British darlings The Horrors packed the Music Hall of Williamsburg Monday night, an impressive turn out for a beginning of the week post-holiday show, the first of a two-night stint in Brooklyn. The evening moved along rapidly, with just 20-minutes by openers Night Beats before the five-piece garage rockers from across the pond took the stage for a solid 11-song set.

Signer Faris Badwan began the evening with "Changing the Rain," the second single from the band’s latest LP, Skying, fresh from it being named UK Album of the Year by NME. He welcomed the crowd eagerly and noted respectfully Brooklyn's now well-known and widely-respected scene, giving props to those who support live music and paying homage to everyone from The Psychedelic Furs and The Cramps to The Fall.

The enthusiastic all-in-black crowd was attentive while being transported through a languid and laconic journey covering the band's back catalog, spanning three albums, but falling short of the 2005 song and Chris Cunningham-directed video that made them famous, "Sheena Is a Parasite."

Crowd favorites were definitely the moody and breathy pop melodies like "Sea Within and Sea" and "Can See Through You," both from the self-produced 2009 LP Primary Colors, though the unwavering and hypnotic "Moving Further Away," with its longish climax, was even more emotive.

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Each week we compile a playlist featuring songs by bands that are playing NYC in the coming week. Check out this week's playlist below!

You can listen to our playlist via Spotify, Grooveshark or the embedded player below! Click on a band name below or check out the "Related Shows" listings at the bottom of this post to see when/where they are playing.

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As demonstrated by their two-night sold-out stint at Webster Hall, of Montreal is an indie band in its prime. To say they tripped the lights fantastic for two shows is no exaggeration. The band's new LP, Paralytic Stalks, and the performances of their rag-tag art troupe have come full circle. Together they have successfully culminated in a moody, yet daringly experimental studio album that evolved naturally from Kevin Barnes's immense back catalog, and a lush live show that delivers colorful hallucinatory projections over large-scale puppets and props. The result is a flawless show, both in production and sound quality. Like Barnes's history of writing pop music's darkest lyrics set to the upbeat tempo of commercial pop music, the potentially discordant mix was sophisticated and effective. And the attentive audience was riveted by every minute of the roughly two-hour set.

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Each week we compile a playlist featuring songs by bands that are playing NYC in the coming week. Check out this week's playlist below!

You can listen to our playlist via Spotify, Grooveshark or the embedded player below! Click on a band name below or check out the "Related Shows" listings at the bottom of this post to see when/where they are playing.

(more...)

Here's video of Andrew Bird's appearance on 'The Colbert Report' Tuesday night. He talked with Stephen and then joined his band to play "Eyeoneye" and "Danse Caribe" from his new album Break It Yourself, which came out earlier this month.

Bird will play Beacon Theatre on May 4 and May 5, but he's also recording a live set for WNYC's Soundcheck at The Greene Space on March 30. Tickets are on sale for that show now.

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