Tags archives: Narc Twain

  • Tommy Siegel is best known as the guitarist of either piano band Jukebox the Ghost or noise rock group Drunken Sufis. The two bands exist on fairly opposite ends of the genre spectrum, with one brimming with gentle introspection and optimism while the other stopping its feet and howling against the government. Siegel has pooled elements of both projects, like the political-savvy of the Sufis and the humor of a younger Jukebox, to fuel his newest act: Narc Twain. A dystopian punk band, the group was born from of all things a book of poetry. The symbiotic nature of Brooklyn is perhaps to thank for Siegel’s chance encounter with the book. He found Jeremy Schmall & Cult of Comfort by Jeremy Schmall in the recycling bin of his apartment building last year. The 99-page collection is brief, with fifty or so poems channeling anxiety, paranoia, pain, discomfort, understanding, introspection, hunger and hitting on a myriad of other emotions that the reader didn’t necessarily see coming. The poems twist and hairpin turn in a way that would make all MFA students smile and all passer-bys wonder what exactly did they pick up out of the recycling. The commentary on capitalism and cynicism struck a chord with Siegel. He wrote Schmall, whose email was hidden in plain sight in a poem in Cult of Comfort, eventually sending him music. And thus Schmall inspired what would eventually become the six song EP that is Narc Twain. The band released the debut EP last week, playing a show in c[...]
  • CMJ 2015 is in full swing. The festival takes its name from the College Media Journal, which was started by Robert Haber in 1978. Haber’s publication was aimed at college radio programmers and their audiences, a crowd which is still well represented at each year’s festival. This year the CMJ speaker schedule includes talks and workshops on the radio resumes, interviews and the history of student-run radio as well as the CMJ College Radio Awards. As much as the five day, non-stop marathon still honors its history in college radio, it also delves into the live scene. Well over a thousand bands with varying levels of exposure play venues all over New York. From the basement-like space of Cake Shop to the expansive Brooklyn Bowl, artists gather to play their best and celebrate music. This year’s line-up includes bands of every genre and size. Seeing all of them is infeasible, but here are about dozen acts that you can’t miss. - - - - - - - - - - T H U R S D A Y - - - - - - - - - - Glass Animals Genre: Indie Rock Set Time: Thu, October 15, 8:00 PM @ Terminal 5 Listen To: "Black Mambo" Girls with Brown Hair Genre: Indie Rock/Comedy Set Time: Thu, October 15, 8:06 PM > 8:16 PM @ The Unicorn Listen To: "Dad Rap" Panda Bear Genre: Experimental Set time: Thu, October 15, 9:00 PM @ Bowery Ballroom Listen To: “Boys Latin” off of Panda Bear Meets the Grim Reaper The Maccabees Genre: Indie Rock Set Time: Thu, October 15, 11:00 PM > 11:45 PM @ Me[...]