ALL AGES CANCER BENEFIT FOR TRISTA VAUGHAN w MISFITS, SHEER TERROR, 100 DEMONS, CODE ORANGE KIDS, THE UNSEEN, SUBZERO, INCENDIARY, RUDE AWAKENING, MAKE AMENDS, EMPTY VESSELS + MORE @ Tuxedo Junction Danbury 4/27

Lou Di Bella's (vocalist for Sub Zero) wife Trista Vaughn has an aggressive type of breast and bone cancer. Times must be incredibly tough for them and everyone around them but they are being proactive and you can help! On Saturday they are having a benefit show at Tuxedo Junction in Danbury!!!!

Anthology of American Folk Music Night: New Haven Edition, CT Food Bank Benefit 11/30 @ Cafe9

A good show with great intentions comes to Cafe Nine on Friday 11/30. Lys Guillorn and Elisa Flynn are hosting a huge folk event with a dozen plus performers. Each performer will pick 2 songs from Harry Smiths oeuvre and play.

Friends of Freddy B Concert on 6/3 @ Toad's Place

Sunday 6/3 brings a special show at Toad's. Honor a long time local hero and get some good vibes and tunes while you're at it! Do Freddy right and show up!

Black Stool reunite for good cause

You knew it eventually had to happen, but local grindcore miscreants Black Stool, which features Mike Polce (guitar), Dennis Morin (bass), Chris Barry (drums), Kenny Albert (vocals) and some guy named Chip McCabe (vocals) have reformed, but this time it's for a good cause. They will be performing this Friday, May 18 at Cherry Street Station in Wallingford to benefit the Yale Smilow Cancer Center in New Haven. (They were helped along with this by Deolinda Sullivan).

MUSIC FOR MEALS at The Space on Saturday!

Quinnipiac University's 98.1 WQAQ Hosts Upcoming Benefit Concert

Hamden, CT. November 12, 2011--Quinnipiac University's student-run radio station, WQAQ, is holding its annual Music For Meals benefit concert on Saturday, November 12 at The Space in Hamden, CT. Headlining the concert is Brooklyn-based folk pop band Laura Stevenson & The Cans, featuring members of Latterman and Bomb the Music Industry. Their Sophmore LP, "Sit, Resist" was named one of the best records of 2011 by Marcus Gilmer of the A.V. Club.

Rounding out the lineup are Connecticut locals Great Caesar and psychedelic lo-fi group High Pop. The premier of High Pop's "hippie speed ball" was featured online on the College Music Journal. It was also reviewed on CTINDIE.COM right HERE.

Opening the show is New Jersey garage punk band Conor and the Stone Hill Kids. They recently released their independent debut "Don't Move."

Proceeds from the concert will be brought to the Hamden Food Bank to provide food for the Thanksgiving holiday. The Hamden Food Bank is a part of the Keefe Community Center, an organization that works diligently to better the Hamden community.

98.1 WQAQ hosts a charity concert at The Space every November. Past headliners have included Cymbals Eat Guitars, Patent Pending, and Nightmare of You. Doors open at 7 PM and admission is only five dollars, or free with two canned goods.

Check out 98.1 WQAQ on:
Facebook
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DUBEY FAMILY BENEFIT: The Flaming Tsunamis, Call It Arson, My Heart To Joy, Slingshot Dakota, Brunt of It

Sunday, April 3, 2011 SHOW MOVED TO TOAD'S PLACE

Location:
Madison Arts Barn
8 Campus Drive Madison, CT

Show moved to TOADS PLACE
300 York Street
New Haven, CT

TICKETS ON SALE MARCH 30TH AT 6PM

A note from Manic:
As we are continually amazed at the outpouring of support for Mitch, his family and the community that he holds so dear, we would like to thank Etix.com for generously deciding to WAIVE ALL THEIR TICKET FEES that people normally would pay. The only fee that we are unable to get rid of is the credit card fee that the bank charges E-tix every time a credit card is used. They take a small percentage of each sale and that percentage will be ADDED ON to your donation so that no portion of your donation will be wasted. We hope this is agreeable to everyone.

The donations available are in increments of $5 up until the $50 mark and then they go up by $25. If you would like to donate an amount higher than the ones listed, please purchase your ticket and then make another donation via paypal to lauren.dubey [at] gmail [dot] com.

We would also like to give Toad's Place a huge thank you for donating the space for this event. They are not charging us a penny to use the venue and in addition to that they are shutting down all the bars except for the rain forest room so that the entire main room will be alcohol free. Mitch would have wanted it that way.

The Flaming Tsunamis
(Playing "Externalities" and some old favorites) The Flaming Tsunamis are an experimental hardcore/punk band that incorporates a diverse range of eclectic musical styles further accentuated by their inclusion of a horn section, keyboards, samples and auxiliary percussion. Based out of New Haven, CT the fiercely DIY and relentlessly touring six piece has put out releases on Kill Normal, a label that members of the band founded. Since their formation in 1999 the band has released 2 EPs and 2 full-length albums. In 2011 the band announced “Externalities”, their latest and potentially final album.


Call It Arson (Reunion Show)
No tricks. No sonic band-aids. No allegiances. No posturing. Call It Arson is simply the sound of four friends playing music in a room. James, Ryan, Jeff and Jesse craft dynamic songs that gracefully bridge the gap between the personal and the political.

My Heart To Joy (2nd to Last Show). My Heart to Joy is an Emo band from Connecticut. Shifting from their early beginnings as a chaotic, hardcore punk band, My Heart to Joy mixes 90’s indie rock leanings of bands like Guided By Voices and Superchunk with a more driving punk sound that has garnered them comparisons to bands such as At the Drive-In, The Trail of Dead, Braid, and Bear vs. Shark.

Slingshot Dakota is a two-piece indie-punk band from Brooklyn, NY/Easton, PA. Carly Comando sings and plays old sitcom theme songs. Tom Patterson plays drums loudly and sings, too. They released a new full-length record in Autumn of 2007. Jeff Cunningham left the band in 2006, but played guitar and sang on their first album, Keener Sighs, and “Demo #1”, he is now in a band named Bridge & Tunnel.

BRUNT OF IT started in 1995 in San Francisco, CA out of the ashes of Bay's HOODLUM EMPIRE. BRUNT OF IT played gigs in the Bay Area for about a year until Boofish moved back to the East Coast. The band was reformed with childhood friends and band mates from the Rhode Island hardcore scene (RIX), where he was very active in his youth. The band blends a mix of Old School Hardcore Punk Rock with distorted, dissonant Ska (not a clean guitar note in their set list). Infectious choruses and a driving beat are the backbone of BRUNT OF IT's no bullshit sound.

You can paypal donations to: LAUREN.DUBEY [at] GMAIL [dot] COM Donate anything you can, his family really needs the support.

Further information on what occurred can be found below:

http://www.nhregister.com/articles/2011/03/26/news/doc4d8d94530db0c791019583.txt?viewmode=default

http://www.nbcconnecticut.com/news/local/118643844.html

http://www.nhregister.com/articles/2011/03/25/news/doc4d8c226c342a2154028617.txt?viewmode=fullstory

http://www.newhavenindependent.org/index.php/archives/entry/bike_enthusiast_shot_dead/

http://www.wfsb.com/news/27317979/detail.html

All The Trimmings Benefit @ Heirloom Arts Theatre, November 27th

'Tis the season for good times and giving, and there will be a whole lot of both going on Saturday, November 27th at Danbury's Heirloom Arts Theatre with the 'All The Trimmings' Benefit concert featuring The Stepkids (CT), Mother Brother (CT), Black Churches (MA), Diztrict Allstarz (CT), Ovlov (CT) and Vinyette (NY).

Organized by Matthew Vitti (of Mother Brother) and Amanda Bloom (of The Mercurial), the event had its beginnings this past July when Vitti and Bloom met following a house show and promptly merged minds in setting up "a monumental rock show." According to Vitti, "Amanda and I had similar ideas about the concept and nature of the event, so we worked fairly quickly and cooperatively finding the bands, finding the venue and forming the skeletal structure that would hold this party high and mighty above all else." The main 'nature' of the event that Vitti alludes to is the food and clothing drive that will be taking place along with the show. Benefiting will be the Dorothy Day Hospitality House which, since 1982, has fed and sheltered Danbury's homeless. In addition there will be a booth set up by the China Care Foundation, a Westport, CT. based non-profit dedicated to saving the lives of medically fragile orphaned children in China.



To spice up the good will, Vitti and Bloom have also put together a whole assortment of other activities and treats including a giant Twister competition, $1 plates of pizza and salad provided by Nico’s Pizza, an old-fashioned photo booth courtesy of Tin Sparrows (y'know, for documenting all those big smiles created by giving), and between-band sets by DJ Symetrex who will apparently be spinning faces off at the upstairs bar.



And how about those bands?? In addition to Vitti's own Mother Brother (often engaging, always shape-shifting synth/noise/jam quartet from Bridgeport), a whole stable of great bands will be performing including Black Churches (odd-timed guitar rock from MA. (with keyboards!)), Diztrict Allstarz (hip-hop with guitars from Danbury), Ovlov (solid alt-rock from Newtown) and Vinyette (alternately dream-rock/hard rock with elements of electronica and post-punk from NY.). Headlining will be CT's the Stepkids whose brand of synth-psych-soul (and recent signing to Stones Throw Records) has created a significant buzz around the band. If the potential acts of good will don't draw you to Heirloom Arts Theatre on Nov. 27th, the music should.

Truly living up to its name, All The Trimmings' equal parts of good cause, good fun and good music look to fit the spirit of the season quite well.

If When You Go:

Saturday, November 27th

The Mercurial and Mother Brother present
'All the Trimmings' Benefit
THE STEPKIDS (CT)
MOTHER BROTHER (CT)
BLACK CHURCHES (MA)
DIZTRICT ALLSTARZ (CT)
OVLOV (CT)
VINYETTE (NY)

@ Heirloom Arts Theatre
8pm / All-Ages
$10 ($1 off w/food donation!)

Benefit for Jamie Saxton w/Broken, The Vultures, Lord Fowl, Iron Hand @ Cafe 9, Sept. 25th

On Saturday, September 25th locals Broken, The Vultures, Lord Fowl and Iron Hand will be performing at Cafe Nine as part of a benefit show for local musician Jamie Saxton who is currently battling cancer.

From Safety Meeting Records head Carlos Wells:

"We're doing up a benefit show for Jamie Saxton, longtime friend and area musician (of Beer Scouts of America, Five9Five, & Tijuana Hot Cocks), who is currently wrestling with cancer. Our hope is to put a lot of people in a room, get some good music going, some raffling, and some good times and hopefully our proceeds will help ease the burden on the Saxtons during an already difficult time. Please help spread the word and come down ready to drink, get rowdy, and win some prizes all for a really good cause. Show starts promptly at 9pm! So don't show up at 10 thinking you're not missing anything."

There's a $10 suggested donation for the show (or more if you can). In addition, there will be a raffle with prizes from a lot of New Haven area businesses including Firehouse 12, Haven Skate Park, Lovecraft Tattoo, and more.

Even if you don't know Jamie, the show alone, featuring some of New Haven's best punk and hard rock bands, should be well enough reason to get yourself to Cafe Nine on September 25th.



If When You Go:

Benefit for Jamie Saxton

BROKEN
THE VULTURES
LORD FOWL
IRON HAND

@ Cafe 9
Saturday, September 25th
9pm SHARP
$10 suggested donation

Catering for the event will be provided by Consiglios, baked goods by Shamar & friends..

Raffle includes prizes by:

-Tie-dies by the Moody Family
-Tickets to Long Wharf Theater
-Haven Skate Park
-The Mighty Mighty Bosstones
-Channel 1
-Lovecraft Tattoo
-Brass City Tattoo
-Safety Meeting Records
-Photoshoot by Lipgloss Crisis (makeup by Jamie Arabolos)
-Massage by Songbird Therapeutics
-BAR
-Sullivan's Restaurant
-Petco package
-Art by Jo Kramer, Rob Beam, U-C-E-R, Katro

Archie Fest

Tomorrow is a benefit for Norwich firefighter and drummer Jarrad "Archie" Dietz. To read the full story about him, check out this article.

The benefit will be at the El N Gee in New London. It starts at 3PM and goes till 1AM, and the lineup of bands is humongous. For more information, head to the facebook pages here and here.

MS Benefit at Heirloom Arts

Tonight, (June 4th) there is an MS Benefit at Heirloom Arts in Danbury. All proceeds will go to benefit the Connecticut chapter of the Multiple Sclerosis Society! It's for a good cause, and there's some pretty great bands that will be playing, including:

Arms & Legs
Total Dick feat. Cee Reed & Pruven
The Field Recordings
Zelazowa
Euri & Dave Ross
Boss Derby

All Ages
$5 suggested donation
7:30pm doors
8pm-2am music

Elm City Popfest

Elm City Popfest returns this weekend for three days and 17 bands of indie-pop revelry. Following the success of the first Elm City Popfest this past November, festival organizer and Tweefort/February Records founder Danny Goodwin had to dig deeper this time around in order to top the original. Effectively doubling in size, this installment of Elm City Popfest offers a range of local, regional, national and even international talent. Also, in addition to Artspace (the original home of ECPF), there will be shows held at New Haven's Cafe Nine. And as with the last ECPF, a portion of the proceeds generated by the festival will go to the aforementioned Artspace, a non-profit downtown gallery, venue and exhibition space. So what's all the fuss about you ask? Well, here's the breakdown...





Day One, Friday, May 14th @ Cafe Nine
Kicking off the festival will be a free, four band blowout at New Haven's Cafe Nine featuring locals The Wee Bees and Steven Deal augmented by the UK's Veronica Falls and NYC's Boy Genius.

New Haven's own The Wee Bees, featuring former members of Manchester By The Sea, The Caligulists and The Inclined Plane, start the evening with their brand of ’80s- and ’90s-inspired shoegaze-meets-jangle pop sound. Although its only been two months since their live debut at March's Artspace Underground, The Wee Bees have quickly established themselves as one of the better 'new' bands in New Haven.

Following the Wee Bees will be one of New Haven's more established singer/songwriters, Steven Deal. Having toured the country fronting bands like Bleached Black, Chopper, The Absolute Zeros and The Naomi Star, Deal recently returned from a 10+ year songwriting hiatus to deliver his debut solo album 'Radio Twelve' this past January. Backed by a band featuring members of The Vultures, Goose Lane, The Naomi Star and Requiem In White, among others, you can bet Deal & co. are going to rip it up well.

Next up on the billing is UK's Veronica Falls. Making their stateside debut at this show, Veronica Falls has received a relatively heavy amount of press for their recent Captured Tracks 7" 'Found Love In A Graveyard.' Described as 'a bit of goth, ..some surf..and a heavy dose of shoegaze with pop vocal harmonies,' Veronica Falls should fit in quite well with the evening's lineup. Be sure to check these guys (and gals) out.

Last but not least will be NYC's Boy Genius. Now a veteran of several Tweefort/February Records shows, Boy Genius have shown that they can write a good tune and play it well. Joining Boy Genius will be none other than Mr. Ray Neal, best known for his work with seminal Elm City jangle-pop band Miracle Legion. Ray most recently joined the band for a song at their April performance at Rudy's. For this show, Mr. Neal will be performing with Boy Genius for their entire set, surely something that does not happen everyday.

For fans of jangle-pop, shoegaze or just plain good music, Elm City Popfest's first night should do the trick, starting off the festival well on a fittingly upbeat and memorable note.





Day Two, 'DAY', Friday, May 15th @ Artspace
Day Two sees the festival moving up Crown Street to Artspace, a great downtown gallery/space that has been at its current location since 2002. Here the Popfest truly begins to 'pop,' as nine bands perform throughout the day. Separated into distinct 'Day' and 'Night' billings, both offer up some great bands no matter how you cut it.

Starting off the 'Day' portion of the festivities will New London's Roadside Attractions. One of several New London supergroups now prowling Connecticut clubs, Roadside Attractions combine a unique blend of jazz, americana, pop and even folk into a sound that must be heard. Currently promoting the release of their new EP 'Whispers' on New London's Cosmodemonic Telegraph label, Roadside Attractions start off the day strong.

Next up on the schedule is New Haven's The Fictional West. Riding the release of their 'Giant Clouds' single earlier this year on Tweefort Records, the Fictional West count as influences artists like U2, The Smiths and The Magnetic Fields. With a mix of serious and satirical lyrical themes, the quartet has, however unwittingly, done well in re-creating late 80's indie-pop. As the Sugar Sours blog accurately pointed out, 'No lie, the Giant Clouds single sounds like it could have been sent in to NME and gotten lost in the post for 20 years.'

Following locals Roadside Attractions and the Fictional West, Elm City Popfest goes all windy city on us with the arrival of Chicago's Midstates and Panda Riot. Currently on tour together, Midstates and Panda Riot collectively bring a psychedelic edge to the proceedings. Midstates (also known as Midstates & The Choir of Ghosts), approach their music with a more 'space-pop' bent whereas Panda Riot have seemingly perfected 'swirl-pop' a.k.a. shoegazer inspired indie-pop that at times is almost danceable. In either case, the tandem should feel right on home at ECPF.

Following the Chicago invasion, Elm City Popfest returns to its roots with an always anticipated hometown performance by EULA. Quite possibly the hardest working indie-rock band in New Haven, EULA has continually sharpened its lacerating brand of indie-pop/shoegaze/punk into an ever finer point over the past few years. Each show by the band seems to top the last, not an easy feat by a band that plays as many shows as they do. Still coming off their opening slot supporting post-punk legend Mission Of Burma last Fall, one would be ill-advised to miss this performance by EULA, and that means you.

Finishing off the 'Day' half Day Two's festivities is Danbury, CT's The Field Recordings. Garnering a substantial amount of press since their debut last year, The Field Recordings are a indie rock/pop trio that, from all accounts, seem to vary their live sound depending on the context of the billing. On record, the Field Recordings sound a bit more edgy than one would expect. Regardless, they've been creating some of the most interesting indie rock coming out of Connecticut lately and are well worth the price of admission alone.

Overall, the 'Day' portion of ECPF, Day Two covers the indie-pop bases well. Despite the fact that it starts at 2:30 in the afternoon, you'd be hard pressed to find a better lineup anywhere in the state, no matter what the start time.





Day Two, 'NIGHT,' Saturday, May 15th
After about an hour interlude following the conclusion of the 'Day' billing, part two (a.k.a. the 'Night' billing) of Elm City PopFest, Day Two kicks off featuring Procedure Club, The Secret History and The Butterflies of Love.

New Haven's own Procedure Club starts off the evening's festivities with their noisy brand of too rough to be cutesy, too cutesy to be rough, drum machine indie pop. Procedure Club have created a significant buzz lately, especially following their performance at the last Shaki Presents @ BAR show this past December. Having recently signed to Slumberland Records, you can expect their debut album to be released this June. In the meantime, check them out at ECPF before they become huge.

Next up on the ECPF evening showcase is NYC's The Secret History. Featuring former members of My Favorite and Mick Ronson's daughter, the Secret History have made a name for themselves writing some mighty catchy pop songs 'about ghosts and monsters and sometimes Italy' (at least according to the band's MySpace page). The band's debut album was recently released this past March on Le Grand Magistery so be sure to check it out.

Closing out Day Two of the ECPF will be New Haven's own The Butterflies of Love. Although relatively inactive in recent years, the Butterflies reformed for the Mark Mulcahy 'Ciao My Shining Star' tribute shows. The quintet liked the shows so much that they decided to play more, including this headlining slot at PopFest. A favorite of the late John Peel, The Butterflies of Love have released several records on the Fortuna POP! label in the UK to much acclaim over the years. Having had the opportunity to see them during their original run some years back, I'd have to say it would be well worth the wait to check them out.

In the end, Day Two of Elm City PopFest creates one the best original pop/indie rock billings seen in New Haven in quite some time. With the mix of great local, regional, national and even international artists contributing, there's plenty here for everyone.





Day Three, Wednesday, May 26th @ Cafe Nine
Although 11 days separate Day Two and Three, this 'follow-up' show (as its being advertised) certainly does not diminish the quality and/or energy of the festival. Performing will be the UK's Allo Darlin' and Horowitz, as well as Brooklyn/New Haven's The Tyler Trudeau Attempt and Women's Basketball.

Kicking off the evening will be the UK's Allo Darlin' and Horowitz. A late addition to the PopFest lineup, Allo Darlin' 'can turn a room in a famous punk venue into a joyous, jumping, sweaty, pop-mosh pit. Or bring a room of 500 to hushed silence with the few strums of a ukulele and a love song about cooking.' Such all-encompassing command of the audience is hard to come by and, in addition tho their rock solid pop songs, a major reason to check this band out. Following Allo Darlin' are fellow Brits Horowitz. Bringing a more fuzzy, danceable bent to the typical indie-pop model, Horowitz have received some pretty glowing press praising the band's flare for super-sweet vocals and melodies, a sure sign that they do indeed belong on this billing.

Closing out the night (and the festival), will be the two projects of singer/songwriter Tyler Trudeau. First up will be the Tyler Trudeau Attempt, an amalgam of New Haven scene veterans (including myself). Although I am not at liberty to really comment on the Attempt (y'know, since I play drums in this band), the New Haven Advocate is and has said of the band: 'TTA looks back to the roots of punk and finds something immensely energetic, often hilarious and always political. On top of that, it's catchy as hell.'

Trudeau's newer project, Women's Basketball, will be making its much anticipated live debut at ECPF. What initially started out as a one-off, purely-for-fun project has quickly gained a lot of press attention. The band's debut album 'An Octopus, But Like, An Octopus With Massive Wings and Junk', released earlier this year on Tweefort Records, has in particular gained a lot of positive reviews and its easy to see why. With an omnipresent drum machine beat and often tongue n' cheek lyrics, Trudeau breaks free from his own songwriting conventions to create a fun, catchy and often more engaging (and revealing) record than his main band's previous EP (which I didn't play on). It should be interesting to see how this all plays out live but, knowing Trudeau, it will probably come off well.

So that's it folks! Surely one of the better festivals in recent memory. But enough of me telling you what to do, its time for you to check it out for yourself on Friday May 14th, Saturday May 15th and Wednesday, May 26th. Don't miss this one!


Elm City PopFest Lineup:

Day One - Friday, May 14th
9:30 The Wee Bees (New Haven)
10:30 Steven Deal (Milford, CT)
11:30 Veronica Falls (UK)
12:30 Boy Genius (NYC) feat. Mr. Ray Neal (of Miracle Legion)
@ Cafe Nine
doors 9pm / FREE / 21+

Day Two (DAY) - Saturday, May 15th
2:30 Roadside Attractions (New London, CT)
3:15 The Fictional West (New Haven)
4:00 Midstates (Chicago)
4:45 Panda Riot (Chicago)
5:30 EULA (New Haven)
6:15 The Field Recordings (Danbury, CT)
@ Artspace
doors 2pm / $5 / ALL-AGES

Day Two (NIGHT) - Saturday, May 15th
8:30 Procedure Club (New Haven)
9:15 The Secret History (NYC)
10:00 The Butterflies of Love (New Haven)
@ Artspace
doors 8pm / $5 / ALL-AGES

Day Three - Wednesday, May 26th
9:00 Allo Darlin' (UK)
9:45 Horowitz (UK)
10:30 The Tyler Trudeau Attempt (Brooklyn/New Haven)
11:15 Women's Basketball (Brooklyn/New Haven)
@ Cafe Nine
doors 8:30pm / FREE / 21+

For more information on Elm City PopFest, check out the official festival blog at http://elmcitypopfest.wordpress.com.

2 Day Benefit For Matt Potter

UPDATE: Make a donation by clicking here.

Big news from New London, from Wailing City. Please click over there and read this immediately.

The Oasis Pub is having a 2 day benefit this weekend for Matt Potter, frontman for New Haven locals, and local favorite band of mine, Fatal Film. The show will be this Friday and Saturday night at 9:30.

Matt was attacked last Thursday by unknown thugs, who assaulted him and stole his skateboard. He was left with two broken cheek bones, black eyes, and tons of other wounds. We wish him a speedy recovery and hope those dickheads are caught.

The show will be a benefit to cover his medical expenses and will be a 2 day event with tons of local support. If you can't make it, at least show some support and buy one of their many releases, and if you want to be a real saint and make a donation, email Rich Martin ASAP: kosimar at gmail dot com.




Here is what has been confirmed so far for the lineup:

$5, 21+
both nights start at 9:30pm

Friday April 2:
Above/Below
Mercutio
Dorian James & The Brood

Saturday April 3:
Straight To VHS
Paul Brockett Roadshow

More bands will be confirmed & announced shortly; for the full details and story, read the article here.