Sound Bites

Hot Chip + Matthew Dear | Music Hall of Williamsburg | 4.08.2008

Sometimes I feel like write too much about Hot Chip. (Maybe I just don't write enough about other artists is the problem.)  But then they play a show like this and I know, at least in the case of this band, it's justified. Hot Chip absolutely killed it last night at Music Hall of Williamsburg. There's a special place in my heart for the Bowery Ballroom show in March '06 where Pat Mahoney played drums, subbing for an ill Felix, but this was easily the best full-lineup show I've ever seen them play.

It's been interesting watching the band evolve over the last three years, both on record and live. I don't think they've ever played the same song the same way twice. "Boy From School" seems to get the most radical reworkings, which last night segued seamlessly out of show-opener "Shake a Fist." They use different synth sounds and percussion, while keeping the little guitar riff that is the song's pulse as a constant. I think they just get bored and fiddle with the arrangements and it keeps things fresh for us too.

The main set was a nonstop dance party, with the bulk of Made in the Dark plus "Boy from School," and "Over and Over" from The Warning, plus a welcome but unexpected "Crap Kraft Dinner," my favorite from Coming on Strong. The sound was great (I don't understand the MHOW haters) and the crowd super-psyched, as was the band. Al especially, who'd spent the afternoon in a pub watching Liverpool beat Arsenal. The encore we got the two slow-jams from the new album, plus "Don't Dance" and a killer "No Fit State" which Alexis managed to work in a bit of "Temptation" (previously worked into "Boy from School" at Webster Hall last summer). As much as I don't want to see them stop playing venues this size, they are ready for the Terminal 5s of the world.

Setlist: Shake a Fist | Boy from School | Bendable Poseable | Touch Too Much | Over and Over | Out at the Pictures | Wrestlers | Crap Kraft Dinner | One Pure Thought | Ready for the Floor | ENCORE: Made in the Dark | Don't Dance | No Fit State | In the Privacy of Our Love

MP3: Hot Chip - Crap Kraft Dinner (buy some Hot Chip)

Opener Matthew Dear was pretty great too, playing with his band Big Hands. Much more minimal than on his great album from last year, Asa Breed, his live presence was kind of like the souls of David Bowie and David Byrne were trapped in the body of Timothy Hutton. wearing the skinniest jeans ever and a Euro-fitted jacket and shirt, Dear spazzed out with one of the most impressive arrays of hand-held percussions instruments, including at least four different shakers and this clickety-clack thing that I'd never seen before.

Midway through his single "Don and Sherri" he welcomed Hot Chip to the stage and the song morphed into their version of the song which has been appended to a new version of Asa Breed. It was awesome.

MP3: Matthew Dear - Don and Sherri

MP3: Hot Chip - Don and Sherri

Bao Nguyen took some awesome shots for Brooklyn Vegan, so be sure to check those out.

Follow My Tangent: Hot Chip, Matthew Dear, Free Blood, Music Hall of Williamsburg

The North American leg of Hot Chip's Made in the Dark tour kicked off last night in Philly and finds them mostly playing big venues like New York's 3000-capacity Terminal 5 (where they'll be on Saturday). When I first saw them three years ago at Rothko I would've never imagined they'd be as popular (or as amazing) as they are now. I don't like the idea of having to see them in such giant places but what can you do? Luckily, they still seem to make time for some smaller places, like tonight's show at Music Hall of Williamsburg.

For most of this tour the opening slot is going to Free Blood, which is Madeline Day and ex-!!! guy John Pugh. They've been around for a few years now, mainly playing here in NYC but this tour is likely to up their national profile. It's definite party music, but more specifically I'd call it sex party music. Not that I've ever been to a sex party, but I'd have to imagine Free Blood's steamy bump and grind would be a perfect lotion to the motion.

Live, it's the chemistry between Maddy and John that make it happen as there's not a lot else going on onstage. John will occasionally strap on a guitar, and those have been the best moments at the last few shows of theirs I've been to. (Most recently at Lit about three weeks ago which is where this picture was taken.) Without it, it drifts into karaoke territory -- really good karaoke but that's basically what it is. There has been a gaping hole ever since the exit of bassist Gorman (who is still in !!!) about a year ago, and they need something else "live" to kick it up from Fun to Awesome. The records, though, are pretty much already there. Just in time for this tour, Free Blood released their second EP, with "Grumpy" being doled out to the internets:

MP3: Free Blood - Grumpy (from EP 2, buy it from 7 Digital)

Meanwhile, The Daily Growl offers up a remix of that track from Edinburgh's Found.

Here are the Hot Chip/Free Blood tour dates...

4/11/08 @ 9:30 Club in Washington, DC
4/12/08 @ Terminal 5 in New York, NY
4/14/08 @ Paradise in Boston, MA
4/17/08 @ Vic Theatre in Chicago, IL
4/18/08 @ First Avenue in Minneapolis, MN
4/22/08 @ Showbox in Seattle, WA
4/23/08 @ Crystal Ballroom in Portland, OR
4/24/08 @ The Fillmore Auditorium in San Francisco, CA

Tonight's opener, however, is Matthew Dear, who apparently got his hard drive stolen at Galapagos last night while DJing there. Not sure how that happens, but it sucks. He just reissued last year's Asa Breed as Asa Breed - The Black Edition (buy) with a bunch of remixes, including a cover version of his single "Don and Sherri" as done by...wait for it... Hot Chip. I like the original plenty, but the 'Chip's take on it is great too:

MP3: Matthew Dear - Don and Sherri

MP3: Hot Chip - Don and Sherri

Though Dear DJs a lot, tonight is him with his band, Big Hands, and maybe if we're lucky we'll get a Hot Chip or two onstage to join him for "Don and Sherri." He's on at 9pm, if you've got tickets.

And, finally, speaking of Music Hall of Williamsburg... they've now got a happy hour. From 6pm till the first band starts, well drinks and draught beers are only $3. Which is nice 'cause there aren't any other bars to go to beforehand in Williamsburg.

Super Furry Animals | Music Hall of Williamsburg | 1.25.2008

"So our next song is 'Northern Lights,' which will be played in the style of Teenage Fanclub." It was that kind of show. After seven years of touring with electric raincoats, 5.1 stereo sound, elaborate visuals and celery-chomping gorillas, Super Furry Animals were back to basics.

Now, "basics" is the 'Furries world still means having room for a laptop and a Power-Rangers helmet but this was, more or less five guys playing nearly two hours of great songs with the ability to keep things loose and change it up if necessary.

Which brings us to that Teenage Fanclub version of "Northern Lights." The song, from 1999's Geurrilla, normally has a tropical vibe with steel drum and mariachi horns. I'm going to guess that there were laptop problems with this one so they just decided to play it straight. I still prefer the original -- maybe one of my favorite SFA singles -- but it was cool to see them just sort of winging it.

The band played for nearly two hours, with a mid-show break to "grab a drink." We got most of their new, return-to-form Hey Venus! and probably three songs off all the other albums, except Mwng and Love Kraft which only got maybe one each. But I can't say for sure. Highlights for me were "If You Don't Want Me to Destroy You," "Zoom!," "Receptacle for the Respectable," "She's Got Spies," "Slow Life," and "Into the Night."

There were a couple firsts at Music Hall of Williamsburg, one being this marked their Brooklyn debut. Second, traditional epic show-closer "The Man Don't Give a Fuck" clocked in at around five minutes, and was followed by Guerilla's "Keep the Cosmic Trigger Happy," ending the night. I'm certain this was the only time I've seen them since the f-bomb laden, Steely Dan-sampling single was released that it didn't close the show. There were some shenanigans too. Gruff Rhys engaged the crowd in a little audience participation, getting everyone to wiggle their fingers on top of our head like "jazz antlers" or something. And, of course, the robot head.



Sound was good, though it seemed a little quiet till they got to "Zoom!" and the sold-out audience didn't really get into it till then either. Well, except for this dude who was totally into it, much to the occasional mortification of his tolerant girlfriend. (I've been that guy before.) Then there was the dude next to me who played Othello on his cellphone during the entire show. To each his own.

MP3: Steely Dan - Showbiz Kids

I only caught the last four songs of openers Holy Fuck but they were good as usual. Expanding beyond the live dance music vibe they had in effect when they opened for Forward Russia, there was a definite Who vibe going on this time. Hope they come back soon.

Also in attendance: Punk Photo; SPIN, Vulture, and the Voice; Photo swiped from ryandombal's Flickr photostream.

Super Furry Animals' tour is only just beginning. See all shows and request a song, though apparently the widget wasn't exactly working correctly as of Friday.
 

Sondre Lerche | Music Hall of Williamsburg | 11.26.2007

Sondre Lerche is charming even when shilling. Monday night's solo show at Music Hall of Williamsburg was kind of like watching an extended segment of a talk show where the blonde Norwegian relentlessly plugged Dan in Real Life, the romantic comedy he scored. In-between songs from the soundtrack, he told stories of how director Peter Hedges (who was in the house) asked him to do it; how he wrote the song "To Be Surprised" while a scene was being filmed in the next room; how he met the cast of The Office at the Dan in Real Life premiere; how awesome he thought the movie turned out... etc.

It would've been kinda nauseating if Lerche wasn't so genuinely enthusiastic and generally psyched about the whole experience. And if the songs weren't good. (It was still a bit much.) Remember, the Dan in Real Life soundtrack is his second good album this year -- the other being the fantastic, underheard Phantom Punch. The only real downer of the show was that I was under the impression of that he was going to be there with his backing band, The Faces Down. No, this was him solo. Which ended up being totally fine. Lerche is one of those performers, like Billy Bragg, Elvis Costello and Robyn Hitchcock who can hold a big room's attention with just a guitar, a sparkling personality and some great songs.

He had the mostly-female audience in the palm of his hand, who were singing along often and loudly. It was really cute, especially on "Modern Nature," where they filled in Lillian Samdal's part of the duet. Lerche played for maybe 90 minutes or so, hitting all his albums plus a cover of Elvis Costello's "Human Hands" (from the DiRL soundtrack). He also performed an abbreviated, impromptu cover of Scritti Polliti's "The Word Girl" after some girl screamed out "Scritti Polliti!" for seemingly no reason. (I think it was maybe better than the original which featured some seriously icky '80s production.) Part of me considered yelling "Orange Juice!" in hopes of a "Consolation Prize" cover. But I didn't do it. The only time I really wanted the Faces Down to be there was for The Phantom Punch's rockin' title track, yet he still pretty much went to town on his instrument.

It baffles me why he's not more popular. Anyone who's seen him live leaves charmed yet Music Hall of Williamsburg was only half-full at best. And at only 25, he's got plenty of time to gain more fans.

MP3: Sondre Lerche - To Be Surprised (buy the Dan in Real Life soundtrack)

MP3: Sondre Lerche - The Phantom Punch (buy The Phantom Punch)

MP3: Scritti Politti - The Word Girl (buy Cupid & Psyche 85)

I also shot video of "Modern Nature":

Dirty on Purpose | Music Hall of Williamsburg | 9.28.2007

Any post I write about Dirty on Purpose is going to be a little biased as they are friends of mine. But I would be a fan even if that wasn't the case I would like them -- their melodic, shoegazer pop hits all my buttons -- and I genuinely think they just keep getting better.

Friday was the last night of their tour with Fujiya & Miyagi and their first time playing at Music Hall of Williamsburg. This was easily the best sounding gig of theirs I'd ever attended. MHoW's sound system is state-of-the-art, and Dirty on Purpose sounded epic. Arena even. Guitars roared and chimed. Yet everything was crystal clear, the bass and drums, everything where it should be... maybe the vocals were a little low but that always seems to be a problem with them. DoP are a band of quiet singers.

Despite being openers it was clear there were plenty of people there to see them -- it was a hometown audience and all. A set full of crowd pleasers -- "No Radio," "Marfa Lights," "Car No-Driver" -- plus a new one (the tremolo-heavy "Audience") from their upcoming Like Bees EP, another new one that I don't think they've recorded yet, and their cover of Real Life's synth-pop hit "Send Me an Angel" which they've been doing for about a year.

The latter I'm sure started as a joke but over the last six months or some has really come into its own and is now genuinely awesome, with George Wilson's guitars going into freakout overdrive. It's still dancey, a little gothy, but with that MBV treatment to it. It would sound brilliant on Gossip Girl in one of the show's many over-the-top party scenes... someone get Alex Patsavas a copy of the EP now.

MP3: Dirty on Purpose - Send Me an Angel

Fujiya & Miyagi | Music Hall of Wiliamsburg | 9.28.2007

This was my third time seeing Fujiya & Miyagi this year and they were good as always, had most of the crowd dancing throughout their set -- still no easy task at a rock club.

The set felt almost exactly the same as F&M's seaport gig earlier this summer, kicking off with "Ankle Injuries" and hitting some of their more Krautrock-y material before getting to the funky stuff -- "Transparent Things," "Colorbone" and "Uh."

I would've liked to have heard a new song, but I didn't really mind as I really enjoy watching guitarist David Best and bassist Matt Hainsby play their instruments. Hainsby is so good at laying it down, his playing is impossibly groovy. He knows his funk. And Best has a distinctive style, very minimal, somewhere between Prince and Andy Gill, where every note counts. Now if they'd just get a drummer... which I'm told they're in the process of doing so and will debut as a four-piece next year. New album or no, that would alone warrant seeing them again.

Buy Fujiya & Miyagi's Transparent Things

Les Savy Fav + Cheeseburger | Music Hall of Williamsburg | 9.21.2007

"They're never gonna let us play here again" worried Cheeseburger guitarist Eric Dufresne, following their debut at the brand-new Music Hall of Williamsburg, a show involving four piñatas that left the stage covered in shredded paper and candy. I'm not sure if that was something MHoW told them, or just a general fear but following headliners Les Savy Fav's wild performance, I can't imagine it seemed as bad.

Les Savy Fav's new album, Let's Stay Friends -- their first in six years -- had just been released on on Tuesday, so this was a bit of a record release party. Also the winner of their "make our video" contest had been announced and the $1000 prize was to be given out that night. Given to Bunny, the five-year-old who charmed the world with her spirited lip-sync of "The Equestrian." The band presented Bunny with an oversized novelty check before launching into the contest song, giving the some confused kid a toy guitar. Tim Harrington tried to get to get her to sing along, and then tried to get her to ride him like the stuffed horse -- neither of which she wanted to do. I think she was just cranky from being up way, way past her bedtime.

I've never been the biggest fan of Les Savy Fav's music but I rarely turn down a chance to see them live. (And I actually like the new album, my opinion is obviously changing.) Most reviews of Les Savy Fav shows tend to read the same -- that crazy Tim Harrington -- it's just the particular crazy stuff that changes. This time we got: Tim dressed in polo gear, then stripping down to just shorts, then wearing a weirdly realistic wig, a variety of shirts; ran through the audience and climbed the banisters; and old pal (theirs, not mine) Fred Armisen joined the band on "Pots & Pans."

The crowd, as usual, was going berserk for all this, beers were flying, and for this I was glad the upstairs balcony was open. It's really nice, by the way, more like Irving Plaza's than Bowery Ballroom, with a big separate upstairs bar and a little bleachers in the middle -- a nice nod to the former space. There's even an elevator, though where it puts you out downstairs I'm not sure. It was also empty up there, I'm not sure most people realized the balcony was open. Let's hope it remains that way.

Cheeseburger, meanwhile, have gone from being a band known for drunken buffoonery (and I mean that in the best possible way, I know most of them) to being pretty awesome. There's still some schtick to their shows (the piñatas) but it doesn't take away from the songs, and they've built up a big fanbase -- it seemed like much of the sold-out crowd was just as much there to see them as Les Savy Fav. As for the afformentioned mess, it was a bit wild, but certainly not anything you wouldn't expect at one of their shows. Not sure what the big deal was.

Photo swiped from Aarrgh!'s Flickr photostream.

Apples in Stereo + Aqueduct + The Old Soul | Music Hall of Williamsburg | 9.16.2007

Maybe it was just an excuse to check out the newly-opened Music Hall of Williamsburg (you can read my impressions of the place here, but the gist is they turned Northsix into Bowery Ballroom) but Sunday evening turned out to be a great show, with three somewhat like-minded groups.

I don't think I'd seen Apples in Stereo since 2000, when they were touring for The Discovery of a World Inside the Moon, which I didn't like very much. Also around this time, head Apple Robert Schneider started singing (live, not on record) in this high, nasally voice that I found offputting... I sorta lost interest in the band after that. (I guess so did he, they took five years off.) But then I heard a couple tracks off of this year's New Magnetic Wonder and really dug the psychedelic bubblegum direction the band had taken and found myself psyched to see them again.

I would've been more psyched if they had started before 11pm (Jeez, it's a Sunday!) but I live mere blocks from the club so I didn't worry so much. Apart from Schneider, this is a very different lineup (well different drummer at least) the the Elephant 6-era group I saw many times in the late-'90s. A much tighter, better band, with a keyboardist dressed like Captain Midnight. Lots of harmonies and I was wearing earplugs, so I couldn't really tell if he was still singing that way.

MP3: The Apples in Stereo - Same Old Drag (buy it)

Both openers were good, and I would say Aqueduct were reason enough to go by themselves. I certainly knew more of the songs played than for Apples, even if I'm not as big a fan of their new album, Or Give Me Death, as I was 2005's I Sold Gold. Singer David Terry, who kind of looks like a burlier Dave Grohl, is a real charmer, self-effacing, funny, and generally one of the nicer guys on the indie rock circuit. (OK I don't really know what that last part means, but he's a sweetheart.) The last time I'd seen Aqueduct, actually, was at NorthSix where they played to about 30 people. A bigger crowd this time (though not too much bigger) but nearly everyone there seemed to be genuine fans. Terry mentioned the NorthSix gig, complementing the Bowery Folks on what a great job they'd done transforming the space -- and just how kick ass the sound was. Best moments were the Princess Bride-inspired "As You Wish" and "Keep it Together" from the new one, and "Heart Design" and "Growing Up with GnR" from I Sold Gold/Power Ballads.

MP3: Aqueduct - As You Wish (buy it)

The evening started with Toronto's The Old Soul, who I'm not quite sure how to describe. The brainchild of keyboardist Luca Maoloni, the band's songs are kind of '70s-ish in a hurdy-gurdy, Tin Pan Alley kind of way (Harry Nilson and Randy Newman come to mind). The Old Soul are also a band who has a song about Robert Wyatt, and cover one of the more infamous bedridden Brian Wilson era Beach Boys songs, "Vegetables." (Before their show, Friendly Fire label dude Dan Koplowitz told me that Van Dyke Parks prefers their version to the Beach Boys'. He seemed serious.) The album is a crazy carnival of sounds that might be a bit much to take as a whole for some but there is genius in there. Live, though, it all made sense. Despite being short a few members -- only five of eight made it below the border -- the songs really clicked and took on new life -- and order. I especially enjoyed watching multi-instrumentalist Andrew Innanen who played a big tom, keyboards, glockenspiel, tambourine and more. They have yet to capture that spark fully on record -- maybe their next album, though -- but I'd go seem them again live in a hot second.

MP3: The Old Soul - The Nectar of the Nitwit (buy it)

Here are the rest of the Apples in Stereo / Aqueduct tour dates... don't miss 'em!

Sep 19 2007      9:30 Club     Washington DC
Sep 20 2007     Maxwell’s     Hoboken, NJ
Sep 21 2007     World Café     Philadelphia
Sep 22 2007     Lincoln Theater     Raleigh, NC
Sep 23 2007     Unplugged in the Park     Atlanta
Sep 25 2007     40 Watt Club     Athens, GA
Sep 26 2007     Common Grounds     Gainesville, FL
Sep 27 2007     AKA Lounge     Orlando
Sep 28 2007     Culture Room     Fort Lauderdale
Sep 29 2007     Crowbar     Tampa
Sep 30 2007     Beta Bar     Tallahassee