“I too lived — Brooklyn, of ample hills, was mine.” – Walt Whitman, “Crossing Brooklyn Ferry”
By this point, it’s an old story that Manhattan has lost much of its cultural capital to its neighbor across the East River. Nowadays, if you want cutting edge art, if you want to find clusters of musicians meeting at bars and coffee shops to talk shop, if you want to find the venues and neighborhoods that foster a multi-colored collaboration between the arts and across genres, cultures, ethnicities, and classes, you go to Brooklyn. Thirty years ago, you could say the same thing about downtown Manhattan. Below 14th St., Manhattan artists were experimenting with mixed media, provocatively crossing genres, and going for shock value. That spirit, transferred to the borough that has dominated New York City’s arts scene in the 21st century, was the guiding force behind the Crossing Brooklyn Ferry festival.
Curated by Bryce and Aaron Dessner (the twin guitarists from The National), the long time Brooklyn residents brought together their friends, collaborators, label mates, and just people who they liked playing with (as seen in this handy New York Timesinfographic) for three nights of genre-bending classical and rock music. The two brothers have long had their feet wet in both genre worlds, curating a similar crossover festival in Cincinnati, the MusicNOW Festival. But Crossing Brooklyn Ferry is distinctly New York-centric, with the city’s indie stars freely roaming through the festival checking it all out (at any given moment, you might be standing next to one of the Dessners, David Byrne, or Sufjan Stevens). Mixing classical and indie rock might seem like the cutting edge of cultural collaboration these days, but as composer Judd Greenstein revealed, “it’s starting to feel like less and less ‘a thing’ and more just the way things go.”
The mixture made for a somewhat weird approach – is this a classical concert? is it a rock show? – and more than once I had to control the urge to get up and dance. But as the weekend wore on, as the drinks flowed, and as the audiences loosened up, it became clear that you could happily groove in your seat for a chamber music set, and then flail away for some decibel-pushing indie rock.
-Jake Cohen Senior Staff Writer
Thursday, May 3rd
JACK Quartet
Two-for-one happy hour beers are always an incentive to get to the show early, but the JACK Quartet intoxicates you with their virtuosity and cohesion. With the cavernous and cool BAM Café transformed into a chamber music salon, JACK crushed a program of sometimes daring but always engaging string quartet music. Missy Mazzoli’s Death Valley Junction began with dissonant sliding tones, undulating almost like the transcendent music of Giacinto Scelsi, before expanding into driving rhythmic ostinatos and ending with cellist Kevin McFarland’s gravitas-filled melody. Alex Mincek’s third string quartet, subtitled “lift-tilt-filter-split”, was a noisy exploration of string scratching, bow sweeping, and other non-melodic extended techniques. JACK played through the cacophonous music with purpose and calculation, finally obviating the tension with the sweeter harmonies of David Crowell’s The Open Road, featuring a refrain of syncopated violin, and epic Reichian ostinatos churning like a two-chord jam. Expert microphoning and a killer P.A. engulfed the room with sound, while JACK communicated the music as though they were a single mind. -Jake Cohen
yMusic
A lot has been said about the so-called indie classical genre in the last year, but like the term or not, yMusic might be its unofficial poster child. This is the right way to bridge pop and classical: play a set of chamber music composed by indie rockers like Son Lux (aka Ryan Lott) and Annie Clark, thrown in composers like Judd Greenstein and William Brittelle who write classical music with a pop/rock aesthetic, and do it all with a ferocity frequently found on a dive bar stage rather than a concert hall. Annie Clark’s Proven Badlands climaxed with a charged cantabile melody using a unique combination of piccolo and trumpet, while Son Lux’s Beautiful Mechanicals, the lead track off yMusic’s album of the same name, was the set’s highlight, building up an intense minimalist texture, breaking it down, and then peaking again. -Jake Cohen
Jherek Bischoff
Bischoff’s set might have been the wildcard MVP of Thursday night. With the impressive Gilman Opera House only about a third full, the Seattleite played through a set of his highly original orchestral pop songs, gradually building in intensity throughout, culminating with a four-on-the-floor cover of a Konono No. 1 tune. The lanky Bischoff bounced between ukelele, drum, and bass guitar, playing the latter with forceful, percussive octaves under sweeping chords from members of yMusic. An early set highlight was Amanda Palmer (of Dresden Dolls fame), who, bedecked in an ostentatious evening gown, lent her smoky alto and spotlight-stealing stage presence to a particularly theatrical rendition of Bischoff’s “Counting”. Rumors of a “very special guest” led many to correctly guess an appearance by Talking Head David Byrne, who sings Bischoff’s “Eyes” on the forthcoming album Composed. Byrne was playful, frequently breaking into a little two-step dance on the sentimental tune. -Jake Cohen
Callers
While the seated crowd in the opera house remained somewhat reserved, there was more of a party atmosphere in the upstairs BAM Café. With the chairs cleared away and the audience standing (and drinking), it felt like more of a rock concert, which didn’t entirely match the set from Callers. Singer Sara Lucas sang dusty vocals over jazzy drums and atmospheric art-rock electric guitar. Guitarist Ryan Seaton’s tone is somewhere between hazy surf rock and twangy country, but early on the band avoided their faster, upbeat tracks, offering instead heady songs that lounged with lazy drum beats. Eventually Callers managed to break out, as Seaton’s guitar galloped over a disco-flavored, four-on-the-floor beat. -Jake Cohen
Twin Shadow
Having just announced his much-anticipated sophomore album, Confess, not two days prior, George Lewis Jr.’s (aka Twin Shadow) set on Thursday night was a coming out party of sorts. While most of the press surrounding Lewis Jr. and his stellar 2010 debut focused on his knack for crafting danceable bedroom grooves, there was nothing “bedroom” about the way Twin Shadow were able to send their streamlined indie-disco soaring through all three stories of BAM’s Howard Gilman Opera House. In a live setting, Lewis Jr.’s sensual croon was stripped of much of its lo-fi haziness. But it was pleasantly surprising to hear that he actually has a fantastic voice. Assisted by Blackfire Percussion of the Brooklyn Music and Arts Program, new songs like “Five Seconds” as well as older favorites like “When We’re Dancing” shimmered with a Studio 54–worthy chic. -Bryant Kitching
Sharon Van Etten
Midway through her stellar set, indie chanteuse Sharon van Etten awkwardly asked the seated Opera House crowd: “You guys doing OK? I’m getting a mixed vibe.” Van Etten’s ballads oozed a folksy, singer/songwriter vibe, which jived with the quiet and receptive audience. However, her set was also full of distorted barre chords, heavy strumming, and full-on rock drums that begged for standing and dancing. With her tight black jeans, striped t-shirt, and dark hair covering her eyes, Van Etten evoked a downtown punk feel, and more often than not, her music went that way too. Although she seemed flummoxed by her surroundings during between-song banter, Van Etten was confident in her music. The slow organ intro of opener “All I Can” built into a fist-pumping rock song, and festival curator Aaron Dessner lent his guitar handiwork to the herky-jerky rhythms of “Magic Chords”, accompanied by Van Etten’s sultry vocals with just a touch of raspiness. -Jake Cohen
The Walkmen
Lately it seems like all the press surrounding The Walkmen’s upcoming album, Heaven, makes a point of highlighting their transition into rock band middle age. Sure, getting old sucks, but if their hour-long headlining set on Thursday night was any indication, don’t expect Hamilton Leithauser & co. to start buying shiny red Corvettes or sporting ponytails anytime soon. Album opener “We Can’t Be Beat” saw the band show off some three-part harmonies à la Fleet Foxes, only to glide seamlessly into a handful of newer tracks like “Heaven”, “Heartbreaker”, and “Southern Heart”. The most impressive moment came during what will likely prove to be Heaven’s centerpiece, “Line By Line”. Paul Maroon’s subtle guitar work gently pulsated back and forth with the calming effect of ocean waves on a cool summer night. Backed only by Leithauser’s road weary croon, the result was something that might just be the most beautiful piece of music the band has ever written.
In other places, Leithauser’s elastic vocals were stretched to their seemingly unending limits, always managing to fall on the right side of the fence between screaming and singing. It was wild how, while their sound has taken leaps and bounds in the last 10 years, Leithauser’s voice sounded like it hadn’t aged a day. For their encore, they pulled out the often requested but seldom performed classic off 2002’s Everyone Who Pretended to Like Me Is Gone, “We’ve Been Had”. Introduced as “the first song we ever wrote” (great, now I feel old), it was the cherry on top of an already solid set. Watching, it was hard not to ask yourself: How many other bands out there could get away with a whole set consisting of only one song from their earlier (and more celebrated) LPs? The Walkmen have settled into quite the groove with their stark yet serene new brand of post-punk, but it helps me sleep a little easier knowing that they still can kick ass and take names when the opportunity beckons. -Bryant Kitching
Photography by Stephanie Berger.
Friday, May 4th
Victoire
Missy Mazzoli was one of the more ubiquitous figures of Crossing Brooklyn Ferry. Sharon Van Etten sang one of her songs, JACK Quartet played one of her pieces, and she presented an entire set with her all-female chamber group, Victoire, consisting of violin, clarinet, keyboards, vocals, and a double bass. Mazzoli sticks to a somewhat consistent form: Begin with slowly unfolding repetitive melodies, add in an underlying rhythmic drive from strings and keys, then build to an expressive full-group peak. While her rhythms vary, her harmonic language is somewhat limited, utlitizing a kind of pan-consonance that works with her minimalist textures but remains somewhat formulaic. The best moment in her set, the penultimate piece, broke that mold by climaxing in strident dissonant chords, releasing the tension with cool consonance. -Jake Cohen
So Percussion
Eight tuned bongos in a straight line meant one thing: Part One of Steve Reich’s Drumming, his epic 1971 percussion opus. The iconic piece has become something of a signature work for So Percussion, partially because they are just so damn good at playing it. The hypnotic phasing technique — where one drummer slowly speeds up the rhythm so that it sounds “out of phase” until suddenly creating a new composite rhythm — is all over Drumming, and So Percussion effortlessly handled the complexities of the piece. Oscar Bettison’s Apart for chromatic tuning forks was an interesting but tedious interlude following the opening onslaught of rhythm, but the closing piece, Glenn Kotche’s Drumkit Quartets, blasted the seated audience away like those old Maxell tape ads. Four unison drum kits assaulted the crowd with a metal-esque beat full of irregular meters and accents, while the middle movements from the Wilco drummer and composer explored random arrays of metallic noise, bells, and sirens. -Jake Cohen
Tyondai Braxton
Sitting cross-legged on a raised pedastal amidst an army of pedals, controllers, and a MacBook, the former Battles guitarist crafted a noisy 45-minute set of intricate rhythmic patterns and driving electronic beats that were slow to unfold and change. Braxton utilized his typical practice of creating expansive loops, but a rather uniform synthesized sound remained somewhat flat, while the loops themselves weren’t dynamic enough for my tastes. Still, Braxton wins big for trying out one of the more electronic compositions of the weekend, and there were occasional moments in his improvised soundscapes where everything clicked (literally and figuratively). -Jake Cohen
Sinkane
Taking a break from Tyondai Braxton, I wandered into the BAM Café to hear a smooth, supremely danceable sound, with interweaving guitar parts and a compositional style that reminded me of my favorite segments from Pink Floyd’s Meddle. Combining ’70s rock grooves with Afrobeat, funk, and soul, Sinkane (aka Ahmed Gallab) was the pleasant surprise of the weekend. The Sudanese singer and guitarist played a blowout set, combining psychedelic rock songs with a clean Afrobeat guitar tone and driving indie-disco beats. Sinkane was the first of several bands to kick out the jams, so to speak, in the BAM Café, moving the festival slowly from introspective art compositions towards full-on dancefest. -Jake Cohen
The Antlers
I like to imagine The Antlers had a pre-show huddle where they decided to use this homecoming show as an opportunity to be more aggressive on stage. The band used their arguably short timeslot to prove that after about a year, the tunes from Burst Apart have achieved their ultimate arrangements. Much like the live versions of songs from Hospice, the set of almost entirely Burst Apart tunes took on the form of extended, post-rock shells. The Antlers decided to present a heavier style that bore awesome results: Darby Cicci went bonkers turning knobs, vocoding his voice, and stomping bass pedals for “Parantheses”, becoming a little like an organ-grinding Jonny Greenwood. Peter Silberman strayed from his typical playing style of simply brushing over strings for some atmosphere in favor of strumming that was more like punching his strings. -Michael Zonenashvili
Buke and Gase
There’s nothing to prepare you for just how much sound Arone Dyer and Aron Sanchez are able to produce from two quirky homemade instruments. These noise-rock darlings from Brooklyn craft intricate songs with a bevy of foot percussion and heavy electronic processing on their instruments, yet their music always retains a touch of the raw acoustic sound, untouched by effects. Dyer’s voice, captivating and elusive, was doubled or tripled with digital effects, matching her engrossing stage presence with a sound that belies her petite size. Their set consisted of all new songs, grounded in simple pop/folk forms but full of complex rhythms and angular melodies that never feel too progressive or out there. -Jake Cohen
St. Vincent
Hands down Annie Clark stole the show Friday night. No performer had a spunkier or more dominating stage presence, oozing sexiness but with a healthy dose of the oddball in her frequent tiny backwards steps. And at a festival overflowing with heady music made for sitting and thinking, St. Vincent was clearly for dancing and kicking ass. That’s not to say that their instrumental prowess or Clark’s considerable compositional talents weren’t on display, either. Her set, mostly drawn from her standout 2011 LP Strange Mercy, featured plenty of metrical tricks, as on the contorted chorus of “Chloe in the Afternoon”, as well as noisy assemblages of synthesizer during the verses of “Cheerleader”.
More than anything, St. Vincent played with a drive, intensity, and a full-on punk attitude that you don’t necessarily get from listening to their album. I had heard rumors that they put on a totally kickass live show, but that doesn’t even begin to describe the level they took things Friday night. Clark is more than a talented singer and composer, she’s also a virtuoso guitarist, jumping from arena rock strumming to careful leads and solos, all while bathed in a fuzzy distortion. Not content to just run through their songs, Clark climbed into the standing crowd in the orchestra pit and crowd surfed for “Krokodil”, their Record Store Day headbanger single that is more 1970s punk than 2010s indie. -Jake Cohen
DJ Sets (Chris Keating of Yeasayer and DJ Joakim)
Annie Clark finally got butts moving, and while much of the festival attendees were content to go home afterwards, a core crew of a few hundred partiers were compelled to keep it going in the BAM Café, which had transformed fully from chamber music salon to rock venue to dance club. Yeasayer’s Chris Keating spun ’80s and ’90s dance hits mixed in with trance and house beats, often finding completely novel combinations of tracks like his mashup of Beyonce’s “Single Ladies” and Technotronic’s “Pump Up the Jam”, creatively reinterpreting the rhythmic orientation of Beyonce’s vocal tag line. With the passing of Adam Yauch earlier that day, a number of Beastie Boys tributes were met with raucous crowd approval, including a remix of “Intergalactic” and an untouched version of “Sure Shot”. Perhaps the best part, though, was witnessing the massive hipster dance party that was lurking underneath the reserved façade seen during earlier acts. Clearly there was a faction of the audience who needed to let loose, and despite getting yelled at to “sit down and stop dancing” during St. Vincent, I more than made up for it late night. -Jake Cohen
Photography by Rebecca Greenfield.
Saturday, May 5th
Caveman
Caveman exudes a “Hell yeah, we’re from Brooklyn” attitude in every way, and their enthusiasm for playing BAM was endearing. While that enthusiasm may have leaked into their set to make their harmonies richer, and make their woozy folk-rock a little woozier, something bugged me. I’m not sure which (probably) indie-rock group started the trend of the obligatory floor-tom, but it has evolved from an exciting set-improving tool to an instrument that simply takes up space. Caveman had a member who existed for the sole purpose of occasionally bopping said floor tom, and sometimes jazzing things up by hitting the rim. While their set was a nice start to the music in the “big room”, it might have been a little better sans the indie self-indulgence that is the singular floor-tom player. -Michael Zonenashvili
My Brightest Diamond + yMusic
yMusic must practice a hell of a lot, making their umpteenth appearance of the weekend, this time to make My Brightest Diamond’s live show a bit more dramatic opera and bit less rock-opera. Their classical chamber-pop combined with Shara Worden’s operatic croon to realize the theatrical potential of the venue, putting the “opera” back into Gilman Opera House. My Brightest Diamond utilized the collaboration to the fullest, drawing from yMusic’s ability to take classical technicality and give it a pop tinge. With a set leaning heavily on 2011’s All Things Will Unwind, Worden combined borderline interpretive dance, costuming, and stage props, including an instance of adorably exclaiming “I forgot my snow!” before showering the audience in confetti. -Michael Zonenashvili
Atlas Sound
Not unfamiliar with ramblings and musings that are as much performance art as his own psychedelic folk, Bradford Cox seemed humbled and reserved for most of his intimate Atlas Sound set. He constantly voiced how much of an honor it was to be playing at BAM, and even with a relatively short slot by his standards, Cox unmasked both his fractured demons and angels on stage alone and bare. Using solely his guitar and arsenal of pedals, pieces from last year’s Parallax such as “Te Amo” and “Modern Aquatic Nightsongs” became both naked compositions and noisy behemoths, providing a near-religious experience for his captivated audience; clearly, the man is revered in Brooklyn, and for good reason. -David DiLillo
Beirut
While any jaded Brooklynite may think a run-in with Zachary Condon is an unremarkable experience, the people brushing up against me throughout the show definitely thought otherwise. I overheard people of various accents from French to Middle Eastern exclaiming how they were so unbelievably excited to see Beirut. Whether it was their first or fifteenth time seeing the band, fans were treated to a confident blend of songs that not only drew from the bands various records but from various cultures. When Condon said “Happy Cinco De Mayo” right before “The Shrew”, it may have been a joke, but the hip-moving upright bassline and dual trumpet assault of the song’s crescendo was more evocative of Mexico than any Corona-sponsored holiday.
Not even the biggest proto-hipster could ever verify Beirut’s authenticity by saying “Yeah, I’m a huge fan of Balkan Folk.” I grew up listening to Georgian folk music in my parents’ car on long drives, and when Beirut played “Cocek”, a live-only instrumental, I was brought back to those car rides. The band is not just an experiment in different ethnic sounds combined with pop-sensibilities, but an authentic amalgam of these sounds and influences into a live show.
While normally touring with a couple of horn players, Condon brought out a full-on brass army for their return home. At any point there were at least two trumpets (fine, one’s a flugelhorn), two trombones, and either french horn or tuba to make every “brass drop” a turning point in the tune. Whether during the climax of “Santa Fe” or the hook of “Nantes” the brass sections took center-stage. Although some live shows have a tacked on horn section that just seems like a nice addition, Beirut’s horn playing is essential to their sound, and at BAM it was as powerful as ever. When a band comes on stage and empties their spit valves before the first song even starts, and enough saliva comes out of the trumpet to fill a water bottle, you know they’ve been working those instruments to perfection. -Michael Zonenashvili
Phi Slamma Jamma AKA Will Butler, Jeremy Gara, Tim Kingsbury, and Richard Reed Parry
While my legs weren’t last-day-of-Bonnaroo tired, Crossing Brooklyn Ferry’s three days had done a bit of a number on me. I was ready to leave after Beirut, but then The National tweeted that there was to be a secret performance at the small BAM Café stage at one AM. I thought “Secret National show? I have to be there!” and headed up to dance to Pat Mahoney and Nancy Whang’s DJ set for an hour (worth it, trust me) before a band advertised as “Phi Slamma Jamma” took the stage. While they might not have been The National, the set was definitely just as good. Will Butler, Jeremy Gara, Tim Kingsbury, and Richard Reed Parry of Arcade Fire fame took the stage under the fake moniker, and began a set of pretty impressive covers. From REM’s “Wolves” to the Flying Burrito Brothers’ “Wheels” the four piece were the most famous wedding band the crowd would ever see. With Sufjan Stevens and Local Natives dancing behind me, I was actually hooked by their covers more than the fact that most of Arcade Fire had inexplicably shown up for a “secret” set upstairs. They even brought up the Dessner twins for the Everly Brothers’ “Bird Dog”. Most importantly, they played Devo’s “Uncontrollable Urge”. Why’s that most important? Because it was (most of) Arcade Fire playing Devo’s “Uncontrollable Urge”. -Michael Zonenashvili
Photography by Mike Benigno
Gallery
Photographers: Mike Benigno, Stephanie Berger, Rebecca Greenfield
