I Love DeLeon

Moving...

2008-07-28T21:44:00.003-04:00

I've decided to take this blog over to MySpace for to simplify me life and keep more of my digital belongings in the same drawer.

I find MySpace to be aesthetically disadvantaged and potentially yesterday's socks, so I reserve the right to move back over here if I wanna. This will be like my vacation home where I can always run to should my primary residence become flooded with space spiders.

Nonetheless, that's where my blog action is going down, so checky checkit out!

The feed for the MySpace blog is this clickable sentence.

This one is for the regular blog URL

And this one is simply for the MySpace page.

I Celebrate Brooklyn Daily

2008-07-07T12:18:00.004-04:00

Just in case word hasn't gotten to you, we will be playing Celebrate Brooklyn on July 20th as part of JDub's 5th Anniversary blow out/mind meld. Golem, Michael Showalter and Sway Machinery will be on the bill with us.

I am pretty excited about this gig. Besides my affinity for the concert series in general there is a particular significance to being asked to perform there. This is also the 5 year anniversary of the summer I spent working in the Two Boots tent at Celebrate Brooklyn. That's right, when the boys at JDub were dreaming up this wonderful outlet for Jewish music I was slinging BBQ chicken to hungry concert goers dreaming of how I was going to get up on that stage. Well 5 years later our respective dreams have converged.

For these reasons and more I hope you can come help us celebrate.

In other news, I've set up an imeem page. I heard that's the thing to do. The playlist is at the bottom of this page. It's got a few DeLeon tracks as well as some tunes that have been making me happy of late. Enjoy!

LA Pics

2008-07-03T13:46:00.008-04:00

Thanks to everyone who boogied down with us at BCI this past week. We had fun with you guys. Now we're back on the east coast and I thought I'd share a few pics...
a. only a band this classy has the limo stop off for an "animal style" burger at In N Out

b. to make up for that we went to The Getty Center where we saw No Age perform.

c. dead mice can be served either on toast or in a pie at The Museum of Jurassic Technology.

d. opportunistic night band shot.

e. opportunistic strange tent shot.

More Notes From the Left Coast

2008-06-30T00:02:00.005-04:00

DeLeon is still out here in sunny California. It's been an eventful week, and a fairly museum heavy one. I've had my mind blown at the Museum of Jurassic Technology. It's oddness objectified and on display. Also caught the band No Age at a free show at The Getty Center. That's one impressive building, and I dug their set. Earlier in the week I took the guided tour at the Bhagavad Gita Museum. At that one, gorgeous and well lit dioramas walk you through the key motifs of Hare Krishnaism. The dioramas are so nicely done, they manage to transcend kitsch and just be good.

Other highlights included eating pupusas while watching the Euro Cup Finals, and drinking whiskey in Spike Jonze's beautiful house. We've only got a couple more days out here, so I'm gonna sign off and try to make the most of it.

Many good things to come once we head back east, including our performance at Celebrate Brooklyn and our Album's Release!

Live from LA

2008-06-25T05:47:00.002-04:00

We're a few days into our west coast odyssey and I'm sitting in an unusually attractive LA bar called Dinner Club M listening to music by Meryl Streep's son Henry. He sounds lovely. Earlier tonight we stopped by Hecuba's album release party at The Echo. Devendra Banhardt and Natalie Portman were in attendance as well. A little LA celeb spotting for ya.
I'm getting a better feel for this town, and am starting to see why people dig it, though I don't think I would ever get used to all the driving. I don't care how good the Mexican food is, having to drive to your morning cup of coffee just seems crazy.

Going Back To Cali (...er for the first time)

2008-06-17T21:16:00.003-04:00

Yup Yup. DeLeon is heading out to LA this weekend with a mission to spread our Sephardo-Cheer to the left coast. This will be our first show out there, so naturally we are feeling groovy.

The event we are flying out for is being billed as a "mega celebration", so it's got that going for it, which is nice. Full details can be found here.

The show is on Sunday June 22nd. Hope you can make it!

FYI we'll be bumming around LA all week, so if you happen to be hosting an all night BBQ-Pool Party-Roller Derby-Hootenanny-Carnival then make sure to let us know. We'd love to attend.

Brighton Beach Boardwalk Borscht

2008-05-25T20:38:00.000-04:00

Some days you have Borscht with a man who bills himself as the Sub-Zero Rabbi, and some days you don't. Today I did. Meet Rabbi Abraham Abraham.

Ya Se Fue

2008-05-12T17:11:00.006-04:00

Just got back from a great week on the road with Ozomatli. I neglected to take very many photos, cause I was too busy enjoying myself but I did take a few. If you have some, send 'em my way. Here's a shot of our respective touring vehicles. Just a reminder that we've got a way to go before we're serious business.

Thanks to all the Ozo fans who came out and showed us love. It was a good week for us, largely thanks to you. Not only did we get to rock with Ozo during their set, but we got to rock with G. Love and Slim Kid Tre from The Pharcyde too. Now I realize that The Pharcyde and ancient Sephardic folk songs might seems like disparate sounds, but I know "Bizarre Ride II The Pharcyde" backwards and front so it was a serious honor to share the stage with one of the guys who had a hand in it.
Here is a video of us doing our thing on stage during Ozomatli's closer "Como Ves" at the Irving Plaza show:

Concerts, Raves, Bread of Affliction

2008-04-21T20:16:00.004-04:00

It's been an exciting few weeks. I've seen some good shows since last checking in. Most notably Fleet Foxes, Boredoms, Yeasayer and Man Man. Fleet Foxes and Boredoms were especially memorable.
I also got a chance to hit up the Silent Rave in Union Square this past weekend. That was good clean fun. Cleaner than say, the pillow fight. I always enjoy a good dance party, but it was particularly nice to be able to dance to my own playlist amidst a group of other people oblivious to the tunes I was choosing. Included in my private DJ set were cuts by Manu Chao, Hallelujah Chicken Run Band, Circle, M.I.A., Animal Collective and some classic Forro. I couldn't stay too late however because I had to head to DC to see the folks and get my Seder on. Did I mention that I also got re-uncled this week? That's right, my bro and his wife gave birth to their 2nd daughter, Anna Juniper. Hooray!

NYC Pillow Fight 2008

2008-03-22T20:15:00.004-04:00

It was a day that wanted so badly to be the spring day it almost was. So the people of NY took it upon themselves to turn the sunshine into warmth. They formed a crowd to take advantage of their collective body heat. Then they flailed about to help generate and spread the warmth. To avoid any accidental injuries they padded their flailings with pillows. Many mistook the scene to be a massive pillow fight, but had they been "in the know" then they would have known it was an eco friendly plan to create heated outdoor public spaces. I was there, and so was J Ride. I can't speak for him, but I know I will be finding feathers in my hair for weeks. And not the kind that usually grow from my scalp.

"Rat vs. Bee! Rat vs. Bee!"

Happy Purim! - We Played Middle East w/Golem

2008-03-21T16:55:00.005-04:00

Hope you've had your fill of Hamentashen and Haman jeering this Purim. I could have gone for more Hamentashen personally, though I feel like I partook in an adequate amount of Haman jeering. We celebrated Purim in Boston last night at The Middle East with Golem, Yoni Gordon and a room full of party animals.
There was a minor debacle on our drive up there. My car refused to restart after stopping to refuel in Natick, but the situation resolved itself after about an hour of very limited and dull Natick sight-seeing, namely staring at the Mass Turnpike. Luckily we made it in time for soundcheck, so alls well that ends well. Except it ended similar to how it started. I got a flat tire in Queens on the drive home. Thankfully only half a block from a tire shop. Gotta love these outer boroughs. Dense with tire shops as they are.
Hey! Check out a few pictures from the show below. There's me and J Ride wearing masks, for Purim of course. And there's some audience. Can you see you? And there's J Ride, Kevin and I playing a song! Special thanks to Ken and his team of videographers for filming the show. I'll post some highlights once it's all edited up and mixed down.

We Played Southpaw w/Dengue Fever

2008-03-06T17:19:00.003-05:00

Thanks to everyone who came to the show last night at Southpaw. It was a sold out show and a real good time. I think if you take the total tally of texts and emails that the members of this band received in the last few days from distressed friends who neglected to buy tickets in advance for this show, you will come up with a number similar in vastness to the number 100. Fear not good friends, we shall play again in the neighborhood and we shall all rock as one.
Those of you who were there may have heard me mention from stage that it was an exciting day because we put the finishing touches on our mixes that morning. That first pic is me getting in my 'head space' moments before hitting the stage. And in the background is Dengue Fever singer Chhom Nimol getting her makeup together. Chhom, you looked fab.

If I could do it all over again, I'd sell more t-shirts. Seriously, we have sweet t-shirts.

And finally...Violins.

2008-02-14T17:33:00.004-05:00

Recording is complete. A couple guest appearances by some of my favorite musician friends and now on to mixing. Tim Fite lent his voice to help dramatically conclude a tale of domestic dispute. The father, always away at sea, leaves his wife and children back home, feeling abandoned and poor. The conversation ends when the man's mother proclaims "the ship of my son, may it never return." Filled with shame, she wishes him dead.

On a lighter note, the immensely talented Alicia Jo Rabins of Golem came by the "studio" to lay down some strings. She noted how apropos it is to be singing songs written on the eve of the Spanish Inquisition as bulldozers and dump trucks herald my expulsion just outside my window. Also if anyone can explain why when I took this photo it caused the recording to cut out for a minute, I'm curious to know.

New Brooklyn Show Added - Southpaw w/Dengue Fever

2008-02-04T11:42:00.000-05:00

I write from a space between two victories, one already in the books and one in my hopes. I want to take this break between "Super" days to announce a great upcoming show. We will be playing at Southpaw with Dengue Fever on Wednesday, March 5th, and I hope to see you, yes you specifically, there.

In other news, the recording part of the magical making an album process is nearing completion. Here are a couple shots from recent sessions. That's me laying down some banjo, and Ghostface Kevin laying down some brainwaves.

"There Goes an Asshole makes Nerve.com's top 20!

2008-01-16T12:01:00.000-05:00

This past summer I was able to get my hands on the security cam footage of some asshole stealing the tires from my bike that I had locked up in front of my apt. I edited it and wrote a song about it and put it on YouTube. Within weeks the video was featured on BoingBoing as well as numerous other blogs and took home first prize at Bike Shorts. 70,000 views later it was starting to feel like I might just have a viral video of my own. Well it's officially so, now that Nerve.com has released their Top 20 Viral Videos of 2007.

Sarah Harrison of Nerve.com writes:

Who among us has not had a bike stolen or vandalized? When Shank Bone Mystic, a Brooklyn-based musician, had the wheels from his bike taken, he was able to obtain footage from a nearby security camera that filmed the whole thing, including several passers-by who didn't see the theft-in-process, or noticed but didn't do anything. Shank Bone put his feelings to music and put the music on the footage, creating the universal lament "There Goes an Asshole."

(FYI, "Shank Bone Mystic" is an alias of mine that I've been performing under since freshman year of college.)

Well there it is, rubbing elbows with Obama Girl, Soulja Boy and 2 Girls 1 Cup. A most prestigious honor, and one I'm proud to have achieved.

Trumpet Day

2008-01-09T21:06:00.000-05:00

Today was trumpet day here at DeLeon Studio and Andrew the human bellows was in good form. Here is a shot of him in front of some very fancy soundproofing I call curtains. There is a ton of construction in my neighborhood right now because I live in an area affectionately referred to as "the footprint". These blocks are the proposed future home of the NJ Nets and a slew of other unfortunately designed high rises. I'm not sure what construction has begun. I think it involves the underground. Anyhow, it's noisy outside and as a result our completed record, will reveal the ambient sounds of urban progress if
given too close a listen.

Even though my neighbors have likely developed high thresholds for unwanted noise due to the constant parade of backhoes and dumptrucks, I thought it would be polite to tape the hexagonal notice you see in the 2nd photo to my door. The couple neighbors I ran into said they didn't mind in the least. Thanks neighbors. You'll be missed after the dismantling.

Making Banana Oreo Ice Cream

2008-01-06T16:51:00.000-05:00

So the other night, Kevin, Nikkia and I were hanging out and got it into our brains to make us some ice cream. We made a time lapse short film of that endeavor. Here it bees:

Happy New Year!

2008-01-01T19:15:00.000-05:00

Warwick Peace Retreaty

2007-12-29T12:01:00.000-05:00

The band played in Warick, NY last night at a UJR Winter Retreat. It was a little muddy loading in, and the mic made me sound "like Tom Waits" but we had a good time getting out of the city for a day and rocking Camp Kutz.
We helped ourselves to some well salted chicken soup, chicken, rice and broccoli before the show. I don't remember being all that sleepy but apparently, judging by this photo I fell asleep while preparing my food.

J Ride and I tweaking some gears.

We tried something new for "La Vida Do". J Ride sat up front and hammered away at his snare from there.

Did I mention that the citizens of Camp Kutz are not afraid of dancing? We took a short break from the set to engage in a dance circle, thereby nurturing that instinct.

After all was played and sung, we made some friends and hopefully some fans as well.

And Shawn Fogel (fellow LeeVee) joined us on stage for a Wooly Bully encore.

LeeVees Dancing Fan

2007-12-27T19:06:00.000-05:00

Someone who was at the "Putting the 'Ha' in Hanukkah" show that The LeeVees performed at last week posted a 1 minute video of Shawn's mom dancing in her seat to Ocho Kandelikas. Now thats good YouTubin'. Also performing at that show were Dave Attell, Todd Barry and Rachel Feinstein as well as Good for the Jews.