CMJ Music Marathon 2015

Words and Photography By Francesca Beltran

I’m in the back room of East Village’s infamous bar, Niagara, watching the five-piece rock band, Walking Shapes playing live. Their energetic show marks for me the beginning of a five-day run of live performances throughout New York City’s greatest venues, also known as CMJ Music Marathon. Each October, CMJ takes over the city to promote emerging artists from every corner of the world, and this year wasn’t the exception. To celebrate it’s 35th anniversary, the event summoned over 1,000 acts that played in over 70 venues across Manhattan and Brooklyn; although the festival features some few well-established acts, it mostly drifts away from mainstream names, giving newcomers a fair chance to shine.

Aside from the music showcases, CMJ also hosts industry panels and seminars, where all, music lovers, bands, publicists, journalists and label executives collide to discover what’s next in the new music scene. Due to the sheer amount of bands that play the marathon, it is impossible to catch up with every single showcase, and so this year I decided to let instinct and word of mouth lead the way through my week of music discovery.

Of the many great bands I saw, electronic act Neon Indian took the lead as one of the best dance parties of the week. To mark the release of his most recent record, VEGA INTL. Night School, Alan Palomo (the mastermind behind the band) took over Webster Hall where he unveiled his latest immersive live experience in collaboration with Microsoft. New Zealander Tamaryn served as an outstanding supporting act, delivering her noise pop tunes with remarkable confidence and ease.

Tobias Jesso Jr.’s show at the Music Hall of Williamsburg was also a big highlight. The Canadian musician is hands down one of the most charismatic performers, singing heart-breaking songs I’ve ever seen; he had the audience captivated the entire evening with his impeccable voice and extraordinary sense of humor. Another favorite was the British multi-instrumentalist Cosmo Sheldrake, who played a magnificent set at 2:30 a.m. in The Living Room. Using his voice, environmental sounds, and a loop station, the talented composer did a couple of impressive improvisations and played some tracks from his most recent EP, Pelicans We.

Other memorable acts include Alex Brettin aka Mild High Club and his delicious psychedelic soft rock (from his debut album Timeline) and Michigan’s brand new pop star BØRNS. I had the chance to catch up with the first at the Bowery Presents Day Party at Pianos, and the later played a sold out show at the Music Hall of Williamsburg. Last but definitely not least was the iconic hub of prominent talent best known as Fader Fort, where Conner Youngblood, Whitney, Kehlani and Oscar stood out as some personal favorites. All in all, another great CMJ filled with music, parties, friends and our beloved New York City.