One thing was for certain: Parquet Courts does not give any fucks about what other people think about them. The crowd at Neumos on Thursday evening was lackadaisical at best, most just trying to figure out what the hell they were listening to. Lots of head bobbing. To cut them a little bit of slack, Parquet Courts’ sound is not easy to define. There are no rules, or limits, to what these guys create. It’s not punk, it’s not rock, it’s just… Parquet Courts.

That kind of creative freedom can quickly become a hot mess. However, Andrew Savage (lead vocals, guitar), Austin Brown (guitar), Sean Yeaton (bass), and Max Savage (drums) make up the simple components of a band. Not doing more, or less, than they need to. They just do it all exceptionally well together.

Each member of the band was expressionless, not cracking a smile or interacting with the crowd throughout the set outside of “Thank you”s. Maybe they were trying to dumb down all the hype they’ve been receiving. Maybe the Seattle dogs I saw them eating outside pre-show weren’t sitting well in their stomachs. (Been there.) But ultimately, they put on a damn good, classically punk, live show.

Some the songs of last night were extended, others purposefully cut short. The most memorable moments from the set were when the quartet all stepped back, far away from the mics, moving and playing together in perfectly imperfect precision. It’s not refined, but these guys are definitely confident in their direction.

The band’s 15-track LP Light Up Gold landed them as a “Band to Watch” via Rolling Stone in April. In 2012, these same guys put out a collection of songs… on a cassette. At Neumos, Parquet Courts sang about donuts and getting stoned, closing the set with “Stoned and Starving” — naturally. And they did it all without a bit of cliché.