After playing two small acoustic sets and a taping a performance at Letterman, Florence had her first proper official gig at New York City's classic Bowery Ballroom (we adore the venue's wood floors!). Florence acoustic is nothing compared to Florence when she has The Machine with her and the freedom to play a full set.
Despite this being her first official New York appearance, the devotion of her fans is already so great that not even puking into their own coats before the set would induce them to leave the front. That's a fact. Blake Lively and Penn Badgley of Gossip Girl were even spotted at the show. Once Florence appeared in a floor-length see-through gown and began serenading us with "Between Two Lungs" accompanied by a harp -- and how often have you seen a harp at a rock club? Never, we bet, which is what makes it so f-in' rock n' roll -- you could see the reason behind the crowd's fervor. Whipping her long red hair around her and putting her all into each song, Florence had the pipes and the onstage persona to keep us positively riveted.
Bending almost double with the force of emotion, Florence raced through singles "Dog Days Are Over" and "Drumming Song," posing dramatically behind her mic stand, which was decorated with plastic flowers. Conspicuously missing was the lesbian-themed "Girl With One Eye," but Florence made up for it with the uplifting "You've Got The Love." There was a lot of love to go around and once the encore wrapped with "Rabbit Heart (Raise It Up)," Florence was bowing and throwing air kisses at the cheering crowd. She promised to return, and after a performance like this one, it would be downright criminal if she didn't.
Like Scott Heim, author of Mysterious Skin, among other books, we're still feeling distraught about the popular vote that repealed gay marriage in Maine on Tuesday. But we're not giving up, and Scott's suggestion that we dedicate David Bowie's "Boys Keep Swinging" to the 53 percent of the state that voted to take away our rights in Maine is just what we needed to hear this morning. Watch out, bigots -- you may have won a battle but we'll keep on swinging until we've won the war.
For continuing coverage of the gay marriage issue in Maine, visit Advocate.com.
If the name Billie Myers sounds familiar, it's probably because 10 years ago you couldn't turn on a top 40 radio station without hearing her hit song "Kiss The Rain." Since then the British singer, who considers herself queer and has played numerous gay pride events, has continued to make music and recently released her latest album Tea & Sympathy.
Not long ago Myers was kind enough to invite us into her rehearsal space to record her performing two songs, aforementioned "Kiss The Rain" and her new single, "I Hope You're Happy Now." To see an interview with Myers recorded on the same day, head here.
It's no secret that we love -- no, worship -- Róisín Murphy. The electro-pop songstress with a voice that could make us do the best kind of very bad things and a penchant for the performative (not to mention sex with lobsters) has just released her single, "Orally Fixated," her first new offering since spending two and a half years promoting her last killer album, Overpowered.
The (very pregnant) former lead singer of Moloko is taking a more viral approach to delivering her new music -- "Orally Fixated" is one of three singles slated for release in the coming months -- through video blogs (like the above clip), remix competitions (Ro confesses she's recently become a "vaguely good" DJ), and other surprises. "My fans are so loyal and I am really excited to have them more involved in my creations," says Murphy. The early part of 2010 will be spent adjusting to motherhood, but Róisín promises a slew of new music including a move towards mixing a bit of key note British urban beats and MC's with her infamous pop sensibilities.
You can hear "Orally Fixated" on Róisín's MySpace and Facebook pages and in the coming days a 48 hour global free download of the single will be launched by The Guardian.
To read our profile on Róisín Murphy -- and see the stunning photos -- from Out's 2008 October music issue, click here.
Having canceled several US tour dates because of lung trouble, La Roux's Elly Jackson kept her appointment with New York City's Highline Ballroom early this week. Looking androgynous in a slim-cut, shiny, striped suit, and with her red hair defying gravity, Ms. Jackson strode out on stage to tremendous cheers from the sold out crowd and kicked off the show with "Tigerlily" from the UK duo's (Elly's partner in crime is synth player, co-writer and co-producer Ben Langmaid) self-titled debut album.
Due to the aforementioned health problems, Elly apologized profusely for the short set, which clocked in at around half an hour, but they did not leave out a single hit. The break-out track "In For The Kill" drew the loudest screams of approval. "Colourless Colour" allowed Elly to amp up the energy, teasing the excitable mass in front of her by stepping in close and basking in the palpable adoration. And when she thrust her microphone out during set-closer "Bulletproof," she summoned an instant sing along with the crowd chiming in for the chorus.
The show sounded slick and polished, with two keyboards, a computer and even an electronic drumset creating a steady wall of sound. Elly was cheerful as she paused between songs to catch her breath, happy with the band's reception. There was not much banter and that was probably for the best as the songs certainly spoke for themselves.
It’s hard to hear a song about a banana and not think of you-know-what. But I’m betting to the strange, seemingly non-perverse, ukulele-playing Tiny Tim a banana was a banana just as a sausage was a sausage.
The late Manhattan-born singer’s childlike naivety was manifested through his career-defining ditty, the gleeful remake of “Tiptoe through the Tulips.” So thinking that Tiny -- an often laughed-at novelty act popular in the ’60s who was basically a caricature of himself -- could really write a gutter-minded riff about a long, curved fruit with as much homo subtext as a Mika song is hard to swallow. But the title track of I’ve Never Seen a Straight Banana: Rare Moments, Vol. 1, out last week, is exactly what its title overtly suggests. And it’s one peel away from being gayer than anything Mika’s ever done:
"I've never seen a straight banana I guess I must admit That I have searched quite a bit They're even curved when they are served in my banana split"
I’m thinking the banana is less a wee-wee than an extended metaphor for something that doesn’t exist, but the gayness, at least years later when filtered through my filthy mind, is as subtle as Tiny’s snaggletoothed smile. Curved when served in his banana split? Whipped cream, fudge -- oh yeah.
Alas, Tiny was married three times (despite a guy crush in his twenties). But if Brokeback Mountain taught us anything, it’s that a “sacred bond” never stopped a closet case who knew the benefits of a little spit. Making people laugh was Tiny's modus operandi. But he also had a lot of heart. Listen to his more endearing, tender side from this dainty collection, like “Dear Tuesday” and “Baby Shoes,” and try to hate him. Tiny also knew he shared something with a would-be straight banana: He was one of a kind. Now, most just call him weird, and Tiny would probably agree; he opens the disc up with a prelude called “What Strange God Designed Me?”
Apparently it was one who didn’t want him to get his rocks off -- with a straight banana or not. He was mostly asexual, which might confuse the heck out of a lot of folks today when they listen to this rarities collection and hear him plead: “Oh how much I’ve been yearning to see that straight banana.” Whatever he means, and wherever he is -- off tiptoeing through some tulips probably -- I hope he got his wish.
McLachlan and Pink, together at last! Photo: Getty Images
Lest we forget that starring in tear-jerking abused puppy ads is merely Sarah McLachlan's secondary career, the '90s alt–easy listening maven is making a return to her roots: helming the 2010 comeback of the Lilith Fair. If those two words immediately conjure an aesthetically contradictory image of shaved heads and flowing skirts, consider that the original tour, though short-lived, was the highest grossing touring festival of 1997 and, in its two years, gathered such diverse and sapphically oriented acts as Missy Elliot, The Pretenders, Queen Latifah, Indigo Girls, and Tegan and Sara together under one roof, er, tent.
Come to think of it, the '00s have been no less awesome for women in music than the '90s were, so yeah, OK, we'd be excited to see an updated lineup of esteemed and estrogenic acts. (Our nominees: The Gossip, Rihanna, Metric, Gaga, Feist, Cat Power, Regina Spektor, Lilly Allen, and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs -- and that's just the main stage!). That is, we would be excited if we weren't way too old to go to music festivals. The first round of cities has been announced; watch the site for announcements of the real-life lineup.
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