THE RAVEONETTES (w/ Black Acid) @ Bowery Ballroom - Wed. 3/26

Danish Boy-Girl group The Raveonettes hit the Bowery this weekend with much critical acclaim following the release of their latest record Lust Lust Lust. Having survived the deluge of early 00's the The bands, the great Danes continue to reinvent themselves while staying true to their original form. Since making the indie dive, they have not strayed much from the leather-clad ballsiness of their major label releases, but their sound has become more sonically savory and complex. If Rebel without a Cause came out today, this would certainly be the soundtrack. See them this Wednesday in the Lower East Side.

The Raveonettes' MySpace | The Raveonette's Website

RIYL: My Bloody Valentine, BRMC, Jesus and Mary Chain, The Black Angels

The Raveonettes playing 'Lust' live:

JUNIOR BOYS (DJ Set) w/ Matthew Dear & Shy Child @ Hiro Ballroom (Maritime Hotel) - 3/13

With SXSW Festival taking place in Austin this week, the whole music industry is out of town along with many, many, underground bands. This leaves NYC with fairly limited options for live shows (compared to a normal week), but that doesn't mean there's nothing to see. Hamilton, Ontario's Junior Boys are riding the neo-dance electro-pop that so many lesser known bands are trying, but the JB's do it better than most. Their music is both danceable and dark; angular and appealing. It follows in the path of many 80's British synth-pop bands and has been critically acclaimed: their latest effort So This Is Goodbye, garnered a 9.0 by Pitchforkmedia.com. Also be sure to check out the up and coming openers Matthew Dear and Shy Child at the Hiro this weekend.

JB's MySpace | JB's Website


RIYL: Baby Dayliner, Depeche Mode, New Order, Fischerspooner, Tubeway Army

RA RA RIOT @ Bowery Ballroom - Fri 3/7 and @ Living Room - 3/9

Syracuse, NY's Ra Ra Riot will be playing a couple of shows in the city this weekend, both of which should be very cool. Following the untimely death of John Pike, the original drummer this summer, the band has regrouped and are creating some refreshing and heartfelt music. SPIN magazine claimed they are "one of the best young bands we've heard in a really long time." Big words from a very powerful publication, but it would be hard to argue otherwise. They fit the indie rock bill quite nicely (save for some beautiful cello/violin work), but they have some other intangible quality that most bands do not have. It's a wonder why they are still unsigned. It would be worth your time to check these guys out, the Ballroom Show is sold out, but you can still snag a ticket for the Living Room show.

RIYL: Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Cursive, Spinto Band, Yo La Tengo, ZOX

Ra Ra Riot performing "Dying is Fine" live in Chicago: