Polar Bear Club have announced their touring plans for the next month. The band will be playing shows with American Steel, O Pioneers!!!, and The Gaslight Anthem. Check the dates after the jump.
Photos from Bill.
Although I don’t feel too strongly about their new album, I was more than little excited to see the return of American Steel to the Big Apple. I was, however, a little worried about how the crowd would react to the band. The showcase, which featured both Lawrence Arms side projects the Falcon and Sundowner, along with Fake Problems, Tim Barry, and the Loved Ones, might have been either the perfect audience or the worst one. I still couldn’t decide but as soon as they started with the new number “Sons of Avarice,” I knew there were a handful of Am. Steel faithful in attendance. The band, unfortunely, played for only 20 minutes and did not play “Optimist,” but it didn’t matter really in the end. The band seemed incredibly happy to be back and if anything, it made me look forward to the Fest that much more.
More thoughts and photos after the jump.
This year’s CMJ Music Marathon featured a ton of great shows. Here is a little wrap up of a few things we didn’t fully cover
Pictures taken by Bill Shouldis, unless noted.
Spoon
To start things off, I’m happy that American Steel is back. I’ve long said that their back catalog was always tremendously underrated and belonged in the same class as East Bay based acts like Crimpshrine, Pinhead Gunpowder, Fifteen (I guess all the Aaron Cometbus related bands really), among others. So when a “reunion” was announced at the beginning of this year, I was more than ecstatic. And the announcement of a new records in the works!? Double score.
After a few years going at it with a new wave twist under the moniker Communique, they were now going back to their roots and I think most were all for it. But with Destroy Their Future, the band’s first for Fat Wreck, the band seems a bit unsure of what band they are still going for. While some may hear a lot of Jagged Thoughts (Lookout!) in the new album, I feel like this album sounds more like b-sides and left over material from their Communique days .
The newly-reformed and still-rocking American Steel have recently posted the artwork (seen right here) and tracklisting for their upcoming Destroy Their Future full-length on Fat Wreck Chords. No new songs released yet, but if you’re like me you’re waiting with baited breath. Hopefully not smelling like whiskey as much as I do, but whatever.
Here’s the tracklisting:
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