On some nights you can fool yourself into forgetting that industry weeks like SXSW have shifted from being about discovery to being full-on music festivals. Yesterday was not one of those days. Aside…   Read Story »

Top to bottom five-band blowout at Market Hotel Saturday night, the DIY space packed tight in time for the opening band's 8:30 set, because 1) everybody had just spent two days locked inside at the…   Read Story »

Ascendant indie guitar dudes Surfer Blood maybe be off and running on a massive tour supporting their ace debut Astro Coast (tour dates at the bottom of this post), but clearly they'll always carry…   Read Story »

Surfer Blood. As far as indie rock debut LPs go, this is about as good as it's going to get in 2K10. These are dudes that will toss off a Neutral Milk Hotel cover without even bothering to unslouch…   Read Story »

Surfer Blood's name is tougher than their sound. No doubt. But what happens when the West Palm Beach buzz group hook up with Baroness drummer Allen Blickle for a remix of Astro Coast's nimble…   Read Story »

This year in music was great and we'rea gonna let it finish (sorry), but in terms of notable album releases the ship has sailed. No offense, 30 Seconds To Mars. While the Gummys' virtual poll booth…   Read Story »

At this point anyone can have a CMJ-week party. You don't even need a sponsor, in part because you don't even need a proper venue. (Lofts, yards, and empty space above auto parts stores will suffice,…   Read Story »

One last gargantuan batch of photos from an exhausting, exhaustive week of NYC showgoing. On Friday Jessica Amaya joined us at Doveman's record release party at the Elevated Hole, a Chelsea loft…   Read Story »

On Thursday at CMJ the xx played theIr 66th and 67th shows of the week -- one at the Apple Store SoHo, another as the "x-rated" secret guest at the horribly delayed, horribly sweaty Club NME showcase…   Read Story »

As far as full-on noon-to-2AM marathon set hunting goes, Wednesday's spread won't be topped this year. In addition to bringing us memorable sets from two bands we'll be watching much more closely in…   Read Story »