Once in a great while, a new band comes out of nowhere that immediately demands attention. Many will say "I've heard it all before," but somehow this band manages to do it differently.

Back in January, I met a band playing under the name, Frankpollis. Although they received a bit of press attention from SPIN.com and abroad from NYLON Japan, they were still relatively unknown. A close friend, formerly of Columbia Records, signed on to manage them and invited me down for an early look. These guys were all in their young 20s, but performed with a maturity well beyond their years.

Immediately, I booked photos with their management. So rarely do I get to work with a talent this early in the game, and it's been exciting documenting everything — capturing their evolution.

In the few months that followed, they evolved into Your Nature, the Brooklyn band that promises to be one of the most sought after new acts this year. Their sound is a unique brand of Berlin-era Bowie proto punk gone psychedelic prog rock à la Dark Side Of The Moon-era Pink Floyd with a Pavement undertone — all without sounding the least bit retro and with a fresh approach and energy that is unmistakably now.

Your Nature booked a special residency at The Annex, each Wednesday in May. See these guys now and be in the know early.

The Annex schedule is as follows:

YOUR NATURE residency at The Annex this May
5/16 with Wildyaks
5/13 with The Extraordinaires and Invisible Hand
5/20 with Space Camp
5/27 with Real Estate
$7. Doors 8 PM.
Open Vodka Bar 9 PM till Gone.

Listen to Your Nature at myspace.com/yournature.

Labels: band, Brooklyn, music, New York, residency, The Annex, Your Nature

I just wrapped up a shoot with Knoxville, Tennessee's indie hopefuls, the Tenderhooks.

They are currently unsigned, but not for long.



Check out the recent write up in their hometown paper, Metro Pulse here, and their music on their MySpace.

Labels: band, Knoxville, music, Tenderhooks

I recently wrapped up a shoot with Jukebox The Ghost this week.

I first saw these guys with Ra Ra Riot late last year, and was quite impressed -- especially considering I am not so keen on piano rock.


Test shot with Jesse

Here's a sneak peak of what came of it:


I'll post the photos soon.

Their debut album, Let Live & Let Ghosts, is in stores Tuesday. In the meantime, download the Jukebox The Ghost "Good Day" (REMIX) from their MySpace page here.

Labels: band, indie, Jukebox The Ghost, music, This Side Up Sounds

"Time To Pretend", the new video from new New York band, MGMT, will undoubtedly influence at least a few music videos and photo shoots. The cheap/chic, dirty/sexy, hyper-psychedelic production values are really quite beautiful.

See for yourselves:



I love it.

Labels: alternative, art, band, Columbia Records, electronic, indie, MGMT, music, photography, Time To Pretend, video