Written by Patrick McNamara

There are good shows this week and there are bad shows this week. Which kind of show do you prefer we discuss together? If you vote for bad, perhaps you’d be more comfortable procrastinating on some other leading alt music blob. If you vote for good, I like your style and I’m happy to slide over and make some room for you because in the end, goodness always wins. Every. Single. Time.

These Are. The Best Shows. This Week. So help me BLOB.

Forever and Ever.

Amen.

Thursday - February 26th, 2015 A.D.

GOOD NIGHT! (not to be confused with GOODNIGHT - which is what this year’s Snore By Snore West Fest is shaping up to be - but not really - I just wanted an excuse to link to our SXSW site - please tell me not my faults for I already know them.)

YES. Sleater-Kinney play Terminal 5 (and tomorrow too). Both of these shows are sold-out because *it’s Sleater-Kinney* so I hope you have a ticket or don’t care about Sleater-Kinney. And if you don’t care about Sleater-Kinney, I guess I don’t always 1000000% get you but it’s cool. You do you. One world. One love. Imagine. Peace. Hope.

Swami John Reis (of Drive Like The Crypt of Hot Snakes) & The Blind Shake (of The Blind Shake) and The So So Glos play Mercury Lounge. Careful readers may have noticed the band played last night at Saint Vitus too. Please be advise - no matter what their professional CV suggests - punk rock this is NOT. Hey, Mama! I wanna go surfing!

Legendary underground experimental noise sorcerers Swans play Bowery Ballroom. If you have never been to a Swans show it is a TRIP. But be sure to look alive out there and never EVER turn your back to the pit.

Euphoric instrumental post-rockers This Will Destroy You play Saint Vitus (and Friday too). There shall be climaxes. There shall be crescendos. There shall be shimmers. There shall be Explosions in the Sky meets Mogwai......... a few years later.

Yung Lean plays a FREE show (if you RSVP’d) at Music Hall of Williamsburg and during the darkest hour of my worst day I sometimes feel like I don’t care what a teenage rapper from Sweden has to say.

Other notable shows = Solids at Cake Shop + ONWE at Palisades + Heeney at Pianos + PC Worship at Shea Stadium + The Gaslight Anthem at Webster Hall

SEE ALL OF OUR THURSDAY PICKS

Friday - February 27th, 2015 A.D.

San Francisco’s The Dodos play Music Hall of Williamsburg. It’s hard to believe this duo has been banging out the magic for ten years now. Ten. Years. Time, you tricky, tricky dick.

The forever excellent Radical Dads celebrate their new album with a party at Shea Stadium and they invited Dead Stars + Life Size Maps + Left & Right to help them celebrate. 4 good bands - 1 bill. I think you know what you need to do.

DFA + NYC’s Museum of Love (not to be confused with NYC’s The Museum of Sex) play Bowery Ballroom with Oneida (an original Rockness fav) and Blondes. Let’s get dance-y. Let’s get drone-y. Let’s cast our fate to the whims of the wind, y’all.

Other notable shows = Sleater-Kinney at Terminal 5 + This Will Destroy You and Sannhet at Saint Vitus + Obey City (FREE) at Baby’s All Right + Have Mercy (FREE) at Brooklyn Night Bazaar + 2:54 and Honeyblood at Rough Trade

SEE ALL OF OUR FRIDAY PICKS

Saturday - February 28th, 2015 A.D.

It’s hard to fuck up a free show but tonight at Brooklyn Night Bazaar goes above and beyond. Wolf Alice + Sunflower Bean + Lazyeyes + Palehound all would like to play their good songs for you…... for FREE. Is that more than you’re prepared to spend? I. Think. Not.

Chicago’s Disappears play Rough Trade and though they have received a lot of love over the years I’m still gonna go ahead and proclaim them as one of the more underrated bands out there. If I didn’t make such proclamations now and then what’s the point of having a music blob? But this time, I mean it. Shimmering post-something GOODNESS.

Murder By Death + O’Death play Bowery Ballroom (and Sunday at Music Hall of Williamsburg). Thou shalt not kill.

Other notable shows = Kristeen Young at Baby’s All Right + Jukebox the Ghost at Irving Plaza + Screaming Females (twice) at Knitting Factory + LVL UP at Shea Stadium + Demetri Martin at Town Hall + The Casual Dots at Union Pool

SEE ALL OF OUR SATURDAY PICKS

Sunday - March 1st, 2015 A.D.

MARCH! WE DID IT! YAY! WE DID IT! WINTER’S OVER! JK. Everybody knows March is the biggest fake-out. But we’re getting closer to the goodness, girl. Oh, so much closer to the goodness of spring.

The Juliana Hatfield Three (and Potty Mouth!) play Bowery Ballroom. And unlike the character in Juliana’s most famous song, I like my sister - she’s 10000% not a bitch. I should really call her more than once a year.

L.A.’s Corners play Baby’s All Right and they play post-something synth punk that’s definitely not recommended for fans of circles. Way to go out this week with a LAME, Blobness. LAME LAME YOU’RE DEAD HOLDING YOUR HEAD.

Other notable shows = HBOGO + Amazon Prime + Hulu Plus + Netflix

SEE ALL OF OUR SUNDAY PICKS

Thanks for reading all the way to the end again this week. Even though I wrote this feature in record time please remember that these recommendations are real and last forever...and everything I do... I do it…. 4 U.

One World. One Love. Imagine. Peace. Hope.

Forever and Ever.

Amen.