I prefer my Hot Hot Heat on the stage at Siren, thank you.  
 
Central Village trekked to the other West 10th street today for the 4th Annual Siren Festival.  I don't know what it was exactly this year, but I couldn't make it through the day down at Coney Island...It was a great lineup and everything, and my apologies to Electric 6, Blonde Redhead, ...Trail of the Dead, and Death Cab, but I just wasn't having a good time...and the more I thought about watching the upcoming bands, the more I realized that Siren was not the right place to see them.  If I was able to hang back, sit down, have some space and watch them peacefully and comfortably, I would have been set...or even if there was some sort of escape from the heat between acts...that'd been perfect...But I understand the limitations of Coney Island, and that's nobody's fault.  It was just too hot and crowded this year, and the sound is so lousy, that you really had to push up to the front to enjoy...I just wasn't feeling it today.  It seemed more crowded and hotter than last year...maybe I was imagining things, but it was enough for me to regrettably head home early.  
 
I admire The Village Voice for putting together this great great show for free, and I have nothing bad to say about the effort, but the festival may be outgrowing the limited stage space that is available on the West 10th and the Stillwell street areas...I mean they're just side streets...narrow and flat...so if you're more than 100 feet from the stage you're hopelessly screwed to see the bands...Next year I'm sure I'll give it another shot, and maybe (hopefully?) they'll come up with something to accommodate the growing crowds.  Then again...It's still free, and its great fun if you prepare yourself and can tolerate the atmosphere...Just wasn't up for it this year.  
 
One more quick note...last night I went out to the dreaded Don Hills for Vito Fun's birthday last night...Nuclear Family were amazing, as usual...I urge everyone with even the slightest interest in good hip hop to make a point to go see them.  They play alot of sets at Southpaw in Brooklyn, and I'll be sure to post whenever they have a show coming up, so check back here if you're interested.
 
Thats it for now...Tomorrow I'm gonna try to set up CentralVillage Radio, an internet radio station streaming from this site...check back to check it out...