Indie Rock Invades Bar East Ale House

Last year, music promoter Lee Sobel defied neighborhood stereotypes by bringing indie rock's something more associated with the downtown and Brooklyn scene's to the Upper East Side. This year, with more than triple the number of bands, Sobel will do it again at the second annual Upper East Side Music Festival, presented by Sobel"s LoFi Entertainment. More than 100 bands will play throughout February at Bar East Ale House, culminating in a final round in March and an ultimate winner, though Sobel stresses the festival atmosphere more than the competition. Each of the relatively unknown bands will take a cut of the $10-a-head ticket sales for the night they perform. â??These bands, in my experience, tend to have a pretty wide appeal. Everybody from suit-and-tie to artists to hipsters, Sobel said. â??It tends to be pretty eclectic. He anticipates plenty of indie rock fans migrating from as far away as Brooklyn for the event. Sobel supports fledgling bands by booking a lot of rooms around the city, giving them a variety of venue options, and by putting together sets with bands that mesh stylistically. â??If you"re a folk rock band playing after a death metal band, chances are the metal fans aren"t going to like your folk rock, and vice versa, Sobel said. For the festival, Sobel booked a set of hard rock and metal bands for Feb. 6, but that"s the only night he would classify as fitting into any single genre. â??A lot of the bands today, they aren"t so specific, they pull from a lot of different influences, from folk to progressive to techno, he said. Last year"s winner, Haakon"s Fault, will be performing again. Bass player Doug Berns said the band is excited to perform at Bar East, where the small space provides an intimate setting for music. â??It felt like a real communal environment, he said. The unsigned band, which describes its sound as â??epic, got a big morale boost from last year"s triumph. Sobel especially wants to help out Bar East, which has been struggling financially. â??Live music is a labor of love, Sobel said. â??There"s no doubt that DJs spinning hip hop, that kind of thing, tend to make more money for clubs. He cites places like The Continental, an East Village bar now known for its five-shots-for-$10 deal, which stopped hosting live music in 2006 due to the expense; it recently held a one-night reunion concert of live bands Jan. 17. Despite the cost, Sobel said, â??The ironic thing is that more and more clubs doing live music seem to keep popping up. That"s why he"s hoping this year"s festival will draw people to Bar East. â??It"s important for people on the Upper East Side to come check this out, he said. the progenitor and exporter of democratic ideals. But you wouldn"t suspect this based on how the national (and New York) Democratic Party has been behaving lately. Democracy, by our definition, offers citizens strong choices and vibrant debates on ideas and policies, not uncontested primaries or people appointed to high office by one unelected leader. Democracy requires's Sobel said. For the festival, Sobel booked a set of hard rock and metal bands for Feb. 6, but that"s the only night he would classify as fitting into any single genre. â??A lot of the bands today,they aren"t so specific, they pull from a lot of different influences, from folk to progressive to techno, he said. Last year"s winner, Haakon"s Fault, will be performing again. Bass player Doug Berns said the band is excited to perform at Bar East, where the small space provides an intimate setting for music. â??It felt like a real communal environment, he said. The unsigned band, which describes its sound as â??epic, got a big morale boost from last year"s triumph. Sobel especially wants to help out Bar East, which has been struggling financially. â??Live music is a labor of love, Sobel said. â??There"s no doubt that DJs spinning hip hop, that kind of thing, tend to make more money for clubs. He cites places like The Continental, an East Village bar now known for its five-shots-for-$10 deal, which stopped hosting live music in 2006 due to the expense; it recently held a one-night reunion concert of live bands Jan. 17. Despite the cost, Sobel said, â??The ironic thing is that more and more clubs doing live music seem to keep popping up. That"s why he"s hoping this year"s festival will draw people to Bar East. â??It"s important for people on the Upper East Side to come check this out, he said. -- Upper East Side Music Festival Bar East nightclub 1733 First Ave. (betw. 89th and 90th streets) 212-876-0203 Feb. 3 to 27 $10 cover charge