Sagaran Night

July 17th at Fontana’s, NYC was Sagaran Night aka Indie Day Music Festival Part 2. Sponsored by Ugnayan, proceeds from ticket and merchandise sales went to help fund their participation in “DALUYONG: Surging to Confront the Crisis of Our Times,” the National Filipino American Youth Consultation in Los Angeles, CA which took place on the weekend of July 24-26, 2009. The lineup featured such bands as: Ave, Bleud, Urban Echo, Kilusan1898, Glass Rats, The Kuwagos, The Happy Analogues and Qwadra.

Thao with The Get Down, Stay Down @ Black Cat (and more)

Being on this side of the shores, I try to take advantage of as many shows as possible when I’m back stateside. On my last visit, I got to see Thao with The Get Down, Stay Down at the Black Cat in DC. This is a band I’ve been wanting to see for 2 years, but through re-scheduling and re-locating (by both parties), had not yet managed to do. So for me to finally get to see them in their hometown was nerdy-exciting. Were they as awesome as I thought they would be? Absolutely.

Versus In The Open

Photo courtesy of Feliza Mirasol.

What could be better than a nice summer night at the South Street Seaport with a cold one in hand and a free Versus performance?  After experiencing it myself, I can honestly say, not much!  All summer long, the Seaport Music Festival, presented by the River to River Festival, is featuring various bands in an open-air setting…for free.  That night, Friday, July 17^th Versus opened for Super Chunk, an indie rock band hailing from North Carolina.

Chillin’ On The Town With Binky Bianca @ Grove Street Music Series

Jersey City, N.J.–On my way home from a tiring day at work, I decided to hop off the PATH train one stop ahead of my station and was rewarded by the sight of Binky Bianca band members setting up the stage for their set at the Groove on Grove 2009 Music Series. It was a balmy Wednesday night when the Grove Street station and nearby Jersey City neighborhood were treated to the Filipina-fronted rock band Binky Bianca.

+/- and Versus @ The Mercury Lounge

Versus

On June 18^th +/- {Plus/Minus} kicked off their European tour with a show at New York’s Mercury Lounge along with bands Mascott, Gramercy Arms and Versus. When I first heard that Versus and +/- were performing, I had to go because as far as the American indie rock scene goes, they’re kind of a big deal. So big in fact that apparently neither rain nor the gig being on a Thursday night deterred fans from showing up either, because the house was packed! Fans literally came from all around. I met some guys at the sales table that drove in all the way from Rhode Island just to see the bands, caught them in Boston a few weeks ago and spent about $60 easily on vinyl…talk about devotion!