Bklyn Sounds 2/26/2025—3/4/2025
This week's shows include Love Injection 10th anniversary / Wendy Eisenberg residency at The Stone / Natural Information Society large ensemble / Daymé Arocena / 'Abasement' / and much more
On Saturday night, Dada Strain will participate in the 10th anniversary celebration of Love Injection, Barbie Bertisch and Paul Raffaele’s great New York music and culture fanzine/record label/party/radio show. The celebration will take place on Saturday, March 1st, at Public Records, 233 Butler Street, Gowanus, with doors opening at 11p. Tickets are $40 (from RA and DICE).
Paul & Barbie will spin in the Sound Room all night long, with special guest, New York house vocal legend Joi Cardwell stopping by for a live set. Occupy the Disco, the DJing duo of Tad Haes and RuBot, takes over the Atrium. Dada Strain curated the Upstairs lounge, where Piotr Dada Strain will spin records opening and closing the night, but the really good shit will be a live set by the electronic producer and improvising vibraphonist Will Shore, an all-vinyl DJ set by the mighty Quinnette, and the the trumpet of Chris Williams adding special touches throughout the night. The door at Public Records on this evening will be overseen by NYC nightlife culture staple, Richard Alvarez.
Hope to see you there!
THIS WEEK’S SHOWS:
The debut of a new series, New Town (“presenting eclectic programming in a high fidelity listening environment”), from the folks who operate Restoration Sound, a recording studio on Metropolitan Ave. New Town Vol.1 is a great opening salvo, with a multi-generational triple-bill of killer improvisers: legendary harp experimentalist Zeena Parkins, violinist/multi-disciplinary artist yuniya edi kwon, and vibraphonist /electronic producer Will Shore. (Wed 2/26, 7:30p @ Restoration Sound, East W’burg - $15)
One of those potentially unique combinations of gathered players and off-the-beaten-path locales, in which my head gets giddy with possibility. A key reason I write Bklyn Sounds. Drummer Lesley Mok, pianist/keyboardist Craig Taborn, and cellist/electronics player Lester St. Louis doing a pair of sets at the lovely cocktail bar in central Bklyn. I love seeing the great Taborn engaging the younger generation of players more and more often. Major potential for musical fireworks. (Wed 2/26, 8p & 9:30p @ Bar Bayeux, Prospect-Lefferts - One drink + $uggested)
The mighty Wendy Eisenberg is having a mainstream press moment, which makes their return to The Stone residency exquisitely timed. The guitarist, singer-songwriter, improviser and experimentalist has been among NYC/Bklyn’s leading lights for a few years now, collaborating with a head-spinningly cross-generational roster of artists, while powering multiple bands, and countless DIY session nights. And will be on display over the course of the four nights, with Eisenberg playing solo on Wednesday, and then sharing the stage in a trio of magnificent trios: with Laura Cocks (flute) and Mari Maurice aka More Eaze (pedal steel, violin) on Thursday; the country-swaying Darlin’, co-starring Lester St Louis (cello) and Ryan Sawyer (drums, voice) on Friday; and the highly charged Machinic Unconscious with Trevor Dunn (bass) and Ches Smith (drums) on Saturday. Highest Recommendation! (Wed 2/26 - Sat 3/1, 8:30p @ The Stone, New School, Manhattan - $20)
I learned about Chicago’s Third Coast Percussion troupe when they commissioned Jlin to write a piece for them (the magical “Perspective”), which became a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in music. Jlin has written another for 3CP, “Please Be Still” (co-commissioned by Carnegie Hall), and the quartet flanked by Salar Nader on tablas, is premiering it this evening at Zankel. Alongside pieces by the late Zakir Hussain, Tigran Hamasyan and Jessie Montgomery. (Thurs 2/27, 7:30p @ Zankel Hall, Midtown - $$$)
Roulette’s annual Mixology festival of “novel approaches to technology in music and media arts” expands to three nights and a workshop this year. My highlights include Thursday’s pairing of shoegaze drone mistress Whitney Johnson (aka Matchess) pairing with percussionist Greg Fox perform amidst a multi-channel sine wave array; Friday’s sets by vocalist-sitarist-producer Ami Dang and gear-set techno improviser bookworms; and Saturday’s set by bassoonist/electronics improviser Joy Guidry. (Thurs 2/27, 7p + Fri 2/28, 8p + Sat 3/1, 5p & 8p @ Roulette, Downtown Bklyn - $25adv/$30 each night, or $40 full festival pass)
Since making her debut a decade ago on the Havana Sessions, 32 year-old Daymé Arocena has become one of her generation’s great Cuban singers. She’s moved fluidly between traditional voice-and-drum songs and rumbas, and contemporary, electronic pan-Latin pop, one foot in the past, another in the future, and a powerful, astute voice that engages both as the situation arises. (Fri 2/28, 7:30p @ David Rubenstein Atrium, Lincoln Center, Uptown - FREE)
Chicago-based trance-setting improvisers Natural Information Society (Joshua Abrams on the guimbri, Lisa Alvarado on harmonium, Jason Stein on clarinet and Mikel Patrick Avery on drums) are among the most unique bands on Earth. And one of my favorites. The intensity of their lilt, the tight and loose wrap of their instrumental drones, lines and rhythms, the simultaneous simplicity and complexity this music gives off (roots in North Africa + south and west side of Chicago) makes every performance an event. These two late afternoon/early evening sunset shows are even more special. They’re celebrating the opening of “Shape of Artifact Time,” a show of Alvarado’s visual and multimedia art. It’s at The Kitchen, a place with a long history of American music minimalism that NIS is a great addition to. And they’re expanding to a “large ensemble” that includes some of NYC’s best, with vibraphonist Patricia Brennan, alto saxophonist Darius Jones, trumpeter Chris Williams, and (on Friday only) the legendary William Parker on a variety of instruments. Highest Recommendation! (Fri 2/28 & Sat 3/1, 5p @ The Kitchen, Manhattan - $15-$30)
A rare evening South Asian devotional and classical music. The Pakistani singer Ustad (“maestro” or “teacher,” depending on the language you’re translating from) Naseeruddin Saami is a rare master of both khayal, an expressive form of Hindustani classical music, and of the Islamic-Sufi devotional music qawwali. On this, a rare trip to the U.S., Ustad Saami will perform with his sons Rauf (harmonium & vocals), Urooj (tanpura & vocals), Ahmed (tanpura & vocals) and Azeem (tabla). The evening program, entitled The Heart of Practice, will also include a conversation between Ustad, Rauf and noted scholar, writer and khayal performer Fawzia Afzal-Khan, as well as Nermeen Arastu, an Associate Professor of Law and Co-Director of the Immigrant & Non-Citizen Rights Clinic at the CUNY School of Law. (Sat 3/1, 7:30p @ Greenwich Music School, Manhattan - FREE w/RSVP)
A massive B2B starring two of the best millennial practitioners of Detroit techno. The D’s Kyle Hall has been making crackling jazz- and jack-infested tracks since he was in his early teens, a next great thing that turned into one. Birmingham, AL-born/ATL-groomed Byron the Aquarius was, relatively speaking, a late bloomer, but he came to his Kai Alce-mentored practice that’s now seen him drop bangers on Sound Signature and Axis, with a pedigree as an incredible jazz keyboardist. They can both DJ the sh*t out of records, and will do so together. Also: Morgan b2b Omer Mil. (Sat 3/1, 9p @ Signal, East W’burg - $10-$30)
There were a few years there at the end of the aughts/beginning of the tens, when the sound of Sandwell District—the DJing duo of Regis (Karl O’Connor, originally from Birmingham, UK) and Function (David Sumner, a New Yorker who decamped for Berlin)—became my end-all of hard-techno. It was a deep, dark utopian minimalism that felt like Europe’s answer to the great power of Robert Hood and UR. Like that legendary Detroit institution, Sandwell too emanated from a label (co-founded by Regis in 2002) and grew to be a collective (with the late great Silent Servant), before Regis and Function went their separate ways. Their return to New York after a decade away is in perfect circumstances: early morning, in the midst of a Sustain-Release NonStop. (Sun 3/2, 8a @ Nowadays, Ridgewood - $10-$45)
Downtown’s DIY art-meets-music experimental hootenanny, Abasement returns for its 76th edition. Live performances by noise merchant MV Carbon; the A/V electronics quartet consisting of Brian Close, Kiki Kudo, Grave Guzman and Woodson Legend; punk jazz drummer William Hooker’s Jubilation with trumpeter Matt LaVelle, alto saxophonist Stevie Manning, guitarist On Ka’a Davis, and bassist Adam Lane; and the trio of experimental vocalist Ka Baird, technologist Qasim Naqvi and violist Joanna Mattrey. All night DJing by Macrae Semans, and visuals by Carolyn funk. (Mon 3/3, 7p @ Artists Space, Manhattan - FREE)
As part of saxophonist Sam Weinberg Trio’s ongoing residency at Sisters, a bonus: the record release show for Whistle From Above, the new album by guitarist David Grubbs, whose Louisville-reared post-hardcore experimental-roots vibes informed a lot of the most interesting independent instrumental music of the ‘90s and ‘00s. Grubbs is playing with a few mega-talented friends and colleagues, including guitarist Wendy Eisenberg, trumpeter Nate Wooley, and violinist Cleek Schrey. Highest Recommendation! (Tues 3/4 ,8p @ Sisters, Fulton Street - $20)
MORE RECOMMENDED SHOWS:
Arts For Art’s Out Music Festival (Thurs 2/27 - Wed 3/5 @ various venues Downtown Manhattan - $25-$30 per night) - a week-long festival of great so-called “free jazz” and New York improvised music at a variety of downtown/East Village venues. All noteworthy but special props to the Cecil Taylor-related program on Sat 3/1, and a wonderful bill at Nublu Classic on Sun 3/2.
Dave Guy (Thurs 2/27, 7p @ The Adam Space, BAM, Downtown Bklyn - FREE) - trumpet player for Sharon Jones’ Dap-Kings and The Roots, and longtime NYC soul-jammer, put out a great solo album in 2024, playing in the rebranded BAM Cafe space,
Avram Fefer's Juba Lee Ensemble (Thurs 2/27, 7:30p @ David Rubenstein Atrium, Lincoln Center, Uptown - FREE) - veteran NYC tenor saxophonist (and forever Burnt Sugar horn player) playing his own spiritually inclined music.
Underground System + Cleo Reed + Miss Alicia (DJ) (Fri 2/28, 11p @ Babys All Right, W’burg - $23) - the global music-minded indie-dance quartet is a hot live proposition, with excellent support from young songwriting conceptualist Reed, and the Sweet Kicks/Umboma DJ
Mary Halvorson: Canis Major (Fri 2/28 & Sat 3/1, 7:30p & 9:30p @ Jazz Gallery, Midtown - $35-$45) - new quartet from MacArthur genius guitarist is a doozy, with trumpeter Dave Adewumi, bassist Henry Fraser and drummer Tomas Fujiwara.
Diana Ross (Fri 2/28 & Sat 3/1, 8p @ Kings Theatre, Flatbush - $−$$) - Negatives: the nosebleeds are upwards of $100, and while the first five rows are also available, they’re upwards of $250. Positives: it’s Diana f*cking Ross, and she’s advertising the gig as “celebrating timeless classics.”
“Good Bye Black Flamingo!!!” (Fri 2/28 & Sat 3/1, 10:30p @ Black Flamingo - maybe tickets at the door?) - RA says that both of the club’s last two nights (Friday: Toribio & Saturday: Eli Escobar x Eli Soul Clap) are sold out, but I always thought there were tickets at the door
Tim Berne residence (Sat 3/1, 6p @ Barbés, Park Slope - $20) - Berne’s doing early evening Saturday sets all March long, at Park Slope’s best best hole-in-the-wall
Sadar Bahar (Sat 3/1, 10p @ H0L0, Ridgewood - $27-$32) - one of Chicago’s secret greats, who’s been mixing house with disco and boogie since the 1980s, and inspiring the likes of Theo Parrish, playing as a part of a big Resolute night.
Razor-N-Tape ft Lovie, Phenomenal Handclap Band, Aaron Dae & Disgonuts, JKriv, 79.5 (Sat 3/1, 10p @ Good Room, Greenpoint - $22-$28) - Bklyn’s best disco-jazz-house label is having a showcase
XOLOFT 3rd Anniversary (Sat 3/1, 11p @ secret location, Brooklyn - $20) - Happy Birthday to the fabulous dance-minded house party helmed by Derek Russo
Beyondo Band (Mon 3/3, 8:30p @ Lowlands Bar, Gowanus - $uggested) - the monthly gathering of trumpeter Eric Biondo’s soul-jazz ensemble is among my favorite low-key/hot-music hangs in the city.
New Colossus Festival opening night (Tues 3/4, 7p @ Piano’s, Manhattan - ) - just caught up to this new CMJ-like festival (indie pop/rock bands from all over the world East Village/LES clubs) that’s been taking place since 2019. Opens Tuesday and continues through next weekend.
When did a Carnegie Hall event last get the #bklynsounds treatment?