"Fisherman, Don't Die! Fisherman, Swim!"

Back from our New York trip and feeling rejuvenated/weird/ready for the start of the end of the summer. It was a super productive and cool time.


These guys looked familiar...

...and I saw my future...

We played a show on Monday night at Matchless, which was fun. Mikey jammed an amazing set..

..and Julianna Barwick played as well. Killer sounds. She gave us a copy of her new album, which made the ride home an insanely beautiful cloud-like float down the I-80.

The next day we stopped by WNYU to play on their afternoon show. Unlike the WFMU set, which was composed mostly of songs from our new set, we did a mostly improvised and/or off-the-dome set of new stuff. It was awesome!!! So much fun to jam a little more in the fullest sense of the phrase. The recordings from both sets turned out really good, so today I did an edit of the two and made a really small edition cassette run of the best from both. I haven't made covers yet, but there are 50 copies, and it turned out great. We have almost nothing to sell at shows, and we have a bunch coming up around Ann Arbor/Detroit in August, so it's good to have a new piece of merchandise on the table, but if you want one, they're $7ppd US/Canada and $10 world. Paypal to citycenternyc@gmail.com and we'll send you one as soon as your payment comes through. All the info is below, along with an mp3 of one of the new jams. More news about August shows next post. Keep ruling July!!!!!

CITY CENTER
New York Radio Sessions Cassette
No Label
Edition of 50 copies
White C-46 tapes

Side One recorded July 22, 2009 at WNYU
23min 0sec
1.Untitled
2.If I Lose You
3.Can't See
4.Open/House
5.Poolside (download mp3 here.)
6.Untitled

Side Two recorded July 18, 2009 at WFMU
21min 47sec
1.Soft Marauders
2.Raindrop/Teardrop
3.Cookies
4.Untitled

Fancy Town

We've been chillin' in New York for a few days. Shows have been good, vibes have been good, weather has been good... it's all too much! Loving life and having fun, looking around, breathing, thinking, etc. Here are some pictures!

Esme kept puking!

Dan the man!



Keep it clean, guys.


We stopped by WFMU to do a live set for Choking On Cufflinks. It went pretty good, and you can listen to it here.


What the, ...hell..

We played with Silk Flowers and Cold Cave and the next day we recorded some stuff for a new 12" of theirs. It's their "Summer Jam", so to speak, but they focus on the oppressive heat/burning sear elements rather than the hot-fun-in-the-summertime vibes. I've worked with them on almost all of their recordings, and I have to say that this is the best stuff they've come up with so far. I really can't wait for the world to hear it.

Avi doing vocals, really feelin' it..

You Think You're Happy

Just finishing a long weekend of shows in Michigan. It ruled!!! Thanks and love to Gardens, Bad Indians, Vulture Circles, Tyvek, Wet Hair, Ribbons, Dead Luke, Rippers, Ship Shape, Kelly Jean, Terrible Twos, Johnny Ill Band and everyone else who we played with, for or around in the last 72 hours. Summer isn't done yet!!!

And So You're Happy

Two shows in New York this coming week. Both promise to be fun and potentially awakening. Please come out and say hello!

That's What You're Happy For

Two new records are in the works, almost ready for the world, as it were...

A new 7" on the most righteous M'Lady's Records. "Cops Don't Care" b/w "Heat Isn't The Word". Some on green wax. Amazing cover art pictured above by Hisham Bharoocha.


And a 12" on Troubleman. 500 copies, white vinyl. Four songs recorded in the depth of winter, heavy snowed-in/blissed-out vibe. "Fall On Your Face", "Automatic", "Winter Everywhere" and "Hold Back The Rapture". Cover art by Dorothy Stucki, who you may remember from this infamous interview.

Drop us an email at citycenternyc@gmail.com if you're interested in getting ahold of either of these releases. Not sure when we'll have copies, but it should be by the end of summer.

Born D(e)ad

My friend Don in 1992.
We recently finished this song for a compilation of Brooklyn bands (which we just barely count as at this point) coming out later this year on State Capital Records. Not really sure who else is on it, but there should be some information soon. I know it's us, Silk Flowers (yay) and 15 others (yikes!) so it will be expansive at the very least.

This song is basically completely Ryan's baby. He wrote the music, lyrics and basic structure of it and I just kinda helped arrange it and work on harmonies. I guess, saying that, I'll let him write about anything less technical if he chooses to. We recorded two versions of the song, one which will end up on the comp, and this version, which doesn't have drums (the other does) and got a little more lost under layers of sounds.

City Center "Dinosaur Games" (First Version)

Summer Mix #2

Here's a mix of 45s I got on tour. Some girl group stuff, some Motown/fake Motown, some other random soul stuff. Telling you now it's not all good, but somehow works in a randomizer way.

summer mix #2
45s I found on tour
1.The Fascinations "I'm In Love"
A Curtis Mayfield protegee situation. Totally stellar raw summer vibes.
2.Martha Reeves & The Vandellas "Your Love Makes It All Worthwhile"
3.Cindy Cole "He's Sure The Boy I Love"
A cover version of the Phil Spector production which I think is maybe superior to the original?? Not sure what else Cindy Cole did, but this is radical. Followed by...
4.Gerald Faulk & The Return Of The Flames "Express Yourself"
A cover version by an unknown which is GROSSLY INFERIOR to the original. hahahahaha... This doesn't fully suck or anything. He hits the high notes with some real finesse, but man, what a tepid, lukewarm rendition of one of the more amped soul classics.
5.The Marvelettes "My Baby Must Be A Magician"
6.The Majorettes "White Levi's"
7.Skeeter Davis "I Can't Stay Mad At You"
One of my favorite girl group/60's pop vocal songs ever. Morrissey references the last line somewhere on some Smiths song, I can't remember which one right now. "You got me where you want me..." So amazingly subtle and such a jam.
8.The Teen Queens "Just Goofed"
9.Darrell Banks "Somebody (Somewhere) Needs You"
Yeah, totally, man. Somewhere, right? I mean someone has to... uh...
10.Dee Dee Sharp "(It's Wonderful) The Love I Feel For You"
11.The Young Sisters "Casanova Brown"
12.The Sylte Sisters "Cinderella Jones"
13.The Sensations "Let Me In"
14.Above & Beyond "We Love You Muhammad Ali"
15.Little Richard "Slippin' And Slindin'"

Total Time: 39min 7sec
DOWNLOAD THIS MIX HERE.