NYC Concert Notes: Tickets for Japandroids, Gaslight Anthem, Amanda Palmer, & More On Sale Fri.

CMJ will hit New York in less than a month, but tickets for some other great autumn shows are going on sale tomorrow, Sept. 21st. If you missed out on getting tickets for hot acts like Japandroids or The Gaslight Anthem, you'll be glad to know that shows have been added for these and other groups. See the list of concerts going on sale, with links to tickets, below.

As for events taking place this weekend, the big news is that the All Tomorrow's Parties festival is finally coming to New York City. "I'll Be Your Mirror," which is curated by ATP and Greg Dulli of the Afghan Whigs, takes place tomorrow through Sunday at Pier 36. Acts include Frank Ocean, the Afghan Whigs, The Roots, Godspeed You! Black Emperor, and the Mark Lanegan Band. (Pier 36 is, the website says, "a new indoor venue sitting on the edge of the East River between the Manhattan & Williamsburg Bridges.")
  
Also tomorrow: If you're a Bon Iver fan, you'll want to watch a live webcast of their Radio City Music Hall show Friday night at 9:15 p.m. at Bowery Presents.

See what concerts are going on sale tomorrow below, after the video for Japandroids' "The House That Heaven Built."


Japandroids, "The House That Heaven Built"

* Thu., Sept. 27th: Two Door Cinema Club at Music Hall of Williamsburg (also playing Sept. 28th at Rumsey Playfield, Central Park) - On sale Friday at Noon

* Tues. to Mon., Oct. 16th, 17th, 19th, 20th, and 22th: Crosby, Stills, & Nash at the Beacon Theatre, performing their 1969 debut album - On sale 10 or 11 a.m. (check specific show page for time)

* Wed., Oct. 24th: Old 97s at Music Hall of Williamsburg - "Too Far to Care" 15th Anniversary 
(also playing Webster Hall Oct. 23rd) - On sale at Noon

* Sun. and Mon., Nov. 4th and 5th: Gary Clark Jr. at Bowery Ballroom - On sale at Noon

* Sat., Nov. 10th: The Tragically Hip at Terminal 5 - On sale at Noon

* Thurs., Nov. 15th: Jason Bonham's Led Zeppelin Experience at the Wellmont Theatre (Montclair, NJ) - On sale at Noon

* Tues., Nov. 20th: Of Monsters and Men at Terminal 5 - On sale at Noon

* Fri., Nov. 30th: The Gaslight Anthem at Terminal 5 (Nov. 28th and 29th sold out) - On sale at Noon

* Wed., Dec. 5th: Japandroids at Webster Hall (also playing Dec. 4th) On sale at Noon

* Fri., Dec. 14th: The Killers with Tegan and Sara at Madison Square Garden - On sale at 11 a.m.

* Sat. to Mon., Dec. 29th, 30th, & 31st: Punch Brothers at Bowery Ballroom - On sale at Noon

* Mon., Dec. 31st: Amanda Palmer & the Grand Theft Orchestra at Terminal 5 - On sale at Noon

NYC Concert Notes: Tickets for K'Naan, Fun., David Johansen On Sale Friday

Here are links to tickets for a few upcoming concerts in New York City that are going on sale Friday, Sept. 7th. (And if you're in the New York area, a reminder that you can see Bob Mould and Cymbals Eat Guitars FREE at Williamsburg Park in Brooklyn that night.)

Some of the interesting shows going on sale Friday:

• Fun. at Irving Plaza, Tues., Oct. 30th (on sale: 12 Noon)
• K'Naan at Highline Ballroom, Thurs., Nov. 1st (on sale: 12 Noon)
• David Johansen at Highline Ballroom with The Last Bison, Los Texmaniacs, and Eliana Burki, Sun., Jan. 13th (on sale: 12 Noon)

And for music fans in the upper Westchester area, there's good news in that the Capitol Theatre in Port Chester has reopened and has a full slate of concerts. Bob Dylan opened the new Bowery Presents venue earlier this week, and upcoming events include Buddy Guy and Jonny Lang (Sept. 9th), The Roots and the Dirty Dozen Brass Band (Sept. 14th), The J. Geils Band (Sept. 19th), and Regina Spektor and Only Son (Oct. 3rd). (See Capitol Theatre upcoming shows here.)

Although Port Chester isn't very close to me (unless I'm visiting friends in Westchester or Connecticut), it's great to see another music venue opening in the greater NYC area. For a long time in New York, you only heard about clubs closing down; it's good to hear of new ones coming online.

Free Fourth of July Concerts in NYC: Rosanne Cash, She & Him on Governors Island

Above: Rosanne Cash plays New York's Governors Island in a free Fourth of July concert. Here she and bandmate (and husband) John Leventhal are seen playing a Fourth of July show last year in Minnesota. Photo: Jonathunder

New York is famous for the free Macy's Fourth of July fireworks, but there's a lot more going on for the nation's birthday, including free music. Two excellent choices are the free pop-rock concerts that happen to be taking place on the same island--no, not Manhattan, but Governors Island. And both take place in the afternoon, giving you plenty of time to catch the fireworks.

In one show, singer-songwriter Rosanne Cash plays and sings her blend of pop, folk, country, and rock music. A daughter of Johnny Cash, she has more than 10 albums under her belt, the most recent of which is "The List," covers of classic tunes she learned from her father.

The free Rosanne Cash concert runs from 2 to 4 p.m. at the Colonels Row section of Governors Island.

Also on Governors Island is the latest free show in the Water Taxi Beach series, featuring She and Him. If you're not familiar with this band, "she" is multitalented actress/singer Zooey Deschanel, and the "him" is indie singer-songwriter Matt Ward, who has recorded a number of albums under the name M. Ward. They play bright, catchy tunes--as their website says, "They occupy an alternate universe where the saddest of songs feel as warm as sun showers."

Their latest album is the imaginatively titled "She and Him: Volume Two."

The free She and Him show runs from 4 to 6 p.m., and though it's free only the first 3,500 customers will be admitted, so get there early.

See the Governors Island blog for details on both shows, including links for directions and ferry schedule to Governors Island.

Free Concerts in NYC This Weekend: Texas Tornadoes, Tinariwen, Gil-Scott Heron, Apples in Stereo, and More

Above: Tinariwen, the guitar-driven band from Mali, play Central Park SummerStage on Saturday. They got a lot of exposure playing the FIFA World Cup celebration concert; here several of them are seen at the Nice Jazz Festival in 2005. 

Looking for some free music outdoors for this first weekend of summer? Here are a few good choices, from rock and pop to jazz and roots music...

Saturday, June 26th:
* Tinariwen, Omar Souleyman, and Toubab Krewe (African and Middle Eastern pop/rock/folk), SummerStage, Central Park, 3 p.m.
* The Apples in Stereo with the Brooklyn Youth Chorus and members of the Brooklyn Philharmonic, Pier 17, South Street Seaport, 7 p.m.
* The Texas Tornadoes and The Red Clay Ramblers at Celebrate Brooklyn, Prospect Park, 7:30 p.m.

Sunday, June 27th
* Bang on a Can Marathon, NYC River to River Festival, World Financial Center Winter Garden, 12 p.m. (An "incomparable 12-hour super-mix of genre-defying music from around the corner and the globe.")
* NYC Revolutions Series: Gil Scott-Heron with special opener Derrick Hodge, SummerStage, Central Park, 3 p.m.

Get Tickets for the Nashville Rising Concert, 6/22 - Taylor Swift, Carrie Underwood, Tim McGraw, and More

An all-star group of the hottest names in country music are getting together for "Nashville Rising," a one-time-only concert to benefit the recovery efforts in Nashville after the historic flooding there earlier this month. Tickets went on sale May 14th, and you buy Nashville Rising concert tickets here.

Tim McGraw and Faith Hill are spearheading the Nashville Rising concert, which also features a stellar lineup of today's country stars: Taylor Swift, Brooks and Dunn, Amy Grant, Leann Rimes, Miranda Lambert, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Martina McBride, Miley Cyrus, and more. Additional acts will be named later.

The Nashville Rising concert takes place at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville and benefits the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee.

For more information about Nashville Rising concert and the organization, see www.nashvillerising.org. If you can't be at the concert, you can still make a contribution to help get Nashville back on its feet.

Celebrate Brooklyn Announces 2010 Free Concert Schedule

The two biggest free-concert series in New York, SummerStage and Celebrate Brooklyn, have both released their summer 2010 schedules. I listed some SummerStage highlights yesterday, and now here is the full Celebrate Brooklyn schedule of free concerts.

All shows are free, though attendees are encouraged to kick in a suggested donation of $3.00. Concerts are held at the Prospect Park bandshell. Weeknight shows begin at times from 7 - 8 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday shows usually begin at 3 or 4 p.m., though shows with many acts may start as early as 2 p.m. As always, see the complete 2010 Celebrate Brooklyn schedule for times, schedule changes, directions, and more.

Celebrate Brooklyn 2010 free concert schedule:
* Wed., June 9 -  Opening Night Gala - Norah Jones
* Sat., June 12 - Allen Toussaint, Davell Crawford
* Thurs., June 17 - Eugene Mirman & Pretty Good Friends
* Fri., June 18 - JG Thirlwell's Steroid Maximus, Dr. Lonnie Smith
* Sat., June 19 - Bitches Brew Revisited with Graham Haynes, James Blood Ulmer, DJ Logic and more
* Thurs., June 24 - Orquesta Buena Vista Social Club® featuring Omara Portuondo / Nelida Tirado
* Fri., June 25 - Kid Koala: Short Attention Span Theater vs. The Slew / Hess Is More
* Sat., June 26 - Texas Tornados, Red Clay Ramblers
* Thurs., July 1 - Zoom: Zvidance, Son Lux with Lottdance
* Fri., July 2 - Fab 5, Uzalo
* Thurs., July 8 - Itutu: Armitage Gone! Dance featuring Burkina Electric
* Fri., July 9 - Ozomatli, Fidel Nadal / Toy Selectah
* Sun., July 11 - OkayAfrica with The Roots, Talib Kweli and more
* Sat., July 17 - African Festival with Konono No. 1, Omar Pene, Super Diamono and more
Thurs., July 22 - The Chaplin Mutuals: Carl Davis / The Two Man Gentlemen Band (Music & Movies, with Brooklyn Philharmonic)
* Fri., July 23 Bomba Estereo, La Secta Allstar / Rita Indiana
* Sat., July 24 - Field of Dreams (Un Mundo Nuevo): Andres Levin & The Bruce High Quality Foundation
* Thurs., July 29 - MI21: Mother India 21st Century Remix with DJ Tigerstyle / Falu (Music & Movies)
* Fri., July 30 - The Swell Season, The Low Anthem
* Sat., July 31 - Sonic Youth, Grass Widow / Talk Normal
* Thurs., August 5 - Metric, Joan as Police Woman / Holly Miranda
* Fri., August 6 - House of Usher: Marco Benevento, White Magic (Music & Movies)
* Sat., August 7 - Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings, Budos Band and more
* Sun., August 8 - Brady Rymer, Elizabeth Mitchell (family concert)

Celebrate Brooklyn is also holding four benefit shows to raise funds for the program: Passion Pit, June 29 (sold out); Rufus Wainwright, July 20; The National, July 27 (sold out); and The Dead Weather, July 27.

Central Park Summerstage Announces Full Schedule; Expands Beyond Manhattan

The City Parks Foundation announced the 2010 Central Park SummerStage schedule, and it has some big things planned for the 25th anniversary of the free-concerts program. For one thing, it's expanding beyond its home in Central Park. As the schedule says, the Foundation has "launched a major re-branding of the festival to include music, dance, film and theater performances in all five boroughs."

The 2010 SummerStage season begins on Tuesday, June 1st with a show by jazz-pop singer Melody Gardot and the New York Pops in Central Park. The full 2010 SummerStage schedule in PDF form is available now; the SummerStage Web site doesn't yet have all the dates filled in (it says it is launching the new Web site on May 15th).

While most of the shows are free (such as all of the ones below), there are also a number of great benefit shows that support the free programs. Some of the artists doing SummerStage benefit shows are The Black Keys, Gov't Mule, Pavement, and the John Butler Trio (these are listed in the SummerStage schedule PDF, too).

Shows on weekday evenings usually start between 6 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.; weekend shows are 3 or 4 p.m.

Among the free shows on this year's program (see the complete SummerStage schedule for full listing and descriptions):

* Wed., 6/2: Roy Ayers with DJ Jon Quick (Betsy Head Park, Brooklyn)
* Sat., 6/5 Living Colour, Ebony Bones!, Pillow Theory, and CX KiDTRONiK: 25th anniv. of Black Rock Coalition (Central Park)
* Thurs., 6/10: Hezekiah Walker (Von King Park, Brooklyn)
* Wed., 6/16: Big Daddy Kane with DJ Jon Quick (Von King Park, Brooklyn)
* Thurs., 6/17: The Felix Hernandez Rhythm Review (Betsy Head Park, Brooklyn)
* Sat., 6/26: Tinariwen, Omar Souleyman, and Toubab Krewe (Central Park)
* Wed., 6/30: Nuyorican Poets Cafe (Central Park)
* Sun., 7/11: Jimmy Cliff, Trevor Hall, and Victor Démé (Central Park)
* Thurs., 7/15: EPMD and Funkmaster Flex (Queensbridge Park)
* Wed., 7/21: Comedy Central Park: The Daily Show and Friends. Hosted by Lewis Black with John Oliver, Rob Riggle, Wyatt Cenac, Adam Lowitt, and Rory Albanese (Central Park)
* Fri., 7/23: The Main Ingredient with Cuba Gooding Sr. (Rochdale Park, Brooklyn)
* Sun., 8/1: St. Vincent, tUnE-yArDs, and Basia Bulat (Central Park)
* Thurs., 8/5: Gil Scott-Heron (Marcus Garvey Park)
* Sun., 8/8: The xx, Chairlift, and Jack Peñate (Central Park)
* Wed., 8/11: Doug E. Fresh and DJ Dee Wiz (Jackie Robinson Park)
* Sun., 8/15: Public Enemy with 7th Octave and Blitz the Ambassador (Central Park)
* Thurs., 8/19: Our Latin Thing with DJ Lucho: A Tribute to The Fania All-Stars (East River Park)
* Sat., 8/28: The Charlie Parker Jazz Festival featuring McCoy Tyner, Jimmy Scott, Jason Moran, and the Bandwagon and Revive da Live: Charlie Parker Revisited (Marcus Garvey Park)

New York Concerts on Sale: Rihanna & Ke$ha, Jack Johnson, Maxwell, Crowded House, The Hold Steady, Wolf Parade, More

The spring and summer concert season continues to heat up, with concert tickets for more outdoors venues, like PNC Arts Center and the Nikon Jones Beach Theatre, going on sale. Here are some choice events, listed by on-sale date:

On sale Friday, April 9th:
* Patty Griffin with Buddy Miller - Town Hall - Tues. & Wed., June 8 & 9
* Rihanna with Ke$ha - Madison Square Garden - Thurs., Aug. 12
* Goldfrapp - Hammerstein Ballroom - Wed., June 23
* Maxwell - Madison Square Garden - Sat., June 26
* Willie Nelson - Grand Ballroom at Manhattan Center - Fri,. May 6
* Crowded House - Bowery Ballroom, Mon, Tues., & Wed., July 19, 20, and 21, and Wellmont Theatre (Montclair, NJ), Fri., July 23

On sale Saturday, April 10th:

* Jack Johnson - PNC Arts Center (Holmdel, NJ) -  Tues., July 13 and Madison Square Garden - Wed., July 14

* Yes and Peter Frampton - PNC Arts Center, Fri., June 25, and Jones Beach Theater, Sat., June 26
* Get Your Sting and Blackout World Tour 2010 with Scorpions and Cinderella - PNC Arts Center, Fri., June 18, and Jones Beach Theater, Tues., June 22

* The Hold Steady - Beacon Theatre - Thurs., Oct. 7

* Wolf Parade - Terminal 5 - Tues., July 13

New York Concerts on Sale: Black Keys, Broken Bells, Buzzcocks, Phish, Metric, and More

Above: Metric (featuring Emily Haines, pictured) plays at Terminal 5 on May 16th. Photo: Magnus Manske

The summer concert schedule is heating up and tickets are going on sale now. Lots of concert tickets are going on sale tomorrow (and a few on Saturday); here's a list of some of the shows that will be in big demand:

On sale Fri., April 2nd:
* Phish - Nikon at Jones Beach Theater - Tues., August 17th & Wed., 18th
* The Black Keys - Central Park Summerstage - Wed., July 28th
* Metric - Terminal 5 - Sun., May 16th
* Josh Ritter & The Royal City Band - Music Hall of Williamsburg - Sat., May 22nd
* Camera Obscura - Manhattan Center Grand Ballroom - Mon., June 7th
* Jay Farrar - Bowery Ballroom - Sat., June 5th
* Delta Spirit - Bowery Ballroom - Wed., June 30th
* Delta Spirit - Music Hall of Williamsburg - Thurs., July 1st
* Tears For Fears - Wellmont Theatre (Montclair, NJ) - Sat., Aug., 21st

On sale Sat., April 3rd:
* Broken Bells - The Fillmore New York at Irving Plaza - Sat., June 5th
* The Buzzcocks - The Fillmore New York at Irving Plaza - Thurs., May 13th

More New York Concerts On Sale: Eagles/Dixie Chicks/Keith Urban; M.I.A; Diana Ross

A few more big shows on sale:

* M.I.A./Hard NYC - Sat. July 24th, 4 p.m. - Governors Island - went on sale March 26th
* Eagles with Dixie Chicks and Keith Urban - Thurs., June 10th -
Meadowlands Sports Complex - ON SALE: Mon., March 29th, 10 a.m.
* Diana Ross - Wed., May 19th - Radio City Music Hall - ON SALE: Mon., March 29th, 10 a.m.

NYC Concerts On Sale: New Pornographers, Vampire Weekend, Miike Snow, More

Left: Canadian supergroup Broken Social Scene plays Central Park on Sept. 18th. 

Some in-demand musicians have added more New York shows to supplement those that are selling well, or in some cases, have already sold out. Here are some shows going on sale Friday, March 26th:

* The New Pornographer, The Dodos - Sat., June 19th, Terminal 5 - ON SALE: Sat., March 26th
* Miike Snow - Wed., October 6th, Terminal 5 - ON SALE: Sat., March 26th
* Vampire Weekend (third show) - Fri., September 17th, Radio City Music Hall - ON SALE: Sat., March 26th (September 15th & 16th shows sold out)

And for the metal fans out there, Iron Maiden tickets for their July 12th show at Madison Square Garden went on sale March 20th to the general public. Dream Theater is also on the bill.

Lady Gaga Tickets On Sale Soon for Summer 2010 Concerts

Lady Gaga's Monster Ball tour continues with sold-out concerts all across the U.S., and more dates have been added. Tickets for the shows below go on sale late in March, so mark the dates so you'll be able to get first crack at these in-demand tickets.

To see all Lady Gaga concerts now scheduled, and on-sale dates, visit www.ladygaga.com/events.

On sale Friday March 26:

July 2 - Boston, MA - TD Garden

July 14 - Cleveland, OH - Quicken Loans Arena

August 19 - Portland, OR - Rose Garden

August 21 - Tacoma, WA - Tacoma Dome

August 24 - Vancouver, BC - General Motors Place

On sale Saturday March 27:

July 4 - Atlantic City, NJ - Boardwalk Hall

July 20 - Oklahoma City, OK - Ford Center

September 14 - Philadelphia, PA - Wachovia Center

On sale Monday March 29:

July 28 - Denver, CO - Pepsi Center

August 3 - Kansas City, MO - Sprint Center

New York Concerts on Sale: Vampire Weekend, Sharon Jones, Peter Gabriel, K'Naan, Mo'nique

UPDATE: Tickets now on sale for second Vampire Weekend show (9/16)
- - - - -
Here's the latest in my semi-irregular listing of New York area concerts that are going on sale soon or that recently went on sale. As usual, there's a good mix of big stars and up-and-coming artists who are popular.

Going on sale Friday, February 26th or Saturday, February 27th:

* Vampire Weekend, September 15th, Radio City Music Hall (SECOND VAMPIRE WEEKEND SHOW ADDED for September 16th; tickets on sale now)

* Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings, May 1st, Apollo Theater (April 30th show already on sale)

* Mo'nique, April 9th at Prudential Center (Newark) & April 24th (The Theater at Madison Square Garden)

Now on sale:

* Peter Gabriel (with 54-piece orchestra), May 2nd & May 3rd, Radio City Music Hall

* DJ Rekha, April 23rd, The Fillmore New York at Irving Plaza

* K'naan and Wale with John Forte, March 31st, The Fillmore New York at Irving Plaza

* April Fools Comedy Show hosted by DL Hughley, April 1st, The Theater at Madison Square Garden

More to come next week.

Buy the Hope for Haiti Now Concert Album at itunes.com/haiti

A galaxy of stars from music, TV, and the movies gathered at several locations Friday night for the Hope for Haiti Now Concert, and you can order the  album of the live concert from iTunes. 

The concert, organized by George Clooney, was an event to raise money for relief efforts in the quake-stricken country. Performers included Bono and the Edge from U2, Bruce Springsteen, Jay-Z, Justin Timberlake, Alicia Keys, Dave Matthews and Neil Young, and many more. Celebrities manned the phone banks, taking contributions from callers.

A video of the concert will be available at some point; it is also available for order now.

You can watch many of the Hope for Haiti Now concert performances online at MTV. 

The organizers say that 100% of the proceeds from sales of the concert album will go to organizations providing relief to Haiti.

Great NYC Concerts On Sale Now/Upcoming: Ricky Gervais, Josh Ritter, Spoon, Jay-Z, More

The cavalcade of great live shows in New York just keeps on rolling. Here's a selection of some of the most popular or in-demand concerts that are now on sale or are about to go on sale.

Going on sale soon: 
*Mayer Hawthorne & The County, March 4, Webster Hall (on sale Friday, 1/22)
*Joanna Newsom - March 18, Town Hall (on sale Thursday, 1/21)
Ricky Gervais - May 12 & 13, The Theater at Madison Square Garden (on sale Friday, 1/22)
*Josh Ritter - May 20, Town Hall (on sale Friday, 1/22)
Carole King & James Taylor - Madison Square Garden, June 15 (on sale Saturday, 1/23)
(Tickets available at Bowery Presents for shows above marked with *)

Shows now on sale: 
Tinariwen (great guitar-driven African rock) - February 18, Highline Ballroom
Sam Moore (of Sam & Dave) - February 21, Highline Ballroom
Jay-Z - March 2, Madison Square Garden
Jonatha Brooke - March 23, Highline Ballroom
Jonathan Coulton - April 2 & 3, Highline Ballroom
Spoon with special guests Deerhunter and The Strange Boys - March 26, Radio City Music Hall
Shearwater - March 27, Bowery Ballroom
Rodrigo y Gabriela - April 29, Radio City Music Hall
Chelsea Handler and special guest Josh Wolf - May 15 & 16, Radio City Music Hall

Music News: R.E.M.'s Best Week in 12 Years, '80s (and '70s) Pop Stars on Tour

It's Spring, and that means the Summer concert tour plans are cranking into high gear. There are some interesting moves going on in the recorded-music scene too, so there's lots of music news this week. Here's a rundown of the highlights.

R.E.M. is getting its record-sales mojo back with its new album poised at No. 2 on the U.S. charts. It hasn't been able to outsell country crooner George Strait, but I don't think the boys from Athens, Ga mind: it's their best chart action in 12 years. Good timing for R.E.M., with its worldwide tour coming up in June.

Nothing says Summer like old rockers on tour, and some of the biggest hitmakers of the 1980s are teaming up for a tour called Regeneration. Among the acts: The Human League, Belinda Carlisle, Dead Or Alive, A Flock of Seagulls, and Naked Eyes. The tour is set to begin August 1st in Phoenix.

Not to be outdone, a number of '70s rockers will be out on the road for their own individual tours. The Steve Miller Band, The Eagles, and others icons of the era will be touring, along with Ray Davies of The Kinks. Joe Cocker will be on the bill with Steve Miller.

The Hives and The Donnas Rock NYC

The Hives and The Donnas are two of the most high-energy garage-rock bands around, so it's only appropriate that they recently played a venue in New York that resembles, well, a big garage.

The cavernous new venue Terminal 5, said to be the first large concert venue to open in Manhattan in years, hosted The Hives (from Sweden) and The Donnas (from Southern California) on March 7th, and it was probably one of the best values in concert-going I've had in years (except for free concerts). For $22.50 I got to see The Donnas, favorites of mine who I catch every time they come to NYC, and The Hives, who I just became familiar with when I knew I'd be seeing them.

If The Donnas are high energy in concert, The Hives are absolutely manic. Singer Pelle Almqvist roamed all over the stage, jumping and scissor-kicking his way through the show and even wandering into the audience. Guitarist Nicholaus Arson was similarly frenetic, urging the crowd on and periodically putting guitar picks onto his extended tongue and spitting them out into the audience.

The two bands' joint tour has ended now, but it was a very entertaining twin bill. The bands will continue touring separately (in Europe and Australia, respectively) supporting their new albums: "The Black and White Album" (The Hives) and "Bitchin'" (The Donnas).

Suzanne Vega Returns to New York

Although best known to most people for her 1987 hit song “Luka,” singer-songwriter Suzanne Vega has had a long and varied career for more than 20 years. Her concert at Manhattan Center on Thursday was a great chance to see this native New Yorker performing in her hometown, playing songs from her very New York centric new album, Beauty and Crime.

In some of the new songs Vega harkens back to an earlier era in New York, and this look is also captured on the photography for the new album, and in her appearance onstage. For the entire show Vega wore a trenchcoat that would have been at home in a 1940s filim noir, with one side pulled down seductively to reveal a bare shoulder. And when playing several songs from Beauty and Crime she donned the type of old-fashioned hat you'd expect a hardened noir detective to wear.

The songs she played from Beauty and Crime talked about New York City of the past—New York is a Woman (“But not always a lady,” she noted), Edith Wharton's Figurines, Frank and Ava (about the stormy romance between Frank Sinatra and Ava Gardner). But one poignant number, Angel's Doorway, tells the story of an NYPD cop named Angel who worked at Ground Zero.

While Vega's early work had acoustic roots, calling her a folk singer vastly oversimplifies the many styles she's worked in over the years. She showed this range during the concert, from the remix dance-pop version of her a capella hit Tom's Diner to the clanging industrial sound of Blood Makes Noise to the jazzy bossa nova feel of Caramel.

The Manhattan Center show was a fitting example of the many styles and faces of Suzanne Vega.

Bruce Springsteen Rocks the Garden in His Return to NYC

With his detours into the solo-oriented approach of "Devils and Dust" and the folky big-band sound of his Seeger Sessions project, it had been five years since Bruce Springsteen had been to New York City with a full E Street Band performance.

With his return to the City at Madison Square Garden last Wednesday night, he and the E Streeters seemed to pick up right where they left off back in 2002's tour to support "The Rising." If anything, this show was overall more uptempo and raucus than anything Bruceand the boys had done in a numberof years, due to the new album "Magic" being Springsteen's hardest-rocking effort in quite a while.

As with his last few albums, this new one considers things like getting older and looking back, and the message was brought home by watching the proceedings on stage. While Bruce and the boys still put on a high-energy two-hour show, he's definitely slowed down a bit since the tour for "The Rising." During shows on that tour he grabbed onto his mic stand and pulled himself up parallel to the stage at one point, and at another time range the length of the stage and slid on his knees. He didn't attempt either manuever this time around.

His voice doesn't have quite the same reach either. On a few songs, such as "Adam Raised a Cain," he didn't even try to hit the high notes, he just opted for a lower one.

But with his energy and enthusiasm, a good mix of the newer songs and the older ones (including a few surprises), the "Magic" tour is an essential show for any Springsteen fan who, like me, passed on seeing the Devils and Dust and Seeger Sessions performances, preferring to see The Boss in the full E Street Band configuration.

CMJ Music Marathon Ready to Descend Upon NYC

If you're an indie music fan, you'd better start catching up on your sleep now. From October 16th to 20th the annual CMJ Music Marathon is coming to town, cramming about a month's worth or regular concertgoing into five days.

I couldn't even begin to name the many bands, from Eisley and Mates of State to British Sea Power, ....And They Will Know Us By the Trail of Dead, Band of Horses, M.I.A., St Vincent, the Meat Puppets, Funky Homosapien, and many more. I think there are upwards of 100 performers playing out during the Marathon. See the Web site for details on who's playing where, and to stream songs from some of the artists.

To try to make sense of it all, and find the shows that you most want to see, the site includes pull-down menus that let you display the showcases by date, by band, or by venue. Brooklyn Vegan, probably the best NYC music blog, will undoubtedly have extensive coverage of CMJ that you'll want to check out (in addition to sponsoring a few showcases of its own at the Marathon).

Also, the good folks at Flavorpill have put together a handy guide to what they consider the best picks at CMJ. If you see something that interests you, pounce. Most of the shows are in small venues and some have already sold out.

Rest up, everyone.