Show Review: Matisyahu @ Webster Hall

Last night we watched Matisyahu dubbify Webster Hall.

More pictures on my flickr

This was my fourth time seeing him live, and surprisingly his set list hasn't changed much since 2005. He covered all of his crowd-pleasers, including: "Warrior," "Close My Eyes," "Aish Tamid," "Father in the Forest," and "Jerusalem" amongst others. To promote his new EP, Shattered, they played "Smash Lies" and "I Will Be Light." He also broke things down with a solo beat-box routine which was highly anticipated and well received by the audience. When the concert seemed to be over, fans chanted his name until the band came back and performed "King Without a Crown."

Overall, it was an energetic and lively performance. He even replaced Webster's famous disco ball with a disco dreidel.

Matisyahu is known for his performances, and we have two unreleased live tracks to share. "Thunder" is from his upcoming cd, Light, which he said will be released in March of 2009. The second, "Morning Dew," is originally by Bonnie Dobson, and has been performed by many artists. Matisyahu tells the audience that his first concert was the Grateful Dead, and he plays their version of the song. I also threw in Jeff Beck's version so you can compare the two.

Download:

Matisyahu - Thunder (Live at the Orpheum Theater 10/29/08) | (zshare)

Matisyahu - Morning Dew (Grateful Dead cover) [Live at Langerado Music Festival 3/8/08] | (zshare)

Jeff Beck - Morning Dew | (zshare)

Show Review: Pendulum @ Webster Hall

For those of you who don't know, Pendulum is UK based, Australian originated, drum and bass powerhouse. This was their first time touring in the US, aside from their brief Coachella appearance in April. More importantly, this was there first time gigging in NYC!

More pics on my Flickr

You might guess that American's can't get into this drum and bass stuff, and that is why Pendulum heavily toured the UK until now. Wrong. Pendulum fans flew from all over the country to come out for this rare opportunity. We met people who traveled from Boston, and even California. After the performance was over, we asked them, "was it worth it?" And there was no doubt in their minds.

The staggering awesomeness of Pendulum's sound; synth, guitars, bass, and drums, created a unique level of energy that night. The crowd was screaming for more as they completed their set of 13 songs. This included stuff from their old cd "Hold Your Colour", as well as material from their new cd, "In Silico". Concertgoers were disappointed they left out "The Tempest", a track highly regarded by fans. Because they forgot to play it, I'm going to include it in the post. Other than that, they had a solid debut performance, nearly emulating the magic of their studio recordings.

Support Pendulum and purchase In Silico.

Download:

Pendulum - The Tempest | (zshare)

Show Review: Eugene Francis Jnr @ The Studio

The other night, Antler Darts was invited to check out Eugene Francis Jr & the Juniors at Webster Hall's new underground venue: The Studio.

This was my first time in The Studio (which opened a week ago), and I have to admit, I was impressed. Be sure to keep your eye on this small venue that caps out around 300 people (standing room only). I have a feeling we are going to see a lot small acts broken here.

One of them could be Eugene Francis Jnr. They put on a fun and easy to digest show, while dressed up in naval-officer-esq outfits. As you can see in the picture above, Eugene was wielding Captain America's shield, an interesting addition to their untraditional outfits. Clothing aside, we had a great time rocking out to their clap-your-hands, stomp-your-feet, 30 minute set of synth pop. People were singing along to his catchy lyrics, which were also used a vehicle for Eugene's feelings on politics. Two female backup singers and an occasional xylophone melody gave a touch of charm to this band from Whales.

If you want more, please visit Legion Presents' shop.

For our friends across the pond, you can catch them touring with Coldplay in the UK, with dates throughout December.

We'll leave you with a quote from the performance, "In life, it's good to share." Download the track below for some EFJ goodness.

Eugene Francis Jnr - Electronic Hobo | (zshare)