Shawn Donohue

Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers / Steve Winwood: Madison Square Garden, New York, NY 6/17/08

Shawn Donohue June 18, 2008 No Comments

Petty mentioned early on that “This may be the best room for rock and roll on the planet,” and he was speaking the truth, as The Heartbreakers moved from the heavy metal-ish finish in “Don’t Come Around Here No More” seamlessly into the punk sneer of “Refugee” before closing the whole shebang with the sing along classic of “American Girl.” Make it last all night.

A.A. Bondy / Deer Tick: Bowery Ballroom, NY NY 6.10.08

Shawn Donohue June 13, 2008 No Comments

The oppressive heat has smothered the East Coast turning New York City sidewalks into frying pans. So on Tuesday night some singer songwriters and minimally-dressed fans tried to cool off in the dark Bowery Ballroom. It worked. The relaxed tones and minimalist presentation broke the heat and soothed the ears.

The Raconteurs: Terminal 5, NY NY 5.31.08

Shawn Donohue June 5, 2008 No Comments

It is hard to get this review started without shouting from the written rooftop that The Raconteurs just may be the most exciting live rock and roll act playing today…so I will just come out and admit it – they are.

The Black Keys: Terminal 5, New York, NY 5/15/08

Shawn Donohue May 20, 2008 No Comments

The Black Keys (Dan Auerbach,Patrick Carney) brought their no-frills blues rock straight from Akron, Ohio to the big city last night, packing a gorgeous venue on the west side with six string blasts and kick drum bombs.

A.A. Bondy: American Hearts

Shawn Donohue April 23, 2008 No Comments

Authentic. It is a word that singer-songwriters either are naturally or strive toward their whole life, AA Bondy has it. His album American Hearts garnered some buzz at the end of 2007, but is being re-released on Fat Possum Records now with hopes of gaining the wider audience that these songs deserve.

Jerry Lee Lewis : Town Hall, New York City, NY 3/25/08

Shawn Donohue April 4, 2008 No Comments

There were no boots on the piano, and his time on stage was about 40 minutes, but the final run of “Sweet Little Sixteen,” “Great Balls of Fire” and “Whole Lot of Shaking Going On” is what everyone came to see and The Killer delivered, requesting the ladies shake it for him and letting them know, even if he was old, he can still give it to them.

The Raconteurs: Consolers of the Lonely

Shawn Donohue March 26, 2008 No Comments

When Broken Boy Soldiers was released, the hype surrounding Jack White’s first venture into a side project was massive, yet there has been almost no advance hype surrounding Consolers of the Lonely, the Raconteurs’ second release (sent to Press and Public at the same time and day) and I am sure they couldn’t be happier with the silence.

Hymns: Travel in Herds

Shawn Donohue March 13, 2008 No Comments

or those fans who loved Dr. Dog’s throwback sound, with last years We All Belong, this years retro-style-indie-rock-almost-hippie release from the Hymns, Travel in Herds will be a warm sunbeam fighting back a cruel winter. There’s a down home vibe to the tunes contained on Travel in Herds and it stems straight out of seventies folk-rock.