Shows This Week!

Tuesday 11/05
Albert Hammond Jr. / Nightbox  @ Mexicali Live   8:00pm   $20

Thursday 11/07
The Scandals (video shoot) / The Wait / Jaguar Shark /The Best Of The Worst / T. Gunn @ The Court Tavern   8:00pm   $5

Circle Takes The Square / B. Dolan @ Asbury Lanes  8:00pm   $10

Friday 11/08
The Drive Home / Michael Jackson & The Beatles / Lost Romance @ The Berkeley Hotel  8:00pm  FREE!

Restorations/Weatherbox / Banquets / Ghost House @ Asbury Lanes  8:00pm   $8

Saturday 11/09
Anti-Flag / Masked Intruder / Holy Mess / Worlds Scariest Police Chases @ Asbury Lanes   8:00pm $13

Dollys / Black Wine / Deal Casino / Long Beard @ Court Tavern   8:00pm   $5

Douglas Dynamo / Thomas Francis Takes His Chances / Explorers / Twin 55 @ The Lamp Post   10pm   FREE!

Album Review: Ex Wife - New Colors

2013 Evil Weevil Records
By: Mike Mucus

New Brunswick’s Ex Wife released New Colors back in June of 2013, but they just recently received physical stock of the vinyl. I got my hands on a copy of New Colors and gave it a listen. Ex Wife continue to take steps forward in their sound. New Colors sounds very different form their superb 2009 release Everything Was Beautiful, but their craft remains. Nick Bolton’s haunting vocals still remind me of a ghost that never quite left the room. The baritone guitar and bass work great together on the record and coupled with Matt Harvey’s dynamic drumming which fluctuates between quiet and thunderous you can understand why this band lends a sense of familiarity to you without giving you a feeling of being an overdone Emo leftover. In fact, the 90’s influences are rife throughout the record; consider the track “Agnosia”. It would fit right into the Sub Pop catalog from the Mudhoney or early Nirvana era. Dirty, scraping guitars give way to Nick Bolton’s little melodic baritone leads and go right back into the storm cloud of distortion brilliantly. Contrastingly, “Young Parents” a much more contemporary sounding song, starts off as a Real Estate-esque sounding jaunt, and then descends into washed out delay and torturous screams illustrating the growing direction of the band while riding the wave between menacing and melodic. Recorded and engineered by vocalist Nick Bolton, it’s great to see such an earnest band continue to grow and expand their sound.

Listen to the album for free here

Shows This Week!

Friday 10/25
Gates / Prawn / Vasudeva /Attikas Arras @ The Court Tavern 8:00pm $8

Saturday 10/26
The Ghost of Uncle Joes: At the Harisimus cemetery in Jersey City. Local bands dress up and cover other bands. They Live as Rancid, The Milwaukee’s as The Who, Papermaker as the B-52s. After party show is at The Lamp Post – Jaguar Shark as Weezer, The Defending Champions as Sly and The Family Stone and more. $10 Suggested Donation. (Lamp Post is Free). Saturday 10/26 at 2pm/10pm

 Spring Heeled Jack / Obi Fernandez / Sammy Kay and the Fast Four @Asbury Lanes 7:00pm $12

 The Stereo State / Heartsounds / Cleave / the Raritan @ The Court Tavern 830pm 

Band Profile: Vows

From: Somerset County, NJ

Sounds Like: Somewhere between a dream and waking up. Vows' dense harmonies, intricate guitars and throbbing percussion give the illusion of memories splashing across a canvas in someone's mind. They are a hazy dream pop group, but not some kind of washed out My Bloody Valentine rip off. These songs are delicate and tense and superbly crafted.

Members:  Jeff Pupa, James Hencken, Sabeel Azam, Scott Soffer and Stephen Masi

Releases: Winters Grave (2011); Stranger Things (in progress)

Website: www.vowsmusic.com  / www.vows1.bancamp.com / www.facebook.com/vowsmusic

Shows This Week!

Thursday 2/7:
Don Giovanni Records Showcase night 1 - Nuclear Santa Claust / California X / House Boat / Brick Mower / Plastic Cross @ Death By Audio - Brooklyn 8pm. $7

Friday 2/1:
Thomas Wesley Stern @ Belmar Arts Council - Belmar 7pm.  Free!

Tiny Giant Winter Beach Ball night 1 - The Humbults (ex Green Paper) / Sara / Vasudeva / Science / Paper Streets / Rocky Cantaese (of Let Me Run) @ The Court Tavern - New Brunswick 830pm. $7

Don Giovanni Records Showcase night 2 - Laura Stevenson / Jefferey Lewis / Waxahatchee / Lemuria / Hilly Eye @ Music Hall Of Williamnsburg - Brooklyn 7pm. $15



Saturday 2/2:
Tiny Giant Winter Beach Ball night 2 - The Everymen / Those Mockingbirds / Life Eaters / Secret Country and more! @ Asbury Lanes - Asbury Park 1130am-2am. $10

Don Giovanni Records Showcase night 3 - Screaming Females/ Black Wine / Stormshadow / Home Blitz / Shelshag @ Music Hall Of Williamnsburg - Brooklyn 7pm. $15

Sunday 2/3:
Tiny Giant Winter Beach Ball night 3 (early show) - Invisible Lines /Cotton / The Dark Matters /Slow Moves @ The Lamp Post - Jersey City 3pm. Free!

Tiny Giant Winter Beach Ball night 3 (late show) - Reese Van Riper / Pour The Pirate Sherry / France / Vows /Morning /I Am the Heat @ Maxwell's - Hoboken 6pm. $8

Don Giovanni Records Showcase This Weekend

Don Giovanni Records is throwing its annual showcase at the Music Hall of Willamsburg in BK this weekend. This is the New Brunswick, NJ record label's 10th annual showcase. Don Giovanni is the home of some of the absolute best bands to come out of NJ in the past 10 years, most notably Screaming Females and The Ergs. Its especially exciting to see Screaming Females back on the stage after they had to cancel their tour due to singer Marisa Paternoster's bouts with Mononucleosis and complications surrounding the illness.

Friday, February 8th will feature indie songstress Laura Stevenson, Jeffrey Lewis, Waxahatchee, Lemuria and Hilly Eye. While February 9th will feature Screaming Females headlining, with Black Wine, Stormshadow, Home Blitz, and Shellshag opening up. 

Screaming Females

Both nights are $13 in advance and $15 day of show and there are a limited number (100) two day passes going around for $20

Don Giovanni have also added a third night at a different venue (Death By Audio) in Bk on Thursday Feb 7th, which will showcase Nuclear Santa Claust, California X, House Boat, Brick Mower and Plastic Cross ($7).


Now for the NJ Skeletons take on things. Its great that Don Giovanni added the third show. California X, have been getting a lot of buzz for good reason, this Amherst, Mass band has the Dinosaur Jr-Junior tag firmly planted on them for good reason, they are from the same hometown, and the have loud, noisy guitars. Their songs pack a different kind of punch though, and I wonder how they translate live. Pop punkers, Brick Mower are also on this night, a name we used to hear a lot more of, but it seems like the band has taken on a resurgence of late which is awesome, because they are great.

Home Blitz

Night two, seems to be the quieter, night but don't let that mistake you it will still have bite! Laura Stevenson is a tremendous songwriter and her catchy indie pop records she has been putting out are of top quality. Waxahatchee has really taken the of the bedroom sound and cleaned it up a bit and its makes a world of difference singer Katie Crutchfield's voice is fragile and at the same time piercing and powerful, even if its quiet in tone.

Katie Crutchield of Waxahatchee

Night three is easily the strongest night. Screaming Females are headlining, and for anyone who hasn't yet been privy to this band, they are out of this world, fantastic. Marisa Paternoster shreds and screams her head off, and her lyrical imagery is at times cynical, at times violent, all of this coming out of her tiny frame is mind boggling and something special to witness. Black Wine is all revved up Decendents/SST over-driven punk rock. We were initially surprised to see Home Blitz on the bill, lofi punker Daniel DiMaggio has put out some great records, does this mean we are going to be getting one on Don Giovanni soon?

The Tiny Giant Artist Collective Raises Money For Sandy Victims With A Winter Beach Ball

The Tiny Giant Artist Collective is a group of musicians, labels, promoters and general people interested in keeping some semblance of a "scene" alive in New Jersey independent music. The collective started as a group of like-minded musicians banding together to help promote and raise awareness for each other. The collective has evolved to represent a slew of cool local bands and people looking to pitch in and help deliver these bands to people all around the state and its surrounding areas.

This weekend (Feb 8th-10th) the great people who make up the Tiny Giant Artist Collective are putting together a 3-day showcase at four different venues around NJ to help raise money for Sandy Victims. All in all over 30 Tiny Giant bands will be playing this weekend, and its surely a great opportunity for anyone interested in aiding in the Sandy relief effort, supporting local music or just looking to see what these Tiny Giants are all about.

Friday, February 8th will be the first show, at New Brunswick's Court Tavern, a venue that has recently reopened and has been a mainstay for independent music through the years. The night will feature some of New Brunswick's Tiny Giants: Sara, Vasudeva, Science, Paper Streets, The Humbolds and Rocky Cantanese, a full night of great bands. ( 7PM / $7 )

The Everymen

Saturday at Asbury Lanes will be an all day event that will showcase most of the Tiny Giant heavy hitters. The day starts off at 11:30am and will go will the wee hours of the morning. Here is list of performers: Lost Romance, Janet Labelle, Lionel Pryor, Zac Clark and The Griswalds, Cicada Radio, Meet Pause, Cinema Cinema, Thomas Francis Takes His Chances, Life Eaters, Secret Country, Holy City Zoo, Those Mockingbirds and The Everymen. (11:30AM / $10 ).

Sunday will have two shows. One at The Lampost in Jersey City and then later that evening at Maxwell's in Hoboken. The Lampost show kicks off at 3pm and will have Slow Moves, The Dark Matters, Cotton and Invisible Lines playing. The Maxwell's show ends the whole weekend with 6 bands and will feature I Am The Heat, Morning, Vows, France, Pour The Pirate Sherry, and Reese Van Riper. ( Lamp Post: 3PM / FREE, Maxwell’s: 6PM / $8 )

Ultimately, if you are anywhere near any of these venues this is a great weekend for local music, so NJ Skeletons strongly recommends you check out some this weekend's wares.

Dad Brother

If you need help navigating the weekend, here is what we are most looking forward to.

Friday night - Sara is one of our favorite current New Brunswick bands. Noisy and unpolished, kind of post-weezer, hard indie rock. These guys are earnest and aren't trying to bullshit anybody.

Saturday night - this is the big one - with so many bands playing its hard to pick out just one, so lets mention a few highlights. The Everymen, fresh off their opening stint for Titus Andronicus at Brooklyn Bowl last week are a fun and exciting saxaphone fueled, Springsteen-esque joy ride. Life Eaters, featuring ex members of Rye Coaltion are high-energy and always a fun show. Dad Brother, a dark, indie rock two piece have been really impressing lately, not to mention Tiny Giant stalwarts Secret Country, Holy City Zoo, and Those Mockingbirds who have been playing some really cool NJ shows. All these bands are highly reccomended if you are going to be at the Asbury Lanes show.

Sunday at The Lampost will be the first Invisible Lines show in a while for fans of melodic post punk. The Maxwell's show has catchy, bright indie rockers, Morning on the bill as well as France which features ex members of They Had Faces Then which should be a good time.

Mornning

The Ergs! Reunite / Mikey Erg starts a new band.

Today, Don Giovanni Records has announced that New Brunswick Pop Punkers The Ergs! will be reuniting at the 2013 Newport Folk Festival. The Ergs! will also be putting together a new record that will feature Jeff Schroek (The Ergs!/Black Wine) on guitar and their longtime friend Jay Insult on vocals. Their drummer has not been announced yet, but the fan response has lead to some fun conjecture (Frank Stallone). Joe Keller is still playing with Night Birds, but this news is great for the punk community in New Jersey.

Don Giovanni has also announced that Mikey Erg has also formed a new band called ERG, which will consist of Mikey Erg on vocals, a "miscellaneous" member of THE MEASURE (SA) on guitar and Cheeseman on drums.

Shows This Week!

Thursday 1/31:
Boxed Wine / Hilly Eye / Melissa Lucciola / Blud Diamond @ The Lampost - Jersey City 9pm. Free!

Mikey Erg! / Who Needs You / Fox Reactions / City Limits! / Jared Hart of The Scandals @ Paradise Lost 7:30pm - Free!

Friday 2/1:
Emetic / Polyphony / Feudalism / Dead Wurm / Rob Miller / Based On a Novel / All Good Children @The Meatlocker - Montclair 7:30pm  $7

Neur / For Sleeping Or Jumping / Grass Is Green / Sara @ The Court Tavern - New Brunswick 8:30pm. $5

Saturday 2/2:
They Live / Awkward Girls / Eastern Anchors / The Incredible Pits @ Maxwell's - Hoboken 8pm $8

Keep Em Low / Heartstrings / Graveyard State / The Only Way @ Le Grand Fromage - Atlantic City  8pm. Free!

Album Review: Tijuana Bibles - Lies

By: Mike Mucus

NJ's Tijuana Bibles have released a couple digital E.P's over the past year. Lies, the most recent effort by the trio has been a particular standout. It straight up sounds like the Ramones meets The Minutemen. At first listen the songs almost sound like incomplete thoughts, but they say what they intend to say with an economy  of words that suggests you don't need any other frilly bullshit to make a punk rock song. Most tracks clock in under the :90 second mark and are often book ended by audio clips of whacked out conversations. This just adds to the ADD-ness of The Bibles. Their frenzied live show isn't much different, singer/bassist Kopp sweats and spits his way to the mic behind a scowl  but its the hooks of the songs that are the real selling points. They'll catch you and just as you start to nod your head they'll be over. The traditional verse/chorus, verse/chorus song structure gets turned on its head. When Kopp sings "I gotta shitty tattoo on my arm", and you realize that one line is the whole song, it makes you think that sometimes, that's all you fucking need.

Listen to the record for free here

Screaming Females Set To Release Home Recordings

NJ darlings Screaming Females have had to put their grueling touring schedule on hold due to singer/axe shredder Marissa Paternoster's battles with illness. However, the band has put together a set of home recordings for a cassette-only release on Don Giovanni Records called Chalk Tape which will be released on February 10th. You can check out the track "Poison Arrow" on their Soundcloud page.