20 Great Shows To See in NYC This December - Oh My Rockness

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20 Great Shows To See in NYC This December

With Bon Iver, Kurt Vile, The Magnetic Fields, Parquet Courts, Justice, Kevin Devine, Andrew Bird, The Drums, Twin Peaks, Islands, Cymbals Eat Guitars, Modern Baseball, Animal Collective, Guided by Voices and more.

November 29, 2016

Written by Patrick McNamara

Here are 20 good shows you can / should see in NYC this month.

Please stay till the end because that's when I'll blob about all the dope New Year's Eve shows.

Welcome to December.

I luv U.

20 Good Shows To See in NYC This Month

December 2016 A.D.

1.The Magnetic Fields play two shows at BAM on Friday, December 2 and Saturday, December 3 (tickets). They'll play songs from their new album “50 Song Memoir" and hopefully some old ones too (like the jam I posted below that I love and could probably listen to 69 times in a row). Both shows sold-out. Stephin Merritt is the luckiest guy in downtown Brooklyn.


2. Cyndi Lauper hosts her annual holiday bash at Beacon Theater on Saturday, December 3rd (tickets) and Sharon Van Etten and Billy Corgan and other assorted peeps from all sorts of musical walks of life will also play this thing so this show makes the list for its weird wonderful randomness alone. Oh, and also because “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun" is one of the greatest pop songs of all time.


3. Mannequin Pussy headlines Brooklyn Bazaar on Saturday, December 3 (tickets). Listen to their brand new album if you have 17 minutes to spare. It rules. Wait. I'll find it for you and post it below so you can just blast it right now. Hang on. OK. It's there now. Welcome to the next 17 minutes of the rest of your life.

4. The annual Rock Lottery is Saturday at Knitting Factory (tickets) and it's always a fun thing. It's slightly complicated but here's the dealio. Members of a bunch of bands (many from bands you've probably heard of) form new bands on the spot (it's a lottery who goes with who, you see) and they have a few hours to come up with new songs for their new band and then they'll play them for paying people (maybe even you) later that night. Doesn't that sound fun? I thought so!



5. Bon Iver starts his five show run at Pioneer Works on Saturday, December 3. His friends call him Bonny Bear but u can call him God. The thing about tickets to see Bon Bon... they're almost always gone gone. All of these shows are sold-out but remember that old phrase, how's it go? "Where there's a will - there's a pay."


6. Ilana Glazer (u may have seen her and Abbi Jacobson's smash hit situational comedy programme full of spot-on humour about a variety of life's common maladies on the telly box!) does stand-up (w/ some pals... but not Abbi... I don't think… I don't know... I just blob here) at Littlefield on Sunday, December 4 (tickets).


7. Kevin Devine and his goddamn band play Irving Plaza on Thursday, December 8 (w/ Pinegrove and Petal) and guess what? We're presenting this show! You wanna know why? Because Kevin Devine rules! Pinegrove and Petal too! Come hang. This one won't let you down. So help me blob (tickets).


8. The Drums headline a big time benefit for ACLU at Saint Vitus on Thursday, December 8 (tickets). It Will (Ian Williams from Don Cab / Battles / Storm & Stress / one of my musical heroes) also plays. Polica DJ/s along with other special spinning guests. A good cause, this one. Fun, too!


9. Tiny Moving Parts play Brooklyn Night Bazaar on Friday, December 9th (tickets). This super dope math punk pop band released one of my favorite albums of 2016 A.D. without a doubt. I've listened to it literally countless times.. Go ahead and blast it now. It's so good! Can't wait for this one. You can come too, if you want.


10. Chicago's Twin Peaks play Webster Hall on Friday, December 9 (tickets). A good band. Go Bulls. I love weed.


11. Parquet Courts play Knockdown Center on Saturday, December 10 (tickets). You know who else likes parquet courts? The Boston Celtics. More on this good band later. Gotta go run at get me some eats now. It's not easy to blob when u r stoned / starving.


12. Islands play their classic post apocalyptic indie pop album “Return To The Sea" (now ten years young) in full at Webster Hall on Saturday, December 10 (tickets). What was 2006 even LIKE??? Also, do u believe in unicorns? I kinda do.


13. Andrew Bird* plays Carnegie Hall on Monday, December 12 (tickets) because he practiced practiced practiced. Also, I had no idea he was in Squirrel Nut Zippers until I was doing professional research (Wikipedia foreva!!!!) for this really great feature. Also, I've never listened to the Squirrel Nut Zippers.

* no relation to Larry Bird who used to play on parquet courts


14. Kristin Kontrol (fka Dee Dee from Dum Dum Girls) plays in-the-round at (le) poisson rouge on Tuesday, December 13 (tickets) and if you ever have the chance to see a super good artist perform while surrounded by a bunch of chill people you should take advantage and seize the circle.


15. The excellent record label Run For Cover is doing a big time blowout at Webster Hall on Wednesday, December 14 w/ Modern Baseball, Basement, Citizen, Turnover, Nothing, Alex G and even more dope bands I'm not at liberty to blob about right now because I don't want to write all of their names out (tickets). This is gonna be a good one!


16. Jimmy Eat World play Webster Hall on Saturday, December 17 (tickets). There are a million reasons to go see this band but I won't get into it. OK. I'll get into the first reason. #1. They rule. If you need more convincing than that, you're on your own. You're either gonna go to this show or not go to this show, regardless of what I say here. I am but one small instrument.


17. The Front Bottoms host their annual “Champagne Jam" at Webster Hall on Sunday, December 18. Guess who's playing this thing? No, wait. Don't guess. I'll just tell you! The Front Bottoms (obviously) and Screaming Females and Jank and Diet Cig and some more good bands are playing this thing. Cheers!


18. Kurt Vile plays Terminal 5 on Wednesday, December 28 (tickets) and did you know this is currently the #1 most popular upcoming show on the blob? Now you know!

“Have you heard the new Kurt Vile album?"

“No, but I love it."

-music industry small talk


19. Cymbals Eat Guitars play Mercury Lounge on Friday, December 30 (tickets). Please note: they are one of the best bands playing the live game today. I mean that, man. So help me blob. If I were you I'd go see what will surely be one of the last dope shows of 2016 A.D.


20. Justice does a DJ set at Pier 94 (it's by Terminal 5) on Friday, December 30 (tickets) and considering they came all the way from FRANCE to push some buttons / switch some knobs / pull some levers / for you, the LEAST you can do is consider going to this and dancing your ass off. RANNNNNNNDY!!!


******Special Digital Bonus Section: New Year's Eve Shows

F*** YOU 2016 A.D!!!

Here are some good NYC NYE shows.

Say good riddance to a (mostly) terrible year in style.

Animal Collective DJ's Brooklyn Bowl (late) (tickets).

Titus Andronicus plays Brooklyn Night Bazaar (tickets).

Kamasi Washington plays Brooklyn Bowl (early) (tickets).

Guided by Voices play Music Hall of Williamsburg (tickets).

The Hotelier play Mercury Lounge (tickets).

Rainer Maria play Saint Vitus (tickets).

Other notable shows in NYC this month = Mothers and Patio at Brooklyn Night Bazaar + The Hold Steady at Brooklyn Bowl + Foxygen at Rough Trade + Jerry Seinfeld at Beacon Theater + Gary Clark Jr. at Carnegie Hall + The Blind Shake at Our Wicked Lady + Seu Jorge at Town Hall + Louis C.K. at MSG + Earthless at Saint Vitus + Chairlift at Good Room + Tamaryn at Baby's All Right + Thursday at Starland Ballroom

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