The final day of the 2009 CMJ Music marathon has finally arrived at a time when I'm both half relieved and also very sad because tomorrow I will have to go back to my day job. I was up and about before my alarm ever went off and was eager to head into the city and absorb as much as I could before things ran out. Since my scheduled showcase at Death By Audio had been cancelled (Ahhh Eden!!) I wanted to catch up to Nancy at the Deli's indie party in the morning that featured the winners of a contest that we held a few weeks ago.

The indie party was in full swing when I arrived to a massive crowd could have very well been Zagat rated best CMJ party to cop a field! Showgoers filtered between the party upstairs and the fully packet, dimly lit basement that featured an extremely diverse and talented group of up and coming artists presented by The Deli Magazine. When coverage switched to my duty I was happy to rise to the occasion. Cale Parks delighted us with a glorious hybrid of Depeche Mode-esque gothed out synthesizes and surrealistic, daydreamy vocal falsettos. Originally formed by lead vocalist/drummer/programmer guru known as Cale. The Parks were enchanting to witness as a passionate Cale twirled his sticks and pounded off an eruption of rattling drums brushed along a solid palette of preprogrammed glitches and samples blown in between. When their keyboardist brought fourth a real bass it added a very raw and groovy Gang of Four vibe. The highly processed guitars served a darker, ethereal purpose blending into the background and even mimicking the keyboards at times. What a rush it was to see this kind of band this early in the day. I'm already blown away!

Next up was a crowded but intimate performance by the Freelance Whales with which whom I anticipate to gain a great deal of notoriety when their upcoming US/Canadian tour kicks off November 9th. Fans of Saddle Creek recording artists such as Bright Eyes will flip for the multi-diverse instrumental glows of xylophones, banjos, guitars and other unidentified noise boxes. The Whales' complicated, well orchestrated toy jingles compliment the soft sing alongs that include all five members of the band. I was excited to learn that this band has built a lot of their reputation by means of word of mouth following as a few lovely lovely ladies explained to me after the show how they became huge fans after stumbling on the band at a Brooklyn loft party. My only qualm was the live aspect was that I wanted the voices to be louder! Freelance Whales diverse and experimental sound puts them on the brink of our burgeoning local scene and hopefully I will have the opportunity to see this band again before they become so well known that even I can’t get tickets.

As the evening wore on I found myself already having reviewed almost all of the bands that were being presented. I was sent in to review 26 shows and actually come out on top with nearly 30. I decided that today I was going to take a step back and let Nancy shine in her moment at the Deli showcase. I instead attended a Todd P show and am covered in bruises to prove it! CMJ has been a wild ride for everyone involved and I look forward to the day off so I can see what all of the other bloggers have been going on about. I know for sure that Pitchfork media has already gotten over the hangover and is ready to get back to ripping on bands that they wish they could be in themselves. Most artists have already shrugged off the harsh reviews and biased opinions of those who do live in the daily grind of our sweet little New York music scene and envy us for doing so. I had already written about all of the local bands playing today so I will not spend too much time reiterating how awesome Sisters and The Screaming Females were last night. For now I need a bit of rest before I can come back soon with a full wrap up of the entire event. Rawwwwk!