Friday, Sep 21 - Front Room
Gang Gang Dance w/ Sun Araw and Sunny Graves (DJ Set) - Presented by Bandshell

w/ Gang Gang Dance, Sun Araw, Sunny Graves (DJ Set)

Friday, Sep 21
9:00 pm in the Front Room

$20 adv, $22 dos / 21+

Part of Et cetera 2012: A week of art, talks, films, comedy, learning, music and more at Public Assembly. More events and info at http://etcbk.tumblr.com

The arc and trajectory on which Gang Gang Dance has propelled themselves since their inception can only be described in terms of evolution. Four individuals with strong ties to the art community and almost boundless creative energy orienting themselves into a musical collaboration whose direction is almost as unpredictable as it is focused.

Comprised of Lizzi Bougatsos, Brian Degraw, Josh Diamond and Jesse Lee, Gang Gang Dance formed in New York in the early part of the new century. Originating from the same experimental Brooklyn scene as Animal Collective and Black Dice, the band’s first recorded output was a string of records released on influential local label Social Registry. With the burgeoning arts community of which they were a part continually falling under the microscope of the wider world, Gang Gang Dance recorded second full length album God’s Money and in the process transcended all associations with their peers. Boldly forging their various avant garde influences into a coherent statement, God’s Money was wildly off kilter and out of sync with what was currently happening in the US underground.

Constructed from assorted fragments of Eastern scales, dub apexes and the inward looking gaze of noise aesthetics, God’s Money was Gang Gang Dance’s first definitive document of their own voice. Grounded by Bougatsos’ otherworldly vocals, the band cemented their position as purveyors of melodically stilted experimentations that aimed as much for the emotional as the cerebral.

After touring Saint Dymphna for a few months, Tim DeWit decided to leave the band to concentrate on his producing career, which left the door open for Jesse Lee’s entry as the drummer. With Jesse behind the kit, one may notice a tighter, more motorized beat; a tendency in-keeping with the band’s songwriting evolution. Now signed to 4AD, fifth album (inc. compilation album, Revival of the Shittest), Eye Contact arrived on 9th May 2011 and duly matched the incremental sonic progression Gang Gang Dance has made with each record. Leaning heavily on the melodicism hinted at on Saint Dymphna, Lizzi’s vocals guide the record throughout, embellished by typically intricate polyrhythms and unexpected influences. More so than before however, Eye Contact displays the band’s meticulous song craft. Indebted to dance culture, the pacing of the record is such that subtle passages and enigmatic samples give way to relentless locked-in grooves, very much shaping Eye Contact as a coherent statement of intent, defined by its purposeful construction and immaculate production.

http://www.ganggangdance.com
http://www.facebook.com/ganggangdance
http://4ad.com/artists/ganggangdance
http://nowarforged.blogspot.com

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Cameron Stallones is an American musician who works under the name Sun Araw. Previously a member of the band Magic Lantern, he has released several albums of experimental music, including a collaboration with Jamaican reggae group The Congos. His 2010 album Off Duty was described by Allmusic writer Gregory Heaney as "pulsing, Krautrock-influenced retro-futuristic lo-fi". Jon Pareles, writing for The New York Times, described Sun Araw's music as "a happy jungle of electronic repetition and live playing. Loops and echoes reconfigured reggae, funk and Afrobeat in dizzying ways; the music cackled and hopped, ready to trip up dancers or just get trippy in decidedly 21st-century grooves."

http://sunaraw.com

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PRICE DROP! Please note that Bandshell has adjusted the price for this event from $27 adv, $30 dos to $20 adv, $22 dos. If you purchased a ticket prior to 1:00 PM on 07.13.12 you will be refunded the difference and will be notified via email.

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