Review & Video: A B & the Sea, What Laura Says, So Many Wizards @ Cafe Du Nord 7/7
July 12, 2010
Local favorites A B & the Sea brought their retro pop to Cafe Du Nord last Wednesday as a part of the local showcase The Rumble. Two out-of-towners — So Many Wizards (LA) and What Laura Says (Phoenix) — kicked off the free (with RSVP) show, presented by a consortium of Noise Pop, Future Sounds and The Owl Mag.
So Many Wizards describe their music as “bedroom pop,” but I would add “late-night romantics” to that description; the trio navigates short, atmospheric songs centered on songwriter Nima Kazerouni’s forlorn lyrics. They sounded best when Kazerouni dropped his guitar and let his voice ride on the drums and bass. Their latest EP Love Songs for When You Leave Me, which they gave out for free at the show, was recorded in San Francisco at Different Fur Studios with Chris Chu (The Morning Benders).
Next up, the long-haired boys of What Laura Says capably set a different tone, evoking 70s rock and blues in both their music and aesthetic. Their music culls the ear-tugging parts of soul harmonies and blues improvisation and creatively marries them. Given their diverse instruments, from guitars and keys to vases and lutes, they are definitely a fun live band.
A B & the Sea headlined with their throwback beach pop. I first saw them play at Noise Pop this past spring and really enjoyed the band’s economy of sound and lyrics. This time around they had a more rock sound, amping up the bass and letting the guitarist rip. The heavier sound does a nice job of grounding the lightness of their tunes. They played a new song, “The Current,” that suggested there was plenty more rock to come.
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Video: All Saints Day (Vivian Girls/Cat Power) cover New Order at debut show 6/13
June 15, 2010
All Saints Day – “Age of Consent” (New Order cover) at The Independent 6/13 from The Bay Bridged on Vimeo.
All Saints Day, a coterie featuring members of Vivian Girls and Cat Power, squeezed out their first live set ever Sunday night at The Independent, sandwiched between Young Prisms and Real Estate (NJ). This multi-generational project has provoked considerable curiosity around the blogs, based on their personnel and a single mp3, before only recently posting additional tracks on their Bandcamp site.
What comes of the combination of a current garage belle like Vivian Girls’ Katy Goodman, and a seasoned musician who plays in Cat Power? Goodman ended up sounding a lot less like the retro Best Coast-style vocalist I’d heard online, performing as a serene, mature frontwoman. In stark contrast to the overly familiar beach-pop, hazy — however you’d like to call it — sound of the recordings, All Saints Day hinged on Gregg Foreman’s raw onstage decisions. He offered a Stooges-era, Brit-rock guitar tone synced with confident movement. And as if to maintain a classic mystique, All Saints Day wrapped up with the pleasing “Age of Consent” cover above.
There’s not much known about All Saints Day’s plans, apart from Goodman’s recent move to Los Angeles which might have something to do with the project starting its live course. All Saints Day will be playing The Echo/Echoplex tonight with Real Estate, Abe Vigoda, Kurt Vile, Woods and Nodzzz, and tomorrow at The Casbah in San Diego with Jeremy Jay and Heavy Hawaii.
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Review: Yeasayer @ Longshoreman’s Hall 5/8
May 11, 2010
Photos by: Anna Gazdowicz
Yeasayer, in confederacy with KIN (Microsoft’s newly-released smartphone), played a secret show on Saturday night, a show that was promoted via social media sites like Facebook and Twitter. The event’s location was revealed about three hours before the show and by the time I arrived at Longshoreman’s Hall* at seven (on Fisherman’s Wharf), there was already a line around the building. Microsoft funded the event, providing free entry and drinks, which was a great deal for fans.
The band played a solid, hour-long set of earlier hits (such as “Tightrope” and “2080″), and songs from their 2010 release, Odd Blood. With sheet metal drums and ribcage-rattling bass, their set was tailor-made for dancing and the crowd happily complied. However, the newer, dance-friendly material lacked some of the soulfulness and rawness of their earlier work.
What Yeasayer is doing increasingly well is combining discrete genre elements: the outlaw guitars of a high noon shoot-out, full sail harmonies akin to The Carter Family, synth pop hooks and readymade choruses (“stick up for yourself son/nevermind what anyone else done”). They also actively engaged with the crowd between songs, warming up as the evening progressed. Singer Chris Keating’s off-kilter humor punctuated the set, sometimes faltering and sometimes hitting the mark; he introduced the last song by saying, “Thank you for coming out. Support your local union.”
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Review: Tiny Television, Chambers at Cafe du Nord 4/24
April 28, 2010
Chambers opened the night at Cafe du Nord this past Sunday, launching the crowd into deep space with synthesizer and guitar layers that encompassed reverberated, cavernous vocals. Appropriately, singer Gareth Lloyd moonwalked his way through parts of the show. His vocals careened over the shifting rhythms of drumming played by three members of the band throughout the set, adding a great spacious feeling to their sound.
It was refreshing to see the confidence of Chambers’ female guitarists and bass player as they deftly worked through the rapid transitions of the songs. Sarah Melfy’s performance on guitar, drums and keyboard was particularly bright in its timely melodies and counter rhythms. The band executed the complicated and quick transitions of their songs efficiently, but it came at the cost of a more dynamic stage presence — with the exception of Lloyd, the band was economic in their physical movements.
The set had a funny moment when Lloyd tried to tell the audience about their album available for free while his voice modifier was still on; it sounded like a psa on a spelunking mission. Switching it off then on again, he teasingly garbled at the crowd for a moment, garnering some laughter before the next song.
Listening feels like: Major Tom took you out on a date to the arcade and you finally beat him at Star Ship (in a dim arcade room, minimalist electronics, sharing beers and the ebullience of winning).
Tiny Television maintained the high energy Chambers generated, but with a foot-stomping beat. Complete with mic lights and a smoke machine, their stage presence had the good-time feel of a house party; in the middle of the last song singer Jeremy D’Antonio let the smoke machine rip, exclaiming, “I almost forgot to use it!”
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The Ferocious Few, MonBon, Can’t Find a Villain @ Elbo Room, 1/6
January 11, 2010
Humpday came and went, but the Elbo Room was full of great music Wednesday as people enjoyed a mild winter night in the Mission District with The Ferocious Few, MonBon, and Can’t Find a Villain. The Ferocious Few played an early set, demonstrating in the process why these guys are consistently one of the most impressive bands on the local circuit. They seem to be moving in a more bluesy direction as of late, letting Francisco’s vocal talents and Daniel’s amazing drum skills take a more prominent role. With stage presence and songwriting firing on all cylinders, I expect that they’ll make an impact at South by Southwest in March.
The Ferocious Few – New Song (Live at the Elbo Room, 1/6)
Fans of Cat Power would do well to take heed of young songstress MonBon. This girl is a diamond in the rough, whose stripped down delivery lets it all hang out. While she is still a very new talent (she doesn’t even have a MySpace page), her set of covers and originals showcased a unique sense of style and delivery. MonBon’s powerful voice and guitar work only lapsed briefly as she played a few songs that seemed new to her. On the set’s standout, a cover of “New York, New York” by Frank Sinatra, none of that seemed to matter, as she held the audience at a standstill with her stellar reinterpretation of the classic song.
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Tempo No Tempo celebrate the release of Waking Heat, Rickshaw Stop, 11/5
November 9, 2009
Tempo No Tempo – “Kilometer”
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With opening sets by Man/Miracle and Maus Haus, and Tempo No Tempo closing out the night, the Rickshaw Stop presented an excellent cross-section of the Bay Area’s envelope-pushing indie rock scene last Thursday night.
Man/Miracle are running on the recent release of their first full length, The Shape of Things. The album seems to be a study of tension: guitar riffs linger just between aggressive and complacent, and songs start with plenty of structure and moderate tempos only to build speed and rattle themselves loose. Their set was no different. Over their 30 minutes, Man/Miracle built up to a frenzy on “Hot Sprawl” and “You’ve Got A Hold On Me.” Denouement was provided by their rather quiet rendition of the eerily titled “Ghost Tongue.”
Man/Miracle
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Why? and friends @ GAMH 10/17
October 23, 2009
Despite the festivities happening over at Treasure Island on Saturday the 17th, Serengeti & Polyphonic. The music was an interesting mix of dubstep/techno and hip-hop. They definitely had a sound that was unique and had a pretty solid crowd dancing along. Serengeti, who did all the singing, has great stage presence and danced and writhed as he spit lyrics, while Polyphonic deftly handled the electronic side of things.
AU (pronounced “Ay-youâ€) was up next and they brought something completely different to the stage. Dana Valatka is an exceptional drummer, pulling all kinds of tricks out of his bag and keeping the tempo with intricate polyrhythms that boggled the ears. Bandleader Luke Wyland kept up in fine style, banging out melodies on the keyboard and singing over everything. You can tell that no two shows are the same with these guys, as the songs seem to lend themselves to improvisation and reinterpretation.
As the night wore on the crowd got denser, the fabled Phil Elevrum of Mount Eerie took the stage. If one wanted to characterize this night as eclectic they need look no further than Mount Eerie’s place on the bill. I thought it was brilliant. What better way to counterpoint something so bombastic and lyrical as Why? than with the pastoral, distant sound of Elverum and company?
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Treasure Island Music Festival Live Blog – Day 2
October 18, 2009
8:56:17 AM: (CC) After one heck of a day yesterday we return for Part 2! Today we will have bloggers John Shea (JS) and Joe Hayes (JH) joining us!
10:47:09 AM: (CC) And we also can’t forget about Brian Davidson (BD) who will be joining all of the editors and writers as well. T minus 74 min. to go.
11:38:17 AM: Line for the bus to get to the island is long, bring your hoodies http://yfrog.com/7h95308013j
11:42:24 AM: (JS) Show is sold out, careful with those scalpers ladies and gents http://yfrog.com/166z5j
11:45:01 AM: (BD) A little nippy but no matter, happy to be here! Youth is in full effect
12:00:16 PM: (NB) Bay Areans Sleepy Sun commence day two, funny, because the sun is just starting to wake up!
12:29:52 PM: (JS) And so it begins, Sleepy Sun. Crowd already quite large, especially for this time of day http://yfrog.com/1369mj
Sleepy Sun @ The Bridge Stage:
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