John Brodeur, Xray Eyeballs, The Clink - Slim's - 03/08/11

Is reviewing your own show a conflict of interest? Or just the pinnacle of egomania that one can possibly reach? I had considered passing it over completely, pretending it ever happened, assuming someone else would do the dirty work, (Roo told me the second we left the stage he already had his review mentally written). I am totally sure he won't be biased at all; I joke. He will be fair. I'll give you the stage-side view in a minute.

First up was Xray Eyeballs, a Brooklyn group fronted by the wildest little Asian dude i have seen on stage maybe ever. (I don't know if I've ever seen an Asian dude on stage, now that I think about it. and I am thinking about it hard. I am probably forgetting someone obvious and amazing. Someone leave a comment with another artist or band with an Asian lead that i have probably seen that will make me feel stupid for forgetting. Does the lead guy from Deftones count? He is only halfsies.) It was a Tuesday night at Slim's, none of us were really expecting a major crowd; there were mostly locals who would most likely be at Slim's anyway, and bands watching the other bands; this is where we came in. And I gotta tell you guys that came in late, you actually missed a hell of a show. I don't want to get hung up on looks or races or whatever, but this band was a total Benetton ad, I loved it! Adorable Pilipino front man, tall Slavic goddess bass player girl (dear god i love a girl bassist) and a gangsta ass Hispanic dude rocking a synth that i swear looked like he wandered in from Compton... I would have never picked out these people to be in the same band and if i did i would never have guessed the kind of music that came from them... it was fantastic! somewhere between early Sonic Youth, Screamo power pop, clean cut synth rock - all with the lead (OJ) going flipping WILD! This is my truest love; bands that play for the music, not for the size of the crowd. XRay Eyeballs could have been just having rehearsals, but we got to watch; they were having some serious fun and sounding incredible in the process. I later got to talk to them a bit (they were touring their way down to SXSW) and developed mini-crushes on every single person in the van. I wish them the very best of luck and I'll definitely be seeing you guys again!

John Brodeur; our headliner, although for some damn reason we went on last? I really still don't understand how this lineup happened. But John Brodeur is the main guy. When Jayseph told me who we were playing with, I of course went online and hit up sites and sounds; I liked what i heard, of course. Jay kept mentioning "he reminds me of Matthew Sweet" (which, by the way, is an awesome person to compare anyone to.) John is from New York, has a pretty solid rep and okay, man, he is totally cute. like, blush-inducing-anywhere-within-my-vicinity-cute. He took the stage alone, which was not surprising, but i wasn't expecting it really. and as a musician surrounded by bleeps and bloops and electronics, I was really super impressed with the myriad of pedals and toys surrounding his feet on stage. and then he began to play and i swooned. no fair to be that gorgeous and to have that voice and that level of talent! biggest mindblower of the night was the live sampling he did as the last song, something i have dreamed about a little. i may have should have talked to him about well, HOW THE EFF DID YOU DO THAT? but t this point, it was time to scramble and get going on final preps.

Ladies and Gentlemen, introducing: THE CLINK.

it went down like this: Jay's girlfriend runs in, fresh from Mardi Gras Party, throws big red (!!) beads around my neck and hands me a shot of something magical and alcohol-y. And hey here's something they never tell you; When you are in the band, they give you FREE BEER. After i found this out, i almost cried a little. I made Jay pinky swear with me that we would do this forever and get really famous so we never had to pay for beer again (isn't that the only reason anyone is in a band? I am kidding, btw. i think.) So I'm not going to say "hey we were so good and this is what we sounded like"... i don't know how to do that to myself. What I will say is that my god we had fun. SO MUCH FUN. and Whatever we actually sounded like to the crowd, I know that from where we stood, it was a blast. I could point out every time my computer glitched or i missed a cue or a note, but i later decided since it was really the first time we played out, no one knew what to expect anyway, so HA HA IT WAS PERFECT AND WE NEVER MESSED UP.

Roo has written me a letter:
---------------------------------------

Karla,

So, in the hours since your first show as The Clinks I have taken some time to think about how to write this review. I cannot write it in the same way I would write a normal review because I will be biased in your favor no matter what if I am speaking to the deep, dark chasm of the interwebs. I refuse to be biased in any way, so I have to write you a personal letter in a constructive criticism vein to be posted, or not posted, on your blog as a review. You're incredibly important to me, and I am very proud of you for moving forward with this musical endeavor, but you need open and honest feedback so you can continue to grow and improve. What you choose to do with this is up to you.

Before I get too far into this I want to just make the basic statements: 1) I enjoyed the show very much, and 2) I am so very happy for you that you've found this outlet.

Let me start off by clarifying how I understand The Clinks so you know where I am coming from. It seems that Jay, who is extremely talented, has been in a several different bands, including The New Euphemisms. It seems that TNE never really played too many shows in a row with the same line-up. It seems that he is finally letting go of that and moving forward with something new with you, but that in the time being you two are playing several of their old songs while you build up your own set lists. For this reason it is natural that Jay would play the role of the front man at the show. They were mainly, after all, his songs.

Now, if I were to comment on the dynamic between you two I would have to say that the two of you need to work really hard on writing new materiel so that your stage presence is balanced much more than it was at this show. Jay basically dominated the entire set. Again, that was apt to a point due to the situation as I understand it, but it was almost too much. He has an AMAZING voice, is obviously a talented musician and has a breadth of musical knowledge verging on rock-dork-supreme. BUT he still came on really strong and the presentation was such that he was often "the show" and you were tucked off to the side. He seemed to myself and several other people in the audience (read: our friends) that you were not given an opportunity to shine. Of course he has more experience than you at performing and making music in general and he is intimately familiar with the set list you were playing. I understand why he was the focus of the night, but at one point in particular it seemed like that took over and he stopped playing for the enjoyment of the audience.   

In between songs:

Jay: "Is the guitar too loud?"

Audience members: "Yes, it's too loud."

Jay: "Whatever, let's go..."

*music starts*

Now, the audience didn't stop enjoying themselves. I don't mean to imply that, but it was something akin to a DJ playing only obscure music despite the fact that people are standing around wanting to dance. There is a fine line between jamming out hard and being too cocky to listen to feedback your audience is giving you that could greatly improve your show. That being said, the sound at Slim's has always sucked and will always suck, so it may have been unavoidable.

Also, I really like Jay from what I know of him. He has a pretty stellar personality and I am glad he showcases that on stage. You two just need some balance and to watch your volume on certain instruments/mics.

My point in telling you this is to encourage you to make a strong effort to evolve into a band that plays songs you have written together or new songs you have written separately for The Clinks specifically. Do not allow this to be The New Euphemisms II. Make this new. Decide now that you will create a catalogue of songs you can perform together. Within a few weeks/months you should stop playing TNE material all together, otherwise there is no was to escape the imbalance.

Now, a few things about you. You were having fun. That showed BIG TIME! That is my favorite part of every band I enjoy live...that they are enjoying themselves. Just last night I was discussing with Jonny Tunnell and Sarah Fuller that the reason I love watching The Big Picture play is because they are having their own little party on stage and the joy they create as a band is infectious. Your happiness was that way. Of course I could sense your nerves, but I'm me and you're you and we can read one another pretty well.

To be honest, I was curious to hear you sing. It had been years since I heard you belt something out, and I didn't know what to expect. In reality, there are a lot of differences between now and back then and I didn't know what might have changed. Luckily for us all, you still have a beautiful voice. You'll want to work on your comfort with a microphone, but that's just something that takes a few attempts to really get down. At times you were too far away from the mic and it became difficult to hear you. Make sure you're within the right distance and at the right angle to be picked up properly. Also, your keyboard was way too loud. I know you knew this and that's why you decided to play it very minimally. That was really smart of you and improved the set dramatically, however I would have loved to hear you play more. Next time just be assertive and ask the sound guy to fix it. That's his job.

Have I mentioned you were really cute? I loved your look. It has little to do with the music, but I know it's important to you to present yourself well. You achieved that.

All in all I had a great time at your show. I loved your sound and where you're headed musically appeals to me a lot. Your beats were sick. Jay's musicality and technical ability on guitar is strong. I really think I enjoyed it separately from "watching my bestie play a show" and that makes me really excited to know what you'll come up with next.

I love you, and I hope this is helpful.

-Roo

-------------------------------

I really want to say thanks once again to all my friends for their support and for coming out. We are in a little transition at the moment (literally, jay is moving house and i am setting up the [electro] practice space in my house) and recording is imminent. stay tuned!

Future Islands Double Feature with Naps and Ed Schrader's Music Beat -- King's - March 3 & 4

I am completely incapable of casualness. I cannot have casual friendships, casual dating, casual sex, casual interest in artistic distractions. I must have my entire heart invested or I have no reaction. So let it be with music. I must be moved. I must have at least one mystical moment with a song or artist or i cannot invest my heart or time. This is the most important thing you must understand about me; i have no gray areas.

When I think back on my most magical musical moments, the moments that I can absolutely without hesitation confirm that changed my life, I realize there are some pretty intense events on the list:
1) the first time I saw U2 live; march 7, 1992 in Hampton , Virginia... the moment i realized i was, in fact, in the same room with Bono, Edge, Adam and Larry. The Hallelujah chorus at the end of "Running to Stand Still." - probably the most religious moment of my entire life.
2) the first road trip i ever took to see a then barely moderately famous band. A coworker, my boyfriend at the time and I drove from Raleigh to Richmond, Virginia to see Soul Coughing in 1996.
3) The first time i heard Daft Punk's "Rollin' and Scratchin'."
4) Even though I had seen them what feels like one hundred times; one of the last times I saw Trans Am live at the old King's, right after Red Line was released. Phil broke a string on his guitar... Rather than pausing and stopping the song ("Play in the summer") Nate and Seb continued with drums and bass only for what seemed 5 or 10 minutes while Phil ran off stage to change the string. I fell into a trance like I was Lucy listening to Mr Tumnus playing the pan flute. Sometimes when i listen to that song now, I wonder if my whole life is a total Jacob's Ladder moment and I am somehow still standing in front of that speaker.
5) Finding myself lost in the frenzy of a Future Islands show at the Local 506 with my best friend. Although I had seen them before, there was some sort of magic at this show that caused me to mystically connect with the band. I remember walking out of that show feeling high.

Some of us are lucky; we figure out what makes us happiest and we get to do it whenever we want. You might really like washing dishes - lucky you! you get to do this every day! You might really be into snowboarding; too bad you can only do this once in a while, but you get to do it, hey! Me? I figured out the one thing that will never let me down, that will always make me happiest; standing probably too close to a gigantic speaker at a decently sized venue and seeing a band I respect and adore.

I had every intention of writing a really fun, quippy, quick review about this two night double feature show. Maybe I waited too long and thought about it too much, maybe this is a good thing, but here I am and I got way too deep about it. The more I think about these shows and how intensely good they were, the more I think that something trite and silly would do a disservice to the experience. And these two nights were some pretty heavy experiences.

I bought tickets for both nights as soon as they went on sale, I know what's up when Future Islands plays in the triangle. We are cuckoo for these guys around here; they always sell out. I took Friday off because I knew I was going to be getting wild on Thursday night. I was with Roo and James R, we ran into a thousand people we knew, of course. Thursday night was a different world from Friday. Here is my theory: Thursday was the hardcore locals. Friday had a bunch of kids driving in from out of town who probably don't know how to react to the wildness of a the Raleigh crowd. This is one of my major complaints about Cat's Cradle and other such Durham or Chapel Hill venues... there is such an unspoken code of conduct that keeps people tame in carrboro. There are so many bands I have seen at Cats cradle where the crowd barely bobs their heads and the same acts in Raleigh results in blood loss and frenzy. Is Raleigh Rowdy? yes. We are hoodlums and drunks and rude boys and by god we have no code of conduct. (this is why Hopscotch was such a success, I believe. Hopscotch in Durham or something would have never worked. Raleigh gets Rowdy... Raleigh don't care.)

Naps first. Look, I'm not even sure I've ever "reviewed" naps or if i have intentionally left them off; this goes back to my inability to have a casual relationship with a band; Naps I have simply tuned out. They have somehow managed to be on the bill almost every week for a show I'm going to see. It features members of other bands I wind up seeing a lot as well (Lonnie Walker and Annuals) so I am always confused when what starts coming out of the speakers is something that makes me instantly walk downstairs to Neps like a bored zombie. I don't hate Naps, I just literally have nothing to say about them. Does that suck? I feel bad saying it, but I really like Lonnie Walker and Annuals, I just don't get Naps and I really don't get why or how a band so low on the energy scale got put on this bill.  The second night we didn't even bother going up until we knew for sure they were done. sigh.

Ed Shrader's Music Beat: now THAT'S what I'm talking about!!!! I ran into Sam earlier in the day Thursday and he raved and raved about these guys. He told me numerous times that he was so impressed by and drawn to their intensity. for Sam Herring to rave about someone else's intensity, I could not resist this. the first song or two of ESMB was another one of those "oh holy god, genius before me!" moments... I was so bafflingly impressed by what was happening in front of me that for the first time since beginning this review-venture I took my phone out of my pocket and attempted to "take notes" ...These are my notes, because i was too mesmerized to write more:
"OH FUCKING INTENSE. Minimalist? Art for Art's sake. all things I love. amazing! how much passion can you express with the least effort? intense!!!!!!"

That was the best i could do because I was literally so stunned and must have looked like a kook. I was kinda standing there with this shit eating grin, staring like I was watching a childbirth. The concept: Ed is standing center stage with a floor tom; guy named Devlin is standing to his right playing bass. The songs might be about 45 seconds long and just Ed Schrader screaming the same line over and over, or it might be a little longer and more melodic. The whole experience was pretty much a "seeing the light" experience for me. In my own band, I keep pushing the whole "art for art's sake" perspective; If you believe strongly enough that something sounds good, it will sound good. It's not about perfection, It's about passion. ESMB nailed this shit for me. It was like a sign from God telling me I was on the right 'artistic' path because look at the glory that can occur when you follow your heart. I loved Ed Schrader. (I loved Ed Schrader even more when he took his shirt off but I'm a dirty old lady.) I was really psyched to see them the second night, just to see if I was right; I was right. Just as good if not better the second night. Roo even kinda got into it a little on Friday night, when the night before I know he didn't get it. I have a feeling ESMB is one of those bands you have to get or you don't. I got it. (EDIT: Roo just texted me and told me to edit out that "kinda got into it"... he denies this but i maintain my perspective of seeing his head bobbing... THERE WAS HEAD BOBBING and I'm almost sure I heard him say "this doesn't suck as much as last night." I'm counting that as "getting into it a little" - read below for his true opinion - Friday night certainly wasn't my most coherent evening, it is entirely possible I'm making this all up.)

Ladies and Gentlemen, the main event: Future Islands. My god if you haven't seen Future Islands live, I am so mad at you. Why? Do you not believe in having fun and being penetrated in every orifice by magical music and wildly intense energy? Are you one of those non-fun having types? Do you hate art? No, you are not any of these things, you are just lazy, or maybe you didn't know. that's why you have me here to help you. I am here to guide you to the right experiences in life; i follow the gypsy music magic to the very best shows. keep an eye on my show calendar over there; I won't let you down. You should have followed my ass like the Pied Piper to King's for these two nights. There is nothing... NOTHING... like a Future Islands show.

You can listen to FI in the car, all alone, once you have seen them live and you will find yourself punching the air and making over dramatic faces at the cars around you, pulling your shirt and acting like you're falling over dead, pleading to the air. This is the effect seeing Sam go wild will have on you forever. It is impossible for me to listen to An Apology without going ballistic, I know better to listen to it in quiet public places or at my desk at work. I know what this music brings out in me. I am a passion junky - Future Islands is fueled by straight raw, bloody emotion set to the funkiest beats on the planet. There is some sort of animalistic draw to Sam. You see him, you want to go wild for him. You want him to know you feel it. You understand that pain and passion and love - you need him to know you appreciate it. Or hey, I do at least. Is it just me?

I thrive on irony, I dig on contradiciton, I love incongruity. I get excited when i get confused, I feel elation at epiphanies, I love suddenly realizing that someone or something is not even close to the thing or person I assumed that they were. I relish in the mysteries of life, I love surprises and I love that I have somehow managed to retain my childlike sense of wonder in life. And I very much love finding and recognizing this trait in others... and I am very specifically speaking of Sam Herring here. through a series of being in the right place at the right time, having the right friends of friends I have somehow gotten to know him a call him a friend.  On paper, on the surface, it would be easy to watch Sam in his Phantom of the Opera-ish frenzy and listen to the lyrics and write it all off as an act; this is what i love... It's not. There really is that much love, passion, drama and heartbreak in this man. You get close enough to the stage and it will penetrate into you. You have one conversation with him away from the noise and you will see it in his eyes. There really is that MUCH in one person. Sam makes me feel a little less crazy about being so crazy. Sam Herring is living art, he is a truly beautiful person.

night one: Wild. An absolute Frenzy. Several Stage crashes, bruises and backaches from dancing so hard. Touching and licking sweat, worshiping at the altar of passion. Here is the thing, if you've only heard the music and not seen the live show, you're only getting half the picture. You have to see Future Islands live... you simply must. You will be very best friends with everyone around you by the end of the show, you will fall into a trance. You will move and scream and dance so much you will feel lost in time. Thursday night, as I said before, was the hardcore locals... we lost our god damned minds.

night two: tame by comparison, but just as good. I had so many facepalm moments this night, however. Roo had a bit of quasi-personal drama so we hit it hard and we hit it early, starting with tequila shots at Mecca, pre-show. It started wild and only got wilder... for us... But the crowd was off. I was, of course, down front and center, ignoring anything that wasn't 100% intense. At the announcement of the "last song", I of course made an effort to organize a stagecrash, which didnt happen and resulted in just myself on stage, looking foolish but not really caring. (drunk.) I apparently did at one point get on stage with a big crew, as there is photographic evidence, but not one of my classiest evenings.

*facepalm*facepalm*facepalm*facepalm*

I'm trailing off here because I feel like this is entirely too long and perhaps too personal, so I'm going to leave you with the Roo-view. We decided to have a "versus" this time because we differed so much on Ed Schrader and we completely lost each other the first night and had semi-diffrerent experiences...


-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Now that you've read Karla's point of view on the Future Islands shows (3/3/11 and 3/4/11) I'll share with you the correct point of view. That's right sass-a-frass, it's on bitty. This our first vs. blog and we're fighting dirty. Fair warning, if you want to hear something positive skip down to the section about Future Islands.

Naps:
First, let me state that Naps needs to immediately disband so the members can focus on their current (and much better) musical endeavors and so not to discredit the rest of their musical careers. That's simply as straight forward as I can be. I'm not intentionally being mean. I am intentionally being honest. I like the other musical ventures of the members and I know that they are talented musicians. Honestly, I believe that. If you're in Naps and reading this please don't scream at me in public. I'm merely stating an opinion, and asking you to knock it off right away.

The problem is that Naps is so well connected within the music scene of Raleigh that they keep being billed to play with bands I have paid to see. I have seen them upwards of about 5 or 6 times, but I have never enjoyed them. Ever. They are slow and droning. Their vocals are mundane and monotone. There is no energy to their sets at all (with the exception of Brian Corum who almost always gives a good show). The lead stands cemented in place with a blank look on his face and mumbles, literally mumbles. The lyrics may be deeply inspired, but I honestly cannot tell. I have never made any of them out. I’ve also never been able to tell a difference between any of their songs. That is a problem given how many times I have seen them.

The following is an actual conversation I had at the show.
Jim: They seem a bit sleepy and too low key.
Me: I’ve seen Naps several times and haven’t ever liked them.
Jim: Their name is Maps, right?
Me: No, it’s Naps.
Jim: Oh, well then they nailed it.

I heard several comments from people I didn’t know talking about the band in this fashion. Again I revert to my first sentence. That wasn't just bitchy flair. It’s honesty. I really think these talented musicians are doing themselves damage by being affiliated with Naps.

The second night we went to Mecca instead of Kings for their set. I will say I enjoyed their set the second night in this fashion.

Ed Schrader’s Music Beat:

My friend Jessie’s friend Allison stated, “I suppose if you start off screaming then everyone will appreciate it when you start singing even if you aren’t any good.” This is the most apt comment I heard to describe them. The audience seemed genuinely split over this band. Karla’s opinion is wrong and I am on the other side…the side that didn’t enjoy them. I will say that either they were a bit better the second night or I knew better what to expect enough so that I didn’t hate the oppression of sound. Of course, they were built up a bit which allows for farther to fall. Karla and I saw Sam from Future Islands downstairs at Neptune’s Parlor before the show on Thursday and he described them as “one of the most intense acts (he) has ever seen” to Karla. At first I took this to mean they were good. Later I realized he simply stated the obvious. They are very intense.

Basically, they are two guys, one on a tom drum and the other on electric bass. The first guy screams the same sentence over and over a lot for about 45 seconds until he sings two or three lines. The end. If you like punk music you might like these guys. Then again you might not. They really aren’t very good. I mean, I feel like I would have appreciated them (not “liked” them, but “appreciated” them) if they were performing at an art gallery of some sort. I, however, was at a Future Islands show and had just suffered through Naps (also a possible reason they might have been better the second night). I will say that he had a lot of witty banter that I enjoyed during the Friday show. That was nice.

Future Islands:

I honestly just don’t know what to say about Future Islands other than that I will be really sad when they get to be such a huge act that I can’t be front and center dancing and sweating with the rest of my beloved city two nights in a row at a small rock club. That day is coming. I know. I’ve seen Shameless. They are due their success though and I won’t begrudge them that victory. At least they feel connected to Raleigh in special ways it seems, so we’ll probably get the personal treatment far longer than most cities.

If you haven’t ever been to a FI show…go. If you’ve been to a FI show and didn’t get to the throbbing masses of adoring fans in the front…shame on you. If you got to the throbbing masses in the front and just stood there behind your girlfriend while everyone around you undulated with an uncontrollably intense force… you were the guy in front of me for the majority of the show Friday and I hope your ribs hurt where I accidentally elbowed you so as to remind you of your inappropriate behavior. It wasn’t on purpose, but I don’t feel bad. You should have been dancing.

I will say that despite the sleepy lead in of Naps and the abrasive nature of Ed Schrader’s Music Beat, Future Islands still automatically brought a level of energy unparalleled at most shows by most bands. Raleigh was a little more amped up the first night for whatever reason, but FI held their own.

Good job guys. Come back soon.
---------------------------

Here is a view of YOU from the stage.

Here are other people's pictures from the second night because i totally forgot my camera.

The Big Picture, Gray Young, Fan Modine LBLB - 02/10/11

Sometimes in life we have to make decisions we don't want to make. Should you pull the plug on Aunt Eunice? Pay rent or the car payment? Date the guy with money or date the guy that can tie two cherry stems together with his tongue? Or even worse: When two bands you are dying to see play the same night... WHICH DO YOU CHOOSE?

I had such a decision to make, and in retrospect I think I made the right one. Thursday night there was a show I have been very excited for and longing to see. BATHS was playing with Star Slinger at the Duke Coffee house. I love Baths. Star Slinger is probably one of my favorite DJs of the now. There were a few drawbacks: 1) School night 2) Durham 3) Duke coffeehouse, to my memory is very small 4) no presale of tickets, they were only being sold at the door. As I had absolutely no gauge as to how many people may have interest in this show or how full it could get, I didn't know when I should get there; If the show as at 10, do I get there at 7 to line up and make sure I get a ticket? could I walk in and get one at 10? I didn't know and I didn't want to waste a whole evening standing around in the cold in Durham, making sure I could get into this show. there were just too many "ifs"... Then the clincher; dammit. Gray Young announced they were playing Local Beer Local Band the same night... aw hell; no need to ponder the decision... I was going to Tir na Nog; .........GRAY YOUNG YAAAAY!

First up was a "band" called Fan Modine; I'll admit I did not spend the time to research this band, other than reading a quick write-up on WKNC's blog. Seemed legit. I watched a few minutes of what I can only assume was Donal Logue singing Karaoke. my reaction:

Other people seemed kinda into it. Is this the whole band? Did the whole rest of the band bail? The review I read said something about horns and strings and nothing about just one dude. What happened here? Roo seemed to like this a lot, he asked for the camera and snapped a pic or two. I did my whole, I HAVE FRIENDS HERE I AM DRINKING LETS GO HAVE A CIGARETTE thing through this set. (PS - I've decided I'm going to stop apologizing to bands I ignored. but this is where I would do such a thing, I if I still did such a thing.)

HOWM? WHAT YOU MEAN?

The lineup was not as advertised, (no big deal this time, phew!) and so Gray Young was up next. Just in time Jay and Luc the Unicorn (Of Halloween Caribou Misadventures fame,) arrived. So many friends! Much needed. Love you guys!

Luc the Lionheart. One of the best people I know! <3 <3

As the boys began, I did what I do; I got right down front and left my friends somewhere lost in the crowd behind me. As per usual, here is a GY digression: As I told you in my last post, my Grandfather passed away this past weekend. My brother and I drove up together (to Mt. Airy) and about 5 minutes into the trip, I had the brilliant idea to share GY with him, as he is probably one of my select few overzealous U2 fan comrades; we listened for the entire 2.5 hour trip. In between talking about engine sizes and quoting The Highlander back and forth to each other, we interjected with comments and compliments to the band. I can't say 100%, but i think we have another convert! yay!

One of the greatest things I am learning about seeing Gray Young is the handful of us at the front who LOVE GRAY YOUNG. I love us. we are the Superfans. It's nice to know you aren't alone in your obsessive adoration. So before the GY set, I was informed by both Dan and Dana (Dopko's GF) that Chas had, in fact, read my last review and was particularly amused by my soulmate comment. My only (drunken) response: "YOU TELL HIM - NO TALKING! DON'T SPOIL THIS FOR ME!" Apparently soulmate had other resources at his disposal... During the performance of Vermilion, the song of which I went on my gushy tirade in my last GY post, he positioned himself right in front of me. This might have been a challenge, an invitation, a mockery, a complete coincidence magnified by my overactive imagination and alcohol consumption, but mostly all i could think was:

HE KNOWS.

We got all the ones in on this set, maybe an encore, as my set list that i burgled ends with Tilling the Wind, which is not, to my recollection, the song we ended on. I had tempted fate and myself by actually filming a video of this set (one song - Meridian) but it is literally unwatchable. It is shaky like I have Parkinson's, I am standing directly in front of a monitor, and I am hollering "WOOOO!" literally every 28 seconds (approximately). I won't torture you with its poor quality, however I may upload it later for poos and hahas. 

to be sold on eBay in approximately 2021 for $4,000+.

This set's emotional response for me was magnified by the fact that I now know I have a GY army. I have seen Dana and James at other shows, and we have a couple that weren't present this night, but they do exist!

For Realsies: The magnitude of this performance was also magnified by the presence of so many close friends who i adore. But mostly the depth of gratitude I felt in being present for this show was intensified by my recent loss and how raw I felt/feel. I am a person who honestly likes to dwell on pain, it influences me, it propels me, sometimes i like being sad. sometimes I like to poke bruises to see if they still hurt as bad as they did last time. I don't know if this quality in me can be easily lumped into the "she just emo" category... I think it has more to do with the "I accept and understand the necessity of pain and mortality too well not to tempt, acknowledge, romanticize and roll it around on my tongue every so often." I do know this... after the week I just had, Gray Young poked my bruise. and it was a good hurt. I needed it. Thank you, boys.

NO TOUCHING OF THE GRAY YOUNG, BLONDIE

PS -FIX YO BARRETTE 

I can't be sure, but I think I am being seduced.

Next; Roo's newly and sternly proclaimed "New Favorite Local Band!"... The Big Picture! These guys are mesmerizing! The first time we saw them was at Moving Island and we were kinda smitten, and If puppy love was blooming at that show, I think we both may be having a deeply intense love affair with this band at the moment. I had asked Roo to write his review of this part of the show for two reasons: I am dying to see what passionate response this band has brought out in him & I really enjoy his writing. And I had hit my "I forgot what my true mission in being here point" and was perhaps a little too tipsy to focus. SO HEY I FOUND SEAMUS!

Seamus Kenney of EVERY BAND EVER fame. 

I like his quote about this picture: "I look like an Irish Rasputin"

I can tell you this: Jonny Tunnell may have one of the BEST voices I've ever heard live. This band's sound is so eclectic I have to wonder how in the world they even figured out what to do? Like ..."okay one... two... three... EVERYBODY PLAY SOMETHING AMAZING!" and it just happened. Of all the instruments on stage and all the noises coming from all over the place, I can't even name the sounds. Am I hearing a washboard and someone blowing over the top of a pop bottle? Is someone playing the monkey sticks and a slide whistle at the same time? What in god's name is up with the almost unbearably hot shirtless black guy playing the drums back there? How did this band happen? I know Roo can and will write a better Roo-view about what we saw here. I am still in the deciphering process. Big Picture is playing again Friday April 15 at Motorco. Assume we will be there. I'll assume you will, too.


ROO-VIEW:


The Big Picture, I think, is aptly named. That's a huge compliment. It's a very large picture, after all.

The first time a saw this band was at Moving Island's Buoyancy Benefit in January and I was not prepared. Stepping into the performance space on West St. was half like walking into some abandoned building and half like someone had taken all of the furniture out of someone's home. It was forceful, but intimate. The Big Picture brought that same feeling that night. They were band, but they were also a group of people genuinely having a good time together. They didn't seem to mind that their band was large and their stage was small. They didn't seem to mind that they were obviously swapping sweat with the same frequency as making sounds. Not only did they not seem to mind this intense closeness, but they seemed to revel in it. They were familiar with one another, and I felt they were being familiar with me because of it. I loved them. I said so. I told them that "my face melted off" that night because they were so good.

I was really excited to see them play again at Local Band Local Beer. For those who do not attend this weekly function, shame on you.

The night came and I was right on time. After missing Cassis Orange a week earlier at Double Barrel 8 (I still harbor resentment for that) and missing an acoustic set by Kid Future the week before at Buoyancy Benefit (because they went on 45 min early or so)...I was determined NOT to miss The Big Picture. So, yes, 10 pm came and I was there, waiting.

I waited.

The marketing eluded to Gray Young being the main act, but they went on in the middle of a three band set. I won't talk about the other bands much as Karla has asked for my thoughts on TBP specifically, but I will say two things. 1) Fan Modine seemed strange at first and I thought it was a bomb, but after two songs I started getting interested the performance and was basically sold by the end of the set. 2) Gray Young gets better every time I hear them.

Finally it was time for TBP to take the stage, which they did...then they evacuated it...then they took the stage again. I'll be honest, I don't know who is who in this band with the exception of Jonny Tunnell (see: the highlight of my Double Barrel experience in an earlier guest blog appearance). One of the two drummers came up and did some silly little ditty at first. It was cute, but didn't really serve as an introduction to what was about to happen. What happened was amazing. There is a genius in this band. They jump around, trade places and instruments. They share voices and moods. Just when you think you have this band pegged down and definable someone else will come up and offer lead vocals or someone will put down an instrument and pick up a band mate's guitar. With two drummers the music is definitely up beat. Jonny serves as a lead man at points, but at other times you can't help but notice how talented the others are as well. Over all it's a well orchestrated mess of a good time. What I mean is they seem to have a good time with each other, to make the audience have a good time with them and then play the two off of one another to create a really intense synergy. I have seen a lot of bands get a crowd going, but I have seen few that did it with this level of intensity.

They have no discernible style or theme. They each have their own thing going on. They seem like people who would have as much fun at a seedy dive bar as at a wine tasting or on a backpacking trip. Hmm. Now I kind of want to go backpacking with them. That's a huge compliment, too.

OH! also there was finally some new beer on the "local beer" side of things. thanks, Fullsteam! I liked the beer that tasted like Cheerios!

WKNC Double Barrel Benefit 8, Night One - King's - 02/04/11

On Friday morning February 4th, my maternal grandfather, Claude, (91) sat up in bed, asked my aunt for a Tylenol, laid back down and quietly passed away. It's not a surprising death; we had all asked ourselves for quite a while how much longer he could last without our Granny, his wife, who had passed away the year before. They were married for almost 70 years and never spent a night apart. (When people ask or wonder about my outrageous expectations for true love, my grandparents are all the example i need.) We all think he was waiting for us to be okay without them, that he was only going to let go when we were ready to let him go. It was heartbreaking; I was and am mostly brokenhearted for my mother and her siblings. There was no need to leave town just yet; mom and dad left right away and my brother and I left Sunday morning.

In my pity party state, in which i spent the majority of my day furiously cleaning the house and napping (I am denial master), Roo called and asked if I'd like to join him for the first night of the Double Barrel Benefit at King's that evening. He had recently discovered a local band, Cassis Orange, that he was very keen on checking out. Double Barrel was an event I wasn't really super hyped to check out... As i had told some other folks "this is one of those shows I'm not talking anyone into going to with me, but if someone wants to talk me into it, I'll go." I agreed to go because I had a feeling distraction was a good plan to not deal with the crushing sadness in my little heart.

I got up to King's around 9 or 9:30, and a band was already playing. it was Cassis Orange... wait, what? I creeped up front and found a couple friends. I heard two Madonna cover songs and then turned to ask my friend if they had only played Madonna cover songs? they replied that they thought so. then they announced they were about to play their last song, which, coincidentally, was a Madonna cover. This whole time I am texting Roo furiously. The night started backwards and only got worse.

I had a hard time this night (not surprisingly) and I asked Roo to tell his side of it all, as I lost the majority of the night in an alcohol soaked sadness haze.

Roo Review ... aka Roo-View #1 (in a hopeful to-come series!)
At about 9:30 p.m. this past Friday I thought to myself, "What's that? A text message during dinner? Hmm, it's a bit rude usually, but I'll check it anyway since we're expecting to meet up with people for the first night of WKNC's Double Barrel 8."


Text from Karla: "Cassis Orange is playing first. Now."

Dear Seamus Kenney, Congratulations on being in EVERY BAND EVER.

This was the point I started disliking this show. I never stopped disliking this show.

(Roo ponders the likability of this show.)

(Roo decides No. Does not like.)

We rushed through the last few bites of our dinner to get to Kings and hopefully not miss the entire Cassis Orange set. This band's myspace is really why I bought the tickets at all (http://www.myspace.com/cassisorangemusic). Now, some might be thinking it was my fault that I missed the band as the show started at 9 and we arrived around 10. However, I will squash your rebellious uprising by stating that EVERY PIECE OF MARKETING (including the websites) showed the line-up as The Old Ceremony then Bright Young Things then Luego THEN Cassis Orange. I will squash it, and I will put my thumbs to my ears and wiggle my fingers while making a childish garbled mess of mocking sounds at you.


We arrived while the second band was setting up. That second band was..? Yep, Luego. Apparently some college kid, in his infinite wisdom, decided to completely reverse the show from what all of the marketing had said. Now, you might think it was silly that I bought a ticket to a show if I only liked the one band. That is not the case. I like Bright Young Things, and I was eager to see Luego live for the first time. I listened to The Old Ceremony online and decided I could miss them. That is the reason I arrived at 10 for a 9 p.m. show.

Who is this band? Luego? Who cares. Beer.

Now, despite the fact that the line-up would have been spectacular as published (see: slow rock gaining speed and ultimately leading to a dance party), I was resigned to standing through what must have been one of the hottest nights I've ever suffered at Kings and occasionally fighting my way through a sea of people toward the bar. At one point I actually told Karla that I wanted to "stand toward the back so it wouldn't be so hard to leave."


Luego. I don't get them. They may be alright, but Friday wasn't their night. All I saw was a blonde boy speaking Spanish poorly.


BYT. I like them in general...but after missing the band which was my draw, suffering through the heat and Luego and realizing that the only thing yet to come was a band I had already decided once that day I could miss...we left half way through the set.


We crept down to Neptune's a few times to get easier drinks throughout the night, but even it was packed to capacity by the time we were leaving and the energy was getting crazy in a "where have all the locals gone?" sort of way. Walking away I quipped "Downstairs is too much and upstairs is too little."

The face of Peer Pressure. Talking Roo into doing shots in honor of my Poppa.

The highlight of my Double Barrel 8 experience was meeting Jonny Tunnell (Of The Big Picture)

We left and started having fun when we got to Mecca.

----------------------
Snob's Points to Ponder/Announcements:

Jackpot Alumni Club, Alert: We have lost Neptune's. There hasn't been a time in the past couple months it wasn't overrun with creepers and polo shirts. this makes me very sad because all of my friends who work there. It makes me really sad to think of my bartender boys and favorite DJs having to deal with that crowd. I'm sure I'll still make it downstairs once in a while, but as Roo said; too much. Go to Mecca. go to Slim's. Hopefully this crowd will tire of our spot soon enough. I'll keep you posted.

I don't remember much of this show because I dealt with my Poppa's death in the true German tradition: I got way too drunk. One of those nights were I was on a beer-leash. I went where the alcohol gods took me. Here are some of those places now:

In summation, despite the waste of a show night, I have incredible friends and Thank you very much for all the calls, support and love in this painful and sensitive time. My family and I are very grateful. I wouldn't mind a hug or a beer or three next time you see me out... xoxo