Northern State @ Knitting Factory, NYC, 6/3- pics and review

Photos & Story by Star Child

To close their headlining tour, Northern State performed at New York City’s Knitting Factory with a tight line-up that while different fit.

Opening the night was Brooklyn’s Peculiar Gentlemen. This outfit featured seven members- three backing vocalists, a singer, bass player, keyboardist, and drummer. Talk about a band! PG had a fun, old school sound with a soul and rock vibe. The backing singers were beautiful and each got their chance to shine, singing and rapping their own song. It was refreshing to hear a band like this and definitely impressed me.

Next were The Gay Blades, a duo who played insanely well and whose lead singer was all over the place. For a mere two members the bands sound was loud and intense, with the frontman doing all he can to incite a reaction from the crowd. He was entertaining and knows how to put on a show.

Domino, the next band, was female fronted and much lighter than the previous acts. However so, they provided a lovely sound.

Long Island’s rap trio Northern State got the energy level back to the room when they got into “Mic Tester.” Most of the songs were off their latest release, “Can I Keep This Pen?” Other songs included “Ooooh Girl,” “Better Already,” “Iluvitwhenya,” and even a cover of Radiohead’s “No Surprises” and “Girl for all Seasons” off their previous effort. Each lady provided their own brand of lyrical prowess and rapped with style. The energy was in the air, but the constant breaks, chatting about irrelevant topics, and complaints about the bright lights took away from the vibe of the show. Nonetheless the girls were excited to be home and played for a good audience on a Tuesday night. They closed nicely with “Sucka MoFo.” NS brought a very danceable and catchy evening of fun that had people bobbing their head and dancing.

What impressed me was the genuineness from Sprout when she said, looking to the crowd with a smile, “I know this sounds lame, but I just want to go in the crowd and personally thank every mothafuckin’ one of you for being here.”

Northern State is Spero, Hesta Prynn, and Sprout. The group has three albums out, including their latest “Can I Keep This Pen?, released on Mike Patton’s Ipecac Recordings. They worked with Chuck Brody and Adrock from the Beastie Boys for the release.

Last year the band toured North America with Tegan and Sara. They’ve also performed with The Roots, Le Tigre, Talib Kweli, Gym Class Heroes and Cake.