One of two terrific experimental/noise/whatever shows to happen in Denton this week, the other being the Doom show Tuesday with RUN DMT/Take up Serpents. Tuesday's show was so far my favorite show of the summer, with Ariel Pink and Quintron close contenders. Perfect mix of the unexpected, audience coagulation and sweat. I gave a stranger a ride home after the show which ended sometime after 3am. The entire ride their eyes were wide open in post shock from the nights performances, or possibly some DMT that was consumed earlier. We discussed how difficult it is to pin point what exactly it is about these live experiences that are so enthralling. The general consensus was the power they have to bring people together to experience a performance that most would never dream of attending. But back to this show. Experimental Birthday Band features members of Ghostcar while ...Deflowered Electric Flesh Bride features Aaron Gonzalez. I'm sure tonight will end up like a avant-garde version of Hee-Haw with members on and off the stage at various times. Recommended.
The show starts at 9pm and it is requested that you leave the premises promptly after the show is over so the cops don't show up. This is a great place for shows and we all want these to happen more often don't we? So don't be a dummy and linger in the street trying to pick up half drunken girls, get over to Dan's cause I bet the show will still be going on over there. If you are lucky I bet you can convince the girls to follow you.
Curvette remind me of the experimental instrumental stuff that came out of the early nineties via Chicago like Gastr del Sol or Tortoise but with a dirtier southern grace. I can get bored easily by music of this type but these guys have a energy more akin to a jazz trio that keep the songs exciting from the get go. The songs seem tailored made for live performance and crowd surfing.
The other contender for weekender video was of course Nervous Curtain's All Yesterday's Parites. A very well done and funny video. Could this be a break out single for Nervous Curtains, I am putting twenty dollars down that they will be opening for Norah Jones next year.
Happy Birthday | Residual Echoes | Fungi Girls (The Nightmare) Happy Birthday certainly seemd to be a band for the age of the MP3 blog, snapped up and signed by Sub Pop after a mere three gigs and a few tracks floating around the internet (most noteably "Girls FM," the song that earned them a lot of their early praise and buzz). Its a sensational overnight success story for sure, and its almost enough to make you forget that the group's music actually sounds like little more than a lo-fi Fountains of Wayne and Beulah rip off, but it all kind of makes sense when you think about it-- for bloggers and other industry fringe types, Happy Birthday is as sure a bet as you'll find: a brand new band of fresh faced goof balls doing a slightly off center version of very digestable pop music that's catchy enough to possibly result in a blogger receiving credit for "breaking" them to the world, but just "quirky" enough to maintain credibility if the group doesn't go over all that well, meaning that the "hey its just my personal taste bro" defense can be invoked if a blogger gets called out for promoting something boring and/or derivative. Just like a lot of the bands getting shoved down our throats these days (Best Coast, Tame Impala, The National, Titus Andronicus, etc.), Happy Birthday certainly has some things going for it, including a few stand out tracks and a boatload of good intentions, but at the end of the day, the experience of actually listening to them doesn't even come to close to what you'd expect if you read the sloppy, overenthusiastic fan-boy slop that constitutes much of underground music journalism these days. Who would have thought that the "democritization" of the media would lead to the promotion of such middle of the road music? And its good to see Fungi Girls back in town after a brief tour.
Nerfbau | Take Up Serpents | Run DMT | Tonstartssbandht | Vulgar Fashion (Majestic Dwelling Of Doom): There was a recent discussion in this blog's comments section about whether or not "noise is legit" or something like that. Wait, are we still on that? That's like asking if the internal combustion engine is legit or some passing fad. Weird.
Tonight's Doom Show features two sets of bands on tour together, and one of the most solid Denton acts left from the Great-Not-To-Mention-Inevitable-Denton-To-New York Migration Of 2010. That is not at all a knock against people moving to New York, which I hear a lot of around town. I say get out however you can, to wherever you can, whenever you can. There's nothing noble about stubbornly pledging your allegiance to any part of the world and you should never let a place define you. ANYWAYS:
Nerfbau is a West Coast act that plays in an "ear ripping" and yet scratchy and crumbling style, and is on the more antagonistic side of noise-making. Their tour-mates, Taking Up Serpents, seem to be a little more restrained, however both acts incorporate a lot of unsettling and strange sounds.
Run DMT is from Baltimore and plays much more accessible music; a fairly familiar brand of colorful psych pop that would probably appeal to everyone from the kind of old-souled middle-schooler you may have seen at the Hailey's show last night, to the kind of cassette nerds that read Wire and know more about everything than you do. Here's a New York Times article on the beloved Silent Barn DIY venue that mentions Run DMT, and you can go the artist's Myspace page for some free Mediafire releases.
Tonstartssbandht is touring with Run DMT, and seems to have a similar deconstructionist view on melodic music; the most potent example being "Black Country," a ridiculous reworking of Big Country's namesake song and one of the most charming pieces of pop I've heard at work today.
Screening: The Dungeon Masters (The Texas Theater, located at 231 West Jefferson Blvd. in Oak Cliff) Was there ever any doubt that Kevin McAlester was the superior host when one looks at what he's done since his years on The Adventure Club? Not only did he have the best taste when he was a Dallas DJ, he went on to make a very well-received documentary on Roky Erickson, and now it looks like he's continuing to do quality work with a much different (though they might share some of the same subject matter if one considers Erickson's lyrical content) topic: the frightening world of RPG-obsessed individuals, and their often difficult balance of real life and fantasy. The Youtube preview above looks pretty interesting and is just another example of why Josh Venable increasingly looks like a high school bully that listens to third-rate Britpop and continues to hang out on campus long after graduation.
I did not spend too much time on the dirty boulevards of Santa Monica in the late 90's/early 00's so my introduction to Ariel Pink's did not come until the Tiger Paw re-issues and frankly I wasn't all that impressed. By this time I was already becoming frustrated with Animal Collective as they began to define the current state of "indie" music and I perceived Haunted Graffiti as just an extension of that self indulgent and in my opinion boring approach to pop music. I didn't want to give up on Ariel Pink because there were so many things I found unique about the music. The REALLY lo-fi production, existential junkie ramblings and Ariel's natural charisma all had me wishing that his work wasn't so hit or miss. For every gem in that early oeuvre there seems to be an equally stinky mess. I would still prefer to clean up after Haunted Graffiti's droppings than Animal Collective's any day.
The thing that really punched me in the face wasn't his performance last year at Hailey's where I wasn't expecting much and didn't get much. Instead it was the tour only compilation Grande Exitos, compiled by either himself or some very good friends, that helped solidify my near waning interest in his work. Track for track that compilation is an amazing collection of songs by an artist with a creative and innovative approach to pop music that his previous releases didn't quite articulate. Having all of those really strong songs in one place, easily digestible in one sitting got me excited again about what the future had to hold with his work. Critics who often reference, whether as a compliment or critique, the way the music sounds like "70's AM pop through the skewed vision of a mad genius" are missing what I see as the true appeal of his music. Where others hear retro-reconstruction, I see the future.
Before Today is one of my favorite releases so far this year and is in the exact direction I was hoping the music would go. The album is polished yet retains the bizarre naivete that made those earlier songs so strong. Here the songs are not only polished but constructed with in the parameters of a well put together album, which was the only logical next step for him to become/remain a truly prolific artist. Ariel's signing to 4AD and the fact that the album contains a couple re-worked cuts from his past (Evolution is a Lie, Beverly Kills, Can't Hear my Eyes) leads me to believe he has been receiving my telepathic career advise. As we have mentioned here previously the album also contains accompaniment from Added Pizzazz (Yells at Eels) which means that he is utilizing ideas from other weirdo musical communities to help perfect his own art as well. I am keeping my fingers crossed that mid set Ariel will stop the show to call up his boys from Pizzaz they will subsequently pull their instruments out of their incognito briefcases and rock out to an extended version of Hot Body Rub.
I would like to sponsor a tour named Frank's All Girl Summer Noise Pop review which will include tonight's opening artist Puro Instinct along with Best Coast and Dum Dum Girl's. We will travel the world playing mall food courts and county fairs. It will make millions I tell ya, millions! I know all these bands sounds equally redundant, disposable and derivative, but boy do I love all of it.
I would recommend arriving at Hailey's a little earlier than usual. My experience with Hailey's and bigger shows is that if you arrive after nine you will be waiting outside for at least a hour to get in, remember this isn't 90's night. It is hot as fuck outside, even once the sun goes down which the many fine folks that attended the Denton Animal Rescue benefit yesterday can attest to.
