en http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/uk/ Thu, 1 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 Thu, 1 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 60 http://www.audioscrobbler.net/data/webservices http://www.last.fm/user/kcasplund/journal The Last.fm journal for kcasplund. Last.fm journals are a place to talk about all things music. http://www.last.fm/user/kcasplund/journal/2009/03/26/2lhpsk_sxsw_recap Thu, 26 Mar 2009 03:17:30 +0000 http://www.last.fm/user/kcasplund/journal/2009/03/26/2lhpsk_sxsw_recap I was really looking forward to taking Thursday and Friday off for SXSW this year, but work got really crazy and I had to cancel my Thursday vacation. Friday night also turned out to be the only time this month we could visit my brother in Dallas to talk about the deck they're helping us build as a Christmas present. Altogether, that left me Friday afternoon and Saturday night to see shows, which turned out to be enough to see the two bands I've been most obsessed with the last few months, as well as one band I've been curious about for one time and even one completely new group I was impressed enough by to purchase a record from...

Friday afternoon
After flyering for SXKU V, I met my friend Lucas at Jackalope, grabbed a gyro on the street and went to Emo's for the Pitchfork party where my major obsession School of Seven Bells was scheduled to play at 3. We were there at 1:30 or so, in time to see some of Max Tundra's laptop-pop and decide that it was way too early to see something so cloyingly enthusiastic. Got in line to go inside and realized that the line wasn't for SVIIB, it was for The Pains of Being Pure At Heart, America's latest jangle-pop heartthrobs. They do that thing pretty well, but have plenty of room to improve. The melodies are already good, and I especially look forward to them learning dynamics and perhaps palm-muting for the guitar. They looked about 20 at most and I think they mentioned that this was their 7th show, so bully for them. SVIIB was next, and they either created or fell victim to some seriously irritating delay before they started. For a band with no drummer, they took forever to set up and then I think I heard the soundguy say they had to wait another ten minutes because the show was ahead of schedule. I checked my watch and he was right, but it was a bit of a drag to see the band sitting up there on stage ready to go and instead just kinda hanging out, checking their iPhones and chatting with each other. When they finally did start, they played two of the mellower songs from the middle of Alpinisms, but then they kicked into Half Asleep and the show really got going. The vocals, keys and guitars all sounded great, and I was really impressed with the keyboardist sister's stage presence, especially since she was mostly singing harmonies. Something about that long black hair parted down the middle perhaps. Anyway, the drum machine had the bass set way way too loud and it kind of killed the parts that were supposed to really rock with distortion. It might have sounded better farther away from stage, but it was distracting throughout the show and I definitely would love to see them take a drummer and bassist on the road. However, I thought several times that SVIIB could sound quite good with acoustic instruments, and they could probably sell exponentially more records to the adult contemporary crowd that way, but they appear to really be into their dense, atmospheric dance-pop and for that I am very grateful. Their lyrics give me some confidence that they're not really interested in pandering to anybody.

Saturday night
Went to the Moose Lodge to see one band only: This Horn of Afrika. They were scheduled to play at 10:30 and Hannah and I got a babysitter so she could go to a real show for the first time since Sylvan was born over a year ago. We got there at ten when The Theater Fire was playing a pretty good set, but next up was a band from NY called Lemonade instead of THOA. Lemonade turned out to be pretty good, not too far off from THOA but more in line with Tussle's slightly-cheesy club leanings. I bought their CD and like it, hopefully will get a chance to check them out again. The night got confusing at this point, as several bands played short sets on the three inside stages, but THOA did not set up at any of them, just hanging around inside. I asked them about this and they said they'd gotten bumped. They ended up playing last, and for only about 15 minutes tops! It made me mad, but it fits with my impression of them: easygoing guys who are much more into their music than promoting it or any of the other stuff that goes with that. It seemed like if a band from out-of-town needed a chance to play, well, ok, let 'em. Since I was there just for THOA, it seemed like it might have irritated me more than them. The set was a little rushed and wasn't as magical as the Free Week or Broken Neck shows I saw, but damned if they don't do their thing as brutally and beautifully as I could wish. I really hope they have more dedicated groupies then me, because they deserve 'em.]]> http://www.last.fm/user/kcasplund/journal/2009/01/11/2e3gjn_free_week_wrap-up Sun, 11 Jan 2009 19:44:08 +0000 http://www.last.fm/user/kcasplund/journal/2009/01/11/2e3gjn_free_week_wrap-up I didn't go out on Saturday for a variety of reasons, but here's a ranking of all the bands I caught this week that I'd like to see again. Asterisks by the ones I more or less knew nothing about before Free Week.

1. This Horn of Afrika
2. The Blacks *
3. The Laughing
4. Zlam Dunk *
5. Ringo Deathstarr
6. Follow That Bird!
7. Deskonocidos *
8. Rat King
9. Basic
10. Many Birthdays
11. Woven Bones *
12. Moth! Fight! *
13. Dans La Lune *
14. Ichi Ni San *
15. Death is not a Joyride
16. Golden Boys
17. The No No No Hopes
18. My Education
19. Dikes of Holland *
20. Masonic *
21. Hacienda *
22. Sad Accordions *
23. Your Kisses Cause Crashes *
24. Harlem *
25. Silver Pines *
26. Broadcast sea *
27. The Gospel Truth *
28. The Air Traffic Controllers *
29. Daniel Francis Doyle (solo or with band)
30. Che Arthur
31. Mr. Lewis & the Funeral Five
32. The Astronaut Suit *
33. The Midgetmen
34. Camp X-Ray
35. Haunting Oboe Music
36. Send Help
37. La Snacks *
38. The Teeners
39. The Grave Diggers (?) *]]> http://www.last.fm/user/kcasplund/journal/2009/01/10/2dy697_austin:_free_week_2009,_day_8 Sat, 10 Jan 2009 08:09:23 +0000 http://www.last.fm/user/kcasplund/journal/2009/01/10/2dy697_austin:_free_week_2009,_day_8 Entering the second week of Free Week, I had a lot of energy. I am dead tired now, though, so this will be shorter than it deserves.

Got to Mohawk after band practice in time to see some of Many Birthdays. They weren't as good live as I'd hoped, but they were interesting enough to try again. All the free mp3s on their site kind of give notice that they're all over the place and more interested in playing with sound than in crafting the best single. Outside, Moth! Fight!got started before I left, and they were interesting. I *think* the sound wasn't quite right for them, since I could only intelligibly hear one out of four singers. Lots of circus-y stuff, but - rare for me - in a good way.

Ducked out to see what was up at Red 7, but no bands were playing yet so I went on to Emo's where The Teeners were on outside. Quite a few of my friends really like them, but I didn't get anything special out of them. It's sincerely trashy good-time garage punk, played by people who really dig that and aren't fashion victims or poseurs. But the sound was bad (no bass) and the songs weren't much to me. Might be better on a smaller stage. I went back in and watched Che Arthur's first couple songs. He was good, I was skeptical of the Mission of Burma comparison I read somewhere regarding a guy with an acoustic guitar, but I could see it from the second song. Political, personal, and with a lot of dynamics and changes in the song structure.

Back to Red 7 to find Daniel Francis Doyle playing with a full band, just as spastic as his solo show, if not moreso. Not sure what the band was called. Outside something just as irritating was going on called blowupnihilist. This was one guy who had a bunch of hissing, shrieky electronic noise going on, an industrial white noise attack. Not anything I care for, so I got out of Red 7 pretty fast.

I could hear The Laughing playing "Wait Until He Roars" as I walked up to Mohawk, so I walked a couple steps faster and met up with some friends rocking out near the front. I only stayed for three songs tops since I already know The Laughing are great, one of the best rock bands in town. Inside, another band I've seen before and like, Death is not a Joyride, were just getting started and I watched them do their creepy carnival Björk thing very well. The sound and stage weren't as good for them as Emo's Lounge, but the packed room was a distinct improvement.

Went straight next door to see if I could catch Cry Blood Apache or Weird Weeds, but Club DeVille was already on their last band, La Snacks. An enjoyable Pavement-type indie band, but nothing got me particularly excited. I rushed back to Red 7 to make sure I didn't miss my friend's band Rat King. They hadn't started yet, so I watched Daniel Francis Doyle finish a solo set (pretty demanding from a guy who plays drums with such high energy) and then waited for Rat King to go. They're just starting out, but damn, they convinced me. I'm not much of a hardcore/thrash fan, but a mosh formed during the first song and they really owned the stage. It even sounded pretty good to me, the songs had depth and movement that I usually can't pick up on in that kind of music. Left after not long though, back to Emo's to make sure I didn't miss This Horn of Afrika.

They hadn't started yet, so I went outside and saw a couple tunes from Hacienda. They seemed like another band trying to do the 60s pop thing but coming off more modern. This time the band sounded a bit like Tom Petty, still classic, but not really British Invasion. The couple songs I heard were pretty memorable, and they played three without stopping the beat between songs. Obviously a skilled band, they're probably worth checking out if I'm in the mood for that kind of music again. After a couple songs, I went back inside and This Horn of Afrika was just starting from a drone. How to begin?... They were easily the most technically innovative band I've seen, using analog controls (guitars and drumsticks) to control heavily processed noise (a dozen pedals on the guitars and a drum/sample machine) to create dance music stripped of all signifiers except the backbeat. It's kind of like they took Out Hud another step further into the abstract, or made Liars' Mt. Heart Attack get crunk. It was dark on stage and the music matched it, intense and tribal but totally foreign at the same time. If they added catchy synth lines and/or a diva vocalist over the foundation, they would already be selling thousands of records, but they thankfully are not doing that and are pursuing something that's obviously a unique vision. I might compare them to Gang Gang Dance, but GGD is more of a gypsy-DIY group, retro like the Star Wars cantina band. This Horn Of Afrika is a new breed.

I left with a friend, but couldn't handle seeing any more music that night, a little bit from being tired but mostly because nothing felt right after THOAfrika. Amazing stuff...

Friday Rankings
1. This Horn Of Afrika
2. The Laughing
3. Rat King
4. Death Is Not A Joyride
5. Many Birthdays
6. Moth! Fight!
7. Hacienda
8. Daniel Francis Doyle (solo)
9. Che Arthur
10. La Snacks
11. The Teeners
12. Daniel Francis Doyle (with band)
13. Blowupnihilist]]> http://www.last.fm/user/kcasplund/journal/2009/01/09/2dumgl_austin:_free_week_2009,_day_7 Fri, 9 Jan 2009 07:48:37 +0000 http://www.last.fm/user/kcasplund/journal/2009/01/09/2dumgl_austin:_free_week_2009,_day_7 Saw a lot of bands tonight, including some very good ones...

Got downtown at 9:30, worried that I might miss my co-worker's band Send Help at Emo's. But on my way past Mohawk, I heard Basic playing outside and the bass sounded so good that I had to check it out. Very glad I did, because while the first song was good in a simple indie-pop way, the second song I heard was one of the best things I heard all night. It started out with the bassline from Metronomic Underground and morphed into a surfy instrumental with lots of twists and turns, at times sounding like Apache and other times like krautrock. After that they went back to indie-pop, so I hustled to Emo's.

Turns out I didn't need to be in such a hurry. No bands started until 10:15, so I had a strong well scotch on the rocks and watched part of the college football game and King Of The Hill before The Blacks came on. Holy shit! were they good! I wasn't expecting much from them, a drummer, a singer/guitarist and a guy with a mic and a tambourine and/or maraca. The guitar sound was great though, kinda that dry Gang of Four Andy Gill tone but with heavy delay to add some flesh to the sound. She also had the bass tone turned way up, her low E sounded almost like a bass guitar. Anyway, all that wouldn't mean anything if the songs weren't there, but they really were. It was dark without being pretentious, fun without being ironic and I was singing along despite knowing none of the words. I stayed for their whole set, the first band I've done that for this week, I think. When they finished, I went outside to watch Send Help, a pretty good early-Jawbreaker-type punk rock band. The songs were catchy and varied enough, but I was struck by how classic rock sounding they were, compared with the minimalist dance roots of The Blacks. I just seem to like dance music more than rock music, that's about the most basic line I can sketch out.

Anyway, met some friends in the Emo's courtyard and went with them to Mohawk, expecting to see King Coffey and Gerard Cosloy's The Air Traffic Controllers soon. But the headliner inside, The Homopolice, had cancelled, and so a new band was added and the others were pushed later. Ripe was playing outside, they had the British Invasion thing going on that Dans La Lune played so well last week, but these guys didn't have it. They mentioned being back on the scene a couple times, maybe it was rust or maybe the songs weren't as good. The bassist from Amplified Heat was also in Ripe, still sounding good but not looking as enthused. Dikes of Holland finally got going inside, and sounded pretty great. Very passionate, raw stomping garage-psych, but the songs weren't hitting me hard enough to keep me from making another round down Red River. I did check out Golden Boys on the way out, their Replacements-esque rock was in fine form as always, but I wanted to see new stuff.

After a delicious pepperoni slice from Hoboken Pie, I got to Emo's and watched a few songs from Harlem. They were very good, loose garage rock, and they had the biggest bass drum I've ever seen. It was a converted marching band bass, really huge and balanced with what looked like a big rock. I watched a few songs and then went outside to catch the last song from Deskonocidos. I wish I had gone outside earlier, they sounded great! Dark, possibly out-of-tune punk played with a lot of passion. I don't know what it was, but it sounded like straight-up punk while my impressions were of something much heavier, not metal, but gloomy. I'll have to see them again for more than one song. Went back and watched the last few songs from Harlem, then followed the crowd outside.

Before Mohawk, I stopped in Red 7 for a while to see the bands there. The Action Is were on inside, and I caught their last two songs. They had the rock star moves, but the sound mix in the club was pretty crappy (no bass, tinny cymbals all over the place) and I don't think the songs were that great. Kind of faceless modern rock, unfortunately. Speaking of faceless, a band of zombies was playing outside. I think they were called The Gravediggers, but I can't find them listed anywhere. They had detailed costumes that totally covered their faces and most of their bodies, and they played up the Misfits theatrics as much as possible. The songs...well, the Misfits aren't writing new ones, so somebody has to, right? They were pretty good, coming from somebody who's really not that into horror movie themes.

Took off back to Mohawk, and The Air Traffic Controllers started just a few minutes after I got there. I already knew I wasn't going to stay the whole set, and the music didn't make me feel too bad about it. King Coffey played the drums with what felt like clubs, but with an amazingly light touch for the sound. Gerard had a sampler on his guitar, and the tone was what I would have expected from the guy who signed Pavement and Yo La Tengo, except maybe a little drier. The instrumental songs I saw just kind of unraveled - intentionally. They didn't start out "tight" and they seemed to take their time scratching and wandering to a new place that might or might not have been the original destination. The second song had lyrics and I liked the ending, something about having to get away from here. It was time for me to go home, a busy and pretty successful night of discovering new music.

Thursday Rankings
1. The Blacks
2. Deskonocidos
3. Basic
4. Dikes Of Holland
5. Harlem
6. Golden Boys
7. The Air Traffic Controllers
8. Send Help
9. The Grave Diggers
10. The Action Is
11. Ripe]]> http://www.last.fm/user/kcasplund/journal/2009/01/08/2dr5md_austin:_free_week_2009,_day_6 Thu, 8 Jan 2009 06:36:47 +0000 http://www.last.fm/user/kcasplund/journal/2009/01/08/2dr5md_austin:_free_week_2009,_day_6 These midweek shows are tough for a working stiff like me. Made it to Emo's for My Education though, right after catching the first two songs from The Altars, a punk rock band. I've never been able to file punk rock bands properly, but they played hard/fast/loud and even soundchecked with the riff from Mongoloid. Pretty good, but I went in for My Education with no regrets. They were in the middle of their first or second song, with a very pretty bassline underneath a gentle violin melody. The set got heavy and noisy at times, but the thing that always gets me about My Education is how they seem like a country band, or at least the soundtrack to a movie about sharecroppers. They're all good instrumentalists, and sometimes I could really hear the lead guitar and the violin weave melodies around each other like you read about in melodramatic reviews, but I think I'd like them better if they all played about a third as many notes as they do - at least during the quieter parts. If each melodic idea was presented with a bit more sparse background, I think they'd stick to my ears longer. But, hey, it's not my band, and they were highly enjoyable. After they finished, I checked outside again and saw Iron Age play a few songs. An old-school 10-man mosh was on, and the band seemed a bit like I imagine Suicidal Tendencies did early on, but without the crazy lead guitar parts.

I also had a slice of Stony's pizza tonight, which I heartily recommend. More bands tomorrow, and the weekend will be back to full strength.

Wednesday rankings:
1. My Education
2. The Altars
3. Iron Age]]> http://www.last.fm/user/kcasplund/journal/2009/01/08/2dr52b_austin:_free_week_2009,_day_5 Thu, 8 Jan 2009 06:21:10 +0000 http://www.last.fm/user/kcasplund/journal/2009/01/08/2dr52b_austin:_free_week_2009,_day_5 I went two more up on Hannah in cribbage. 5-1 now, babe.]]> http://www.last.fm/user/kcasplund/journal/2009/01/06/2dlc5p_austin:_free_week_2009,_day_4 Tue, 6 Jan 2009 06:16:58 +0000 http://www.last.fm/user/kcasplund/journal/2009/01/06/2dlc5p_austin:_free_week_2009,_day_4 Scaled back Monday night edition...

I was actually going to skip the bands and go to Music Mondays at the Alamo Drafthouse @ The Ritz to see a soul music documentary called Soul Nite, but it sold out about five minutes before I got there. Debated going home, but decided on a quick run-through of all the clubs doing shows: Emo's, Red 7 and Mohawk tonight. Free karaoke at Beerland too, but nobody was there when I walked by.

Emo's had the best lineup-- or at least I'd heard of a few of the bands before, if no more than a vague idea what they sounded like. Sad Accordions were the first band inside, their music had nothing to do with their name. Instead, it was likeable jangly rock, somewhere between Pavement and Semisonic. The singer had an unkempt long Grizzly Adams beard with short greasy hair, kind of an interesting image. Went outside for Your Kisses Cause Crashes, who sounded a bit like New Order, but not that good. Still, it was pleasant enough, and I might check them out again. Back inside for UT's last-minute victory and Masonic, easily the most accomplished band of the night so far, and they put on a good Pretenders/X act.

I left midway through their set to check out Red 7, and got the first and last surprise of the evening. By A Long Shot was the band playing screamo/metal/whatever, and they were pretty horrible to my ears (except those awesome changes to half-time!). However, these guys had a trick up their sleeves: Rather than thrash wildly or simply headbang together, they all lined up and swayed to the music with their guitars like The Dick Clark Five! Is this common in screamo/metal? It was hilarious and great. Checked out after another half-song and went to Mohawk just in time to see The Harlequins start their set. They played very tame indie-pop, hip-to-be-square kind of stuff that was deathly boring until they broke out a type of squeezebox I hadn't seen before and fleshed out the sound nicely. Probably wouldn't see them again, but I did grab one of their free discs and we'll see if any of the songs grab my attention better on record.

Quick night. Monday Rankings:
1. Masonic
2. Sad Accordions
3. Your Kisses Cause Crashes
4. The Harlequins
5. By A Long Shot (by a...)]]> http://www.last.fm/user/kcasplund/journal/2009/01/05/2dimm0_austin:_free_week_2009,_day_3 Mon, 5 Jan 2009 07:04:52 +0000 http://www.last.fm/user/kcasplund/journal/2009/01/05/2dimm0_austin:_free_week_2009,_day_3 abbreviated version, I've gotta get some sleep tonight...

Went straight for Emo's inside and caught a friend playing in J.B.E.. Not really my (or his) favorite style of music, they were kind of jangly, folky, classic rock. The cello, violin and piano were nice, but the songs didn't stand out at all. After they finished, I went outside and saw The Astronaut Suit. They were mostly too polished for me, but still had some pretty good psych songs and took a few chances. One song in particular was a good dark rocker with a fairly heavy riff breaking up the verses. Prayer For Animals was playing mostly at the same time inside, I watched a little of their set before deciding that their bluesy-prog-pop songs were not worthy of their drummer, and bolted for Mohawk to see what I could catch there. Turned out that I missed both Attack (in)Formation projects that I wanted to see, but stayed a few songs for Follow That Bird!, one of my favorite Austin bands. FTB! was down to just guitar and drums, like the first time I saw them, but they still do their raw, swampy rock-n-roll as great as ever. Got back to Emo's in time to see the last few songs from Woven Bones, who played that classic Velvet Underground primal drone-stomp as well as anyone can ask. The bassist in particular had some nice grooves amid the caveman thud. I went in for Haunting Oboe Music when Woven Bones finished, and I was expecting some pretty good indie rock. The first two songs met all my expectations, but then they took a poppy Ben Folds turn and I got bored pretty fast. They were also pretty disorganized onstage, understandable with two drummers and a lot of instrument-switching, and that got a little tedious. Finally checked out the guy from The Black Angels, noted that it sounded even more half-assed than late-era Caustic Resin, and took off for the night.

Sunday Rankings
1. Follow That Bird!
2. Woven Bones
3. The Astronaut Suit
4. Haunting Oboe Music
5. Prayer For Animals
6. j.b.e.
7. Christian Bland]]> http://www.last.fm/user/kcasplund/journal/2009/01/04/2dg19f_austin:_free_week_2009,_day_2 Sun, 4 Jan 2009 09:00:07 +0000 http://www.last.fm/user/kcasplund/journal/2009/01/04/2dg19f_austin:_free_week_2009,_day_2 in bullet points!

• Ichi Ni San @ Club DeVille
New band getting comfortable, but I like the moody electronic pop. The live percussion and trumpet were nice additions.

• Dans La Lune @ Emo's inside
Heard some good things going in, but was really impressed by their British Invasion-filtered-through-Cheap Trick sound. There was one song that had a really great musical transition from chorus back to verse, the kind of hook that sticks in your head for days. The songs were good enough to favorably recall The Kinks and The Zombies, in addition to hints of Elvis Presley. They dress in '60s fashion and have cheesy stage moves, but excellent show overall.

• The Mercers @ Emo's outside
I think this would be what The Waterboys would be like live. The kind of '80s college rock that does not stick to my ears at all, though I do remember enjoying one song, I think it was a bit more folky. Big crowd seemed to like them though.

• Amplified Heat @ Emo's inside
Kind of disappointed in these guys. I left after two songs because it was just plain ol' bluesy garage rock. I was expecting more out of them, both from local buzz and from the guys soundchecking... They really had the look down, and the guitar and bass (especially) sounded great individually. This rock fan was ready for explosions, but the first couple songs were just formulaic and played without passion.

• Mr. Lewis & the Funeral Five @ Beerland
Evil roadhouse band, just stayed for a couple songs 'cause it's not really my thing, but they were good. The saxophone sounded good and Mr. Lewis used a slide a little bit on the guitar, singing songs about murder on the highway. It was a lot less like Tom Waits than I expected, which is a good thing for me.

• Hung out with friends at Club DeVille, then waited in line for about 10 minutes at Emo's before deciding that it wasn't worth it because most people really were there to see What Made Milwaukee Famous and they weren't going to leave to make room for people standing outside.

• Broadcast sea @ Red 7 out
I'd killed about an hour since Mr. Lewis, and kind of needed something good to keep me from heading home early. Got it. One of the guitarists soundchecked with the riff from The Dexterity of Luck, which made me lose track of the conversation I was having. The set itself was heavy, very much in the Slint/Shellac-damaged school of hard indie rock. A few songs near the end were a little too actual hard rock for me, but the meat of the set was the best music like this I've heard in way too long.

• The Gospel Truth @ Red 7 in
Young band going crazy, kind of a Jon Spencer freakout with saxophone and synth-organ. The drummer was great, he kept the music rolling at the brink of losing control. The first song especially was hard to pick out a riff or any structure at all, but it definitely wasn't just noise. I need to see these guys in a smaller, better-sounding room soon.

• Camp X-Ray @ Red 7 out
I only stayed for a few songs, but they seemed a lot more fluid than when I last saw them, more than a year ago. More good heavy indie rock, closer to straight punk than Broadcast Sea was.

Saturday Ranking (less extreme range than yesterday)
1. Dans La Lune
2. Broadcast Sea
3. The Gospel Truth
4. Ichi Ni San
5. Camp X-Ray
6. Mr. Lewis & The Funeral Five
7. The Mercers
8. Amplified Heat]]> http://www.last.fm/user/kcasplund/journal/2009/01/03/2ddgm4_austin:_free_week_2009 Sat, 3 Jan 2009 08:17:16 +0000 http://www.last.fm/user/kcasplund/journal/2009/01/03/2ddgm4_austin:_free_week_2009 After cutting back on shows during my baby boy's first year, I've been looking forward to this excellent chance to catch lots of local bands. The expansion from Emo's to Red 7 and Mohawk (and some nights Club DeVille and Beerland) is insane! It's like a mini-SXSW without the ridiculous crowds and the badge/wristband/cover lines, wondering if you'll be able to see the show you really want to see.

On Friday, 1/2, I started at Red 7 to see The No No No Hopes, but watched Sleezus Fist while The No No No Hopes got set up. Sleezus Fist was silly costume punk, with mohawks and fake blood to enhance the cookie cutter music. They looked to be young and having fun, but not my thing at all. The NNNHs played on the floor in front of the outside stage, and I was surprised by how much they reminded me of Railroad Jerk. They don't sound *that* similar, but the drummer swung rather than pounded, and it was good punk rock.

Next stop was Club DeVille for The Midgetmen. I've been planning to see them for years. They played some pretty mediocre indie rock the first few songs I saw, then had a really great bass-drum rhythm as the foundation of the next song. I thought I was hooked, but they chased me off to Mohawk by covering Don't Stop Believing. The heavier guitarist was really fun to watch for all the songs, though, I would catch them again if they play with another band I want to see.

At Mohawk, I immediately ran into some friends who told me to go to the show inside, but I had to check out Low Line Caller first. I've heard a lot of very promising things about them, "instrumental space rock band gets charismatic singer and gets *really* good" kinda stuff. I could only stand 1.5 songs of it, which I should have anticipated because there are very few charismatic-singer-types that I enjoy at all. And none of them are good by conventional (American Idol) standards, which this guy obviously was. I happily crossed that off the list, took my friends' advice and went inside where the kids were having a friendly mosh (with crowdsurfing!) to Zlam Dunk. Yes John, these guys are going to fill the void left by Clap! Clap! and Ghostland Observatory quite nicely. It was a pretty incredible mix of synth-pop and Jock Rock, and I shoved my way into the pit as fast as I could. You couldn't ask for a better party band than these guys.

I didn't feel like waiting around for other bands at Mohawk, so I went down the street to Emo's and walked in on the middle of the Silver Pines' set. They play wispy drony country-rock, but I was immediately struck by how great the drums sounded at Emo's. I have neglected that club too often recently, they really make the music feel like a big deal, much more than the other places in town. Silver Pines broke out the musical saw for one of their songs, but were otherwise unmemorably good. After they finished, I hustled outside for the beginning of Ringo Deathstarr's set. My friends Coma in Algiers played with them at The Parlor last year, and I guess Ringo Deathstarr was wasted...they definitely sucked, and I don't remember them having four members then either. They did not suck tonight, they sounded great on the Emo's outside stage. If they continue to get more popular, they're going to get more slams for sounding too much like My Bloody Valentine, but they pull it off well and of course it sounds fantastic live and loud. Without earplugs, I decided four songs were enough if I was going to make it through the next week of shows, so I went back inside and caught the start of Pataphysics' show. The singer was in The Zom Zoms, a band I liked more in theory than in practice, and the same seems true of Pataphysics. They have a lot of ingredients I like - jerky rhythms, new wave eager-to-please pop songs - but it seemed more flat and contrived than I want it to be. I may have just outgrown my affection for bands heavily influenced by Devo, I used to love Supernova, but probably wouldn't care that much about them today.

Decided I'd had enough for the night, but stopped in at Mohawk again on the way to the car and caught the last few songs from The Always Already. They're a good band and always worth checking out. I've seen them before in a couple incarnations, this time they had a bassist and a laptop in addition to the keyboard and drums. I still miss their guitarist from a few years back, and the vocals were mixed pretty low from where I stood, so it wasn't a particularly memorable show to me. Said goodbye to some friends and headed home to write this and save some energy for the rest of the week.

Friday Rankings
1. Zlam Dunk
2. Ringo Deathstarr
3. The No No No Hopes
4. The Always Already
5. Silver Pines
6. The Midgetmen
7. Pataphysics
8. Low Line Caller
9. Sleezus Fist]]>