Last evening we revealed the final lineup and set times for the 3 days we will be taking over 902 E Cesar Chavez. I’m seriously blown away by all of the bands that will be killing it on the Ernie Ball stage this year.

And I know that it sounds crazy, but all 3 days are FREE.  I’ve never known anyone to turn down a free party. Especially a free party that will be serving free Green Flash beer and Sparkling Ice (for all you non-drinkers, children, anyone that needs a break from beer…). We’re also buddying up with La Barbecue again this year to satisfy all of your BBQ wants and needs.  What could make this better?  How about some amazing product demos from our dynamic and innovative sponsors: Sengled, Wearhaus, and Ernie Ball.

Spread the word! Tell your friends! Bring the whole family! Just make sure you RSVP.

The Yard’s playlist has been recently updated so you can now dance along to songs from all of the artists playing our showcase. If the weather’s nice where you are (gorgeous here on the East Coast), turn up the volume, roll down those windows, and car dance to your heart’s content.

Interested in how last year’s showcase was? See below…

Looks like a hell of a time, right?! Right. See you in Austin!

That’s right friends, we just announced phase 1 of the lineup for The Yard, (brought to you by The Most Definitely and Concord Music Group) and it is a doozy. The lineup includes a diverse list of musicians, so there will definitely be music that appeals to a wide variety of musical tastes.

Come join us March 16, 17, and 18 from noon-8 p.m. for 3 insane days of parties in the warm Austin sun.  If you’ve never been to The Yard before, now is your chance to discover a ton of new music, for free! If you have been before, then you know the drill-RSVP to as many parties as possible in an attempt to avoid some serious FOMO.

All you have to do to attend The Yard is RSVP. Yes, the parties are FREE. There will also be FREE Green Flash beer to quench your thirst, and FREE Illy coffee to keep you going all day/night.

The Yard is all ages, too, so bring the whole family. Just remember to RSVP.

Come hang/dance/party to music from Arkells, Chad Valley, Fickle Friends, Geographer, Lucky Chops, Powers, Spirit Animal, Sun Club, Yuna, and more!

To wet your appetite, listen to the playlist below. It will be updated with each new round of announcements, so keep listening.

Need more proof of why you should be attending The Yard this year?  Really? Well, fine. Peep the video below from The Yard parties last year, and be prepared for even more fun this year.

I spent last Sunday with a few very talented bands. The Mosers being one (interview of lead singer Mikey here), Night Riots, and the very talented band of Young Rising Sons. Heard of them? Probably. They have a few good hits out like ‘High’ and ‘Fucked-Up’, which when used in the same sentence can often describe my Saturday night. They also went out on tour with 1975 last year, where famously Taylor Swift was seen cheering on then boyfriend Matt Healy at our own Terminal 5. Slay Taylor, slay.

Now something you might not know about the guys, they hail from Red Bank NJ. I’ve said this before but Farley roots are there, so of course I had to see what they were about. I was not disappointed. Lead singer Andy, though not from NJ (I forgive you), has a great voice and the band is solid (they’ve known each other for a long time- so it makes sense). Before their set, YRS came on stage when The Mosers played “Friend” and you could tell as soon as Andy hit the stage- high pitched squeeks erupted from the crowd. The fans love him and you could tell he loved them as well.

The guys played an awesome set all around but a few favorites of mine were ‘Turnin”, “American Renegade”, and “Coming Home”. What a fun show. Constant dancing, people everywhere screaming the lyrics, and Julian and Dylan killing it in front of me on the guitar.

YRS played ‘Somebody’ acoustically, which is one of my favorite things in the world. They invited both Night Riots and The Mosers to sing along for this one, and it was glorious. At the back end of the tour and probably ready to kill each other- these three bands came together, shared one stage, and looked out to a beaming crowd. It was a magical moment. YRS ended the set with ‘Fucked-Up’ and Andy jumping on the speaker.

Trying to get an interview nailed down with the guys on what is next for YRS. Stay tuned my friends.

-CF-

photo by jesse deflorio

After all of this you would think Sunday would be a day of rest… never. I pulled myself together and navigated my way through the aftermath of Halloween, (lots of hung over Walk-of-Shames and a sunken and sad Winnie the Pooh on the subway platform.) I headed down to Bowery Ballroom to catch a band by the name of Flagship perform.

Some background: Flagship is made up of Drake Margolnick and Michael ‘Mikey’ Finster from Charlotte, North Carolina. They have been out on tour with A Silent Film in support of their single, “I Want You” off their EP Faded (via Bright Antenna Records), and are probably some of the nicest guys I’ve had the chance to meet.

As soon as these guys came on stage, I was blown away by their entrance. What a sound. They are definitely going to need a bigger venue.

Flagship has a great stage presence. They talk, laugh, joke, and mingle easily with the crowd. Mikey is especially sweet, and his enthusiasm is contagious. Here are a few favorite songs of mine that really deserve a listen:

Not So Bad

I Want You

Faded 

One last point, Drake’s voice is not to be messed with. It sounds a little familiar, like a mix with Dave Grohl and Sean Van Vleet’s voices from Empires … but it is also unique to Flagship’s music. I loved it. Drake- from now on I will request that you sing everything to me- even simple hellos and goodbyes. You think I’m joking…

The guys are back in their home town of Charlotte on Monday 11/9. Check them out live if you can, you won’t be disappointed.

-CF-

Feli Says Listen to these choice tracks!

Most of you probably went out for CMJ Week a few weeks ago. Mingled with industry people, listened to great tunes, and saw some amazing bands.

Me? I just went for the free drinks.

…Just Kidding. Kind of.

I was only able to go to 2 shows this year- our own showcase at the Knitting Factory and Black Panda’s Showcase at Webster Hall. Black Panda & the boys from East Love were nice enough to invite me out for the night and I was so glad I went. Now this ‘review’ might seem late, so let’s not call it that. Let’s call it… ‘I’m going to tell you about some really awesome bands I saw recently, and you should probably look them up’

I like that better.

I arrived at Webster Hall right as Atarah Valentine went on. Didn’t know what to expect from these guys, but was super surprised. They played some awesome true rock and roll songs, that made jumping around the dance floor seamless. Rock- the genre you miss, but don’t realize you miss, until you hear songs like these. Don’t worry guys, Rock isn’t dead- it’s just caught up in the lead singer’s fabulous hair.

Personal favorite of theirs was ‘Forever Young’. Need it now, please.

Next up on the line-up was The Mosers. When the guys walked up to the stage, I immediately thought ‘These guys definitely have to be from Vermont”- nope. Actually New Jersey- go dirty Jerz.

The Mosers had a great sound, and it was easy listening. I often watch the crowd more when bands perform, because the reactions of fans speak thousands of words. There was a man in his mid ’60s to my left singing along and then directly in front of me was a young couple dancing like crazy. The couple then started to make out. Then dance like crazy again. Then make out. Music has power people.

The final song for the Mosers was a special one. It was called ‘Friend’ and they were joined on stage by Young Rising Sons, another Dirty Jersey band- Red Bank to be specific, holla! (Pappa Farley was raised there).

Super impressed by these guys, and trying to nail down an interview with them so tune back for more.

Third on the list that I saw was a Kid named Olivver. Or better known yet as ‘Olivver the Kid’.

I had one song of Olivver’s that I really liked- ‘Lucy (Hurt People Hurt People)’, but the band was definitely all about that bass. This could have been that the venue was too small for the sound- lord knows that happens to bands all the time. But it was hard to hear Olivver’s actual voice over the instrumentals. One mash up that I did pick up was “Blue” with Drake’s “Hold On, We’re Going Home”. Now I’m not a Drake fan, but that was pretty cool.

Check out his new EP when you get the chance.

And last but certainly never least, East Love walked on stage.

The last time I saw these guys at Webster Hall, it was their big debut in the city as a full band. They were amazing, the crowd was raging, and Lukas was kissing babies and shaking hands left and right.

This time, though just a few months later, I saw a difference in their performance. The crowd was different, more industry people- less crying fans. Lukas didn’t bless any babies, and there was less raging, but their sound was more mature, and you could tell they felt more comfortable with each other as a band. Now if you were a stranger watching these guys perform you probably wouldn’t have noticed any of the above, but instead listened to some talented guys play good music. But I’ve spent a lot of time with the boys over the past few months, and its been a joy watching them grow.

East Love closed with a crowd favorite ‘Little Less’, and everyone loved it. They also announced that they will be headlining at Brooklyn Bowl in January- details here. See you all there.

I had to jet after East Love, but for the night’s full line up of music- see below. Thank you again to Black Panda PR, can’t wait for the next one!

-CF-

Now if you haven’t heard of SOWE (Southern Westchester) Music Festival, don’t worry because I hadn’t either. Situated right in Harbor Island Park, the festival was surrounded by ocean, beautiful boats and plenty of sun. It was also packed with food trucks, local beer, corn hole, and most importantly music.

I arrived just as East Love came on to the stage, recognizing the lead singer Lukas’s voice immediately. And though the festival had just opened up, people started to flock to the music. As it goes with most festivals you don’t get the full listen, so the guys set was short on time but definitely not quality. They played their released singles ‘Little Less’, ‘Straight Lines’ and their newest ‘Unbroken’- be on the look out a for a full album soon. Now I could go through and break down my thoughts song by song, beat by beat, minute by minute- but that wouldn’t do these guys justice. Your best bet is to take a listen. East Love loves to be on stage and their energy is intoxicating so I recommend seeing them live, you won’t be disappointed.

A few favorites of mine:

Little Less

Unbroken (Newest Single)

The guys are back at Webster Hall for CMJ week on Oct. 14. See you there my friends!

-CF-

FKJ eagerly anticipates taking the US by storm with his upcoming North America tour starting next week. With an already sold out performance in Brooklyn – this refreshing new artist will have listeners wishing they had a tall glass of French Kiwi Juice every day.