying a few words.
A motif of the evening was time, given the impending change of year and two more important milestones – the birthdays of both Smith and her long-time collaborator and guitarist Lenny Kaye. While taking a brief break mid-set, the band covered “Time Won’t Let Me,” “If I Could Turn Back Time,” and “Time Is On My Side” while a cover of The Chambers Brothers’ “Time Has Come Today” came later in the show. With Kaye’s birthday a few days prior, Smith rallied the audience for a round of “Happy Birthday” for his day (Smith had her birthday moment with the sold-out crowd the next evening, with cake!).
Along with Patti Smith, her band includes Lenny Kaye and her son Jackson Smith on guitar, Tony Shanahan on bass/keys, and Jay Dee Daugherty on drums. Smith’s tradition of performing shows for her birthday (and by nice coincidence, celebrating the upcoming New Year) is one not to miss.
Patti Smith – Brooklyn Steel – December 29, 2022
Setlist: Dancing Barefoot, Redondo Beach, Free Money, Ghost Dance, Because the Night, My Blakean Year, Nine, Pissing in a River, Time Won’t Let Me (>) If I Could Turn Back Time, Time Is on My Side, One Too Many Mornings, Peaceable Kingdom / People Have the Power, Summer Cannibals, Ain’t It Strange, Time Has Come Today, People Have the Power
