Acts to See at CMJ 2012

It’s CMJ time once again: one week of madness in which everyone’s band, publicist, manager, and mother take over New York to conduct “business.” Here’s our list of acts to catch if you’re in NYC this weekend. Check out the list below and be sure to check out our party tomorrow at noon.

Action Bronson

Don’t you dare care him the white Ghostface. Queens native Action Bronson is the meanest emcee in New York and he’s managed to prove it and step up his wittiness — and cooking references — release after release. Grab his latest tape with producer Party Supplies, Blue Chips, if you don’t believe me.

Bronsolinio will be playing Complex’s Judgment Night at the House of Vans alongside The Alchemist and Paul Banks from Interpol. We’ll be there.

-Evan Kaloudis

Attic Abasement

With album titles like Don’t Hate Fuck and Dancing Is Depressing it’s evident that Rochester, NY based songwriter Michael Reinheimer has downer witticisms to spare. Paired with his intricate nylon stringed guitar arrangements, Attic Abasement’s live show will surely be something to behold. As alumni of our first Bandcamping feature, you should’ve checked out Reinheimer’s David Berman-esque stanzas already, but if you haven’t already, get on that. Despite not having released material over the last two years, Reinheimer’s project is still something worthy of excitement.

Catch them at: check out our party at Public Assembly on Wednesday, 10/17, with Mac DeMarco, Dent May, Teen Suicide, The Deloreans and Poor Lily [Full disclosure: We had a big hand in booking this show. See you there!]

-Colin Joyce

Andy Stott

After coming to prominence with his diptych of 2011 efforts, We Stay Together and Passed Me By, Andy Stott is poised to release his next full length, Luxury Problems in November. “Numb,” the only cut we’ve heard from that release thus far, finds Stott further expanding his brilliant vocal sampling, creating a mass of voices that rivals Juliana Barwick’s manic sampling over his typically claustrophobic beats. It’ll certainly be interesting to hear these beats over a proper soundsystem and there could really be no better location for such a performance than the geodesic dome at MoMA PS1.

Catch him at: MoMA PS1 on Saturday, 10/20, with Doldrums and Chairlift.

-Colin Joyce

DIIV

While CMJ is more a festival for discovering the latest and greatest, there’s always room to squeeze in a set from your favorites. I’ve seen DIIV four times over the last year, and each set somehow still surprises me with its bouts of krauty noise supplanting the sleepy tunes that defined Oshin. DIIV’s submerged tunes may seem unlikely to inspire much crowd response, but between the extra oomph that these tracks pick up in a live setting and the enthusiasm of underage kids for Captured Tracks bands, there’s been known to be a mosh or two at DIIV shows. If you can squeeze a spare moment into your Thursday or Friday schedule, they’re certainly worth checking out.

Catch them at: Union Square Ballroom, Thursday, 10/18; Music Hall of Williamsburg, Thursday, 10/18; Villain, Friday, 10/19.

-Colin Joyce

Flying Lotus

It’s no secret that we here at BPM are big fans of Mr Ellison, both as an absurdly talented musician and one of the most thoroughly entertaining characters operating in music today. But as good as Until The Quiet Comes is (really fucking good), part of FlyLo’s magic is his versatility in the live arena. Often the most excitable person in the building, his role is multifaceted: fleet-fingered technical wizard, genre-splicing party DJ and exuberant hype man, unpredictable to the point of infrequent sloppiness, but never anything less than grin-inducing. Oh, and then there’s the customary Waka blowout finale. All round badman.

-Gabriel Szatan

Foxes in Fiction

A Recent Brooklyn transplant from Toronto, Warren Hildebrand plays his first CMJ as a New York resident, taking to the stage at Bushwick DIY space La Sala. Hildebrand’s largely instrumental bedroom approximations of an underwater Deerhunter should be an interesting midweek comedown at one of Portals’ two showcases.

Catch him at: La Sala, Wednesday 10/17 with Cemetaries, Headache, M. Huge, and Native Eloquence.

-Colin Joyce

GZA

Okay, might as well be honest: I don’t know the Wu as well as I perhaps should (i.e. inside-out). So I’m desperately trying to learn a few choice lines from Liquid Swords in time for the Genius’ CMJ show – with a staggering support bill featuring Killer Mike and Nathan from Wavves’s vanity side project – to distract from my inevitable awkward mumble-rap of the remaining 98% of the material. Can I hold my own alongside overweight 34-year-old New York nerds who know the record backwards and pretend I didn’t hear it for the first time three weeks ago as a result of a will.i.am namedrop? Unlikely, but it should be a sick night nonetheless.

-Gabriel Szatan

Jerome LOL

Putting aside their atrocious moniker, LOL Boys quietly furrowed a path as a fresh voice in electronic music, not only through their own productions – ‘Changes’ remains a standout from this year – but also remixes of Avicii, Carly Rae and Radiohead. It was a shame that the duo called it quits as the summer wound down but both have vowed to continue making music and playing out. Saturday’s Glasslands show with Unicorn Kid and Mike Simonetti (of Italians Do It Better fame) should be the perfect time for Jerome to capitalise on the hype afterglow. Sweaty party vibes guaranteed.

-Gabriel Szatan

Le1f

Calling it: dude is the most interesting rapper in the game right now (sorry Danny Brown). He may not be the most technically proficient, the best lyricist or the complete package yet, but his energy is infectious on record, which can only mean in the flesh it will be absolutely raucous. His flamboyancy and ability to change gears into breakneck pace with no forewarning, coupled with an excellent ear for beats, mark the man as one to watch; literally, judging by the video for “Wut,” it will be hard to take your eyes off him.

-Gabriel Szatan

Mac DeMarco

Another favorite of ours here at BPM Towers, Mac will be playing our Wednesday afternoon showcase, bringing his homespun, bittersweet A-game to Public Assembly. With both Rock ‘N Roll Night Club and 2 under his belt for the year, alongside countless other tapes and limited edition releases, he’s definitely going to be a highlight of the week ahead – indeed, he’s playing absolutely everywhere. But you should definitely come jam with us. It’s our inaugural event, 18+ and I will personally be on the wheels of steel, probably using the Darth Vader theme as Mac’s walk-on music. Result.

-Gabriel Szatan

Twerps

After an outstanding self-titled full length debut on Underwater Peoples, the jangly-twee-rockers behind Twerps have a trio of CMJ dates lined up, capped off with a doubleheader on Saturday night. Their upbeat tunes seem a proper candidate for live expansion, so it’ll be interesting to see how their live setup looks.

Catch them at: Public Assembly, Friday, 10/19; Shea Stadium, Saturday, 10/20 with Julian Lynch, Andrew Cedarmark and more; 92Y, Saturday, 10/20 with Mac DeMarco, Kilo Kish, Sky Ferreira and more.

-Colin Joyce