Recent Stories in A&E with tag live music

City Arts has posted video of Macklemore's set from their monthly singer-songwriter event, The Song Show.  January's performance took place at the Triple Door, and also featured Damien Jurado (his video here), Jesse Sykes, and Tomo Nakayama of Grand Hallway.  As far as The Song Show goes, each performer talks about their artistic process and then plays some songs.  The SunBreak's Don was on hand and was impressed by the honesty that each songwriter displayed, but it was Macklemore's performance that seemed to really surprise him:

Macklemore reminded me that rap could be about something more than how big the rims are on your SUV. Rap, too, could be deeply honest. Macklemore's lyrics hold nothing back. From a questioning of blind consumerism to a rap about overcoming the spectre of addiction to drugs and alcohol, Macklemore backed up his interview with Todd Hamm, when he claimed he "would rather be as honest as possible."

When it comes to February's edition of The Song Show, we got nothing. City Arts' webpage makes no mention of it, nor does the Triple Door's calendar, nor the Can Can (where previous months' shows were held).

the department of safety, courtesy of their flickr

On Saturday, the Department of Safety ends its long run with performances by Phil Elverum, Lake, Karl Blau, and Arrington de Dionyso. Started in Anacortes in 2002 by four ambitious and romantic artists in an abandoned midcentury modern police and fire house with a whimsically pragmatic manifesto ("There once was this theorist named Plato. He had definite notions of a utopian vision of the way his 'ideal state' would run. We are--by no means--attempting to create an elitist utopia. We just want to sustain ourselves while creating art in a community."), the venue aimed to be a place for youth culture in a town known mainly as a home for retirees and a place to pass through on the mad rush to the San Juan Ferries.

Despite non-utopian aims, the quartet did some pretty magical things to the space: jail cells were turned into recording studios, an ammunition locker became a darkroom, the upstairs bunkers made way for living spaces and a tiny hostel, and the garage was outfitted with a stage for a concrete-floored performance space. Over the last eight years, it was a home for artists in residence, gallery shows, live performances, and the What the Heck festival. Sean Nelson's chronicles of its early days (in the Stranger) capture the inspiration that kept it afloat for nearly a decade; some comments from Phil Elverum in 2007 capture some of the frustration of building such an endeavor in a small town....

coachella, the poster.

Today Goldenvoice released the 130+ band lineup for Coachella, the de facto kickoff to the long spring and summer season of music festivals. Held annually at a sprawling polo grounds in Indio, California during the middle of April (the 16th to the 18th), the event falls at just about the point in the year when a few scorching days in a grass-covered desert sound like the perfect remedy from a soggy spring. 

Although the big names (Jay-Z, LCD Soundsystem, Them Crooked Vultures on Friday; Muse, Faith No More, Tiësto on Saturday; Gorillaz, Thom Yorke????, Pavement on Sunday) might motivate a visit to your favorite travel website, the intrigue of this festival is almost always the eclectic mix in smaller print. ...

An image from Chris Cab's Birthday last year @ El Corazon, care of watermelon4linz, via Flickr.

There comes a time in everyone's life where they have to set aside all of their attempts at being cool. At times, you just have to give in to the things you like without worrying about who is watching or what you look like.  Saturday night's show at El Corazon was one of those times.

There's a hierarchy of perceived musicianship that I would like to share with you now. This is, of course, completely my opinion and pretty arbitrary and general. Here it is, from most musical to least musical:

1. people that compose classical music
2. people that play classical music
3. people that play and/or compose jazz tunes
4. popular musicians who write their own songs
5. popular musicians who don't write their own songs
6. cover bands
7. Milli Vanilli  (or any other lip-sync acts)
8. karaoke singers...

Let's say you had the power to convince popular and excellent musicians to set aside their original compositions and accept the horrible stigma of being in a cover band. Whose songs would you get them to play? What would be the special occasion that would convince them this was necessary? How much would you charge people to see this spectacle?

If you're Chris Caballero (a.k.a. Chris Cab), notorious Seattle music personality, the answers are easy. You would get your friends from local bands like Kane Hodder, Schoolyard Heroes, and Sirens Sister to play your favorite punk songs by Jawbreaker, Minor Threat, Botch, Screeching Weasel, Black Flag, and more. You would absolutely have this happen for your 30th birthday. When that was successful, you'd repeat the process for your 31st, of course. And, most importantly, you wouldn't charge anything.

El Corazon will host this ridiculously fun, sing-along show this Saturday, beginning at 10 p.m. (doors at 9). Entry is free, but you have to be 21+ to attend.

Meh. That's what I thought of Mudhoney in 1993, after seeing the unabashedly scrappy band open for Pearl Jam. And what I've thought, for almost as many years, of New Belgium Brewing's beer resume.

Sometimes you're just wrong about shit.

Lucky for the ignoramuses among us, Mudhoney's still around and making fantastic fuzzy rock. In fact, as announced yesterday, the band's exhibiting its classic grunge style at Neumos next month. Also fortuitous: New Belgium's plugging the massive hop-hole in their product line with the new 7% ABV Ranger IPA.

But what really has the angels singing in my animated, clouds-parting sky is this: Mudhoney is playing Neumos on February 8 to celebrate the launch of said India Pale Ale. (As is opener Sleepy Sun.) And you can catch the iconic act's set for free by purchasing a Fat Tire amber (still...meh!) at Moe Bar. (No ticket price is listed on Neumos calendar, and no Mudhoney show exists at TicketsWest, so this, what, four dollar? beer may be your only means of admission.)

Get thee to Neumos that Monday, fellow ignoramuses (and already-enlightened ones). A Mudhoney show can change your life. Great beer can too, but unless there's a Ranger keg tapped (as there damn well should be), it probably won't happen this night.

Chop Suey had a respectable turnout last night for Portland's Cars & Trains, especially considering it was your typical rainy January Monday.  (But so warm!  I didn't even wear a coat!)  Anyways, the crowd was there to see one-man band Tom Filepp make his electro-folk-pop via furious multitasking (see the vid above from his performance at the Lo-Fi two months ago).  As I said before, dude definitely keeps busy, but somehow he makes it all look easy.  Well, as easy as it is to use a laptop while playing a guitar while tooting a little horn while playing a mini-glockenspiel while singing.  CHILD'S PLAY....

Back in 1970, in the middle of the Cold War, Garrick Ohlsson went to Warsaw and showed the Commies what for by becoming the first American to win the International Frédéric Chopin Piano Competition. Now, 40 years later, and in the 200th anniversary year of Chopin's birth, Ohlsson is playing a pair of Chopin recitals as part of the President's Piano series at the UW World Series. The first evening is Wednesday, Jan. 13, where the tentative program includes the Impromptu in F-sharp Major, Op. 3; Ballade in A-flat Major, Op. 47; Fantasie, Op. 49; Two Nocturnes, Op. 27; Scherzo No. 3 in C-sharp Minor, Op. 39; and 24 Preludes, Op. 28. The second evening is Tues., Feb. 9; tickets are $37 general public, $34 subscribers, $35 for UW staff and faculty, and $20 students.

Cars & Trains is really just one guy: Portland-based multi-instrumentalist Tom Filepp.  Filepp makes dreamy singer-songwriter folk-pop, but accents the acoustic guitars with little electronic flourishes.  Not so much that it's twee or overdone (see Owl City), but just enough to separate him from the rest of the hushed bedroom crowd.  His second album The Roots, The Leaves is out later this month (the 26th), with a remixed version of the album available the same day that includes such like-minded musicians as Universal Studios Florida, Melodium, and Ernest Gonzales, all of whom crafted their own nuanced take on Cars & Trains' tunes.

In his musical mishmashes, Tom deftly mixes electronic elements and found sounds with acoustic instrumentation as varied as woodwinds, banjos, guitars, strings, and glockenspiel.  It's tech-driven yet organic, and if that sounds like a contradiction, it is--but it works, with Tom's thickly layered breathy vocals sitting atop all those rambling sounds, giving them a natural, cohesive fit.  Tonight at Chop Suey is your chance to see him loop everything together live. I'd say that based on the above, during his set, dude keeps busy.

• Cars & Trains play Chop Suey tonight, along with the aforementioned USF and Big Spider's Back (it's the latter's headlining CD release show).  Doors 8pm, show 9.  $6, 21+.

At the Triple Door on Wednesday, four local artists shared their deepest songwriting secret. I can sum it up in one short phrase: Be honest.

City Arts sponsors a concert/documentary series they call The Song Show. This edition was the first for them at the Triple Door (instead of the Can Can), and looked to be nearly sold out. Just before the music began, I settled in at my table with a friendly gentleman named Tom. He was there to see Jesse Sykes, I was there for Damien Jurado and Tomo Nakayama (of Grand Hallway). We were both expecting to learn something about local hip hop from Macklemore's performance. In the end, we got to see an amazing show and learn a whole lot more.

Between songs, Nakayama, Macklemore, Jurado, and Sykes talked about their various philosophies of songwriting. The details varied as much as the songs, but the overarching theme was one of honesty. Whether it was a painfully beautiful orchestral pop song, a "conscious" rap, a depressing folk ballad, or a '60s hippie-tinged tune, the message was the same. Each singer firmly believed in being true to themselves, and through that truth, they found beauty in their own music....

My New Year's resolution was to see 50 shows in 2009. I thought this was reasonable for a person with a job that requires me to get up at 6 a.m. Yet, like most people, I did not fulfill my New Year's resolution. I got 39 nights of rock and roll in with 122 bands. Not too shabby, but I'll try to do better in 2010. My five favorites are recounted for you below.

#5. Classics of Love, Mike Park, Dateless, The Damage Done - The Grn Strp House - 3/14/09

As someone who discovered punk rock in the early nineties, it makes sense that Operation Ivy is one of my favorite bands. The Bay Area ska/punk band was an influence to a whole decade of punks and made Lookout Records famous well before Green Day came around. When singer Jesse Michaels disappeared after their first record, punk rock hearts were crushed everywhere. He had a short comeback with Big Rig and then got back into the swing of things with reggae/punk band Common Rider. His new project Classics of Love wanders back into straight punk songs.

I got to see them with Skankin' Pickle and Asian Man Records mastermind Mike Park as well as two local groups in a small punk house near the freeway. There is absolutely no better situation than a hundred and fifty or so people crammed into the living room, their breath condensing on the walls, waiting for their hero to take the stage so they can rock the hell out. When Park started playing "The Crowd" by Op IV and Michaels joined him on vocals, it was like it was 1989 all over again and we were ready to take on the world. When Classics of Love played, we did, in fact, rock the hell out.

#4. Cumulus Festival - Chop Suey/King Cobra/Vera Project - 1/23/09 to 1/25/09

The second I heard about the Cumulus Festival, I bought a three-day pass. While three days of (mostly) instrumental music might not be everyone's cup of tea, I was super excited. Seattle is the perfect place to foster this genre of music. With extraordinarily talented musicians and long, dreary winters, we are primed to create a musical revolution. The wide variety of bands at the show underscores the depth of talent we have here and the wide variation that is prevalent in the instrumental music genre.

I spent several hours that weekend riding on emotional crescendos and decrescendos, shaking my head at ridiculous musicianship, basking in various light shows, and no small amount of rocking out. I discovered a ton of new and awesome bands. I shared a unique experience with a couple hundred like-minded people. I am very much looking forward to Cumulus Festival 2010.

#3. Grand Hallway + Seattle Rock Orchestra, The Maldives - Fremont Abbey - 9/17/09

There are bands that simply break your heart with their beauty. Grand Hallway and The Maldives are two of those bands and they played together on the same night. The Fremont Abbey has amazing acoustics for orchestral pop and alt-country ballads. I wallowed around in the sorrow and beauty and reverb and melodies. I'm man enough to admit I cried a little bit during "Sirens," the saddest Grand Hallway song ever. It was a particularly emotional night for me anyways, but two beautifully melancholy bands put it over the edge. I'll remember this show for quite some time.

#2. Sunny Day Real Estate, The Jealous Sound - Paramount - 10/16/09

Though I discovered punk in the early nineties, I had started to grow up and get all emo by about 1995. It was fortunate, then, that Sunny Day Real Estate released their first record the year before. I played that record so much that I even memorized the gaps between the songs. When the second record came out, I did the same and made up my own lyrics since the liner notes didn't include them. When I went away to college, however, Sunny Day Real Estate and I went on separate paths.

At the Paramount, hundreds of people got to share in the heartfelt reunion of an influential Seattle band. Sunny Day sounded amazing. Their songs were tightened up on a month of touring and they were just as emotional and real as ever. No giant light shows or ridiculous theatrics, just them and us in a huge concert venue. It was a great finale. Meanwhile, the new song they debuted made us think that their story might not be over yet. We'll see what 2010 brings....

Things happen for a reason, and not talking to Zia McCabe prior to The Dandy Warhols' December 11 gig at Neumo's was one of them.

Instead of eking out a few scant minutes of conversation amidst the tumult and noise of an impending show, we spoke one week later at leisure, over the phone for a good forty minutes. McCabe oscillated between committed artist, doting mom, restless kid, and music geek—a combination that makes for many engaging tangents.

In a lot of ways, the keyboardist has undergone more intense personal transformations than any of her bandmates. McCabe was still a teenager when she joined The Dandy Warhols. Now, to a great extent, she's a full-fledged grown-up—the first of her comrades to juggle parenthood as a rock musician (band leader Courtney Taylor-Taylor, now an expectant father himself, follows her example in just a few weeks). As she explains, though, she's still not the mini-van-and-picket-fence type.

How did the tour go?

It was only three shows [two in Portland, one in Seattle]. They went really well; I don't know if you stuck around for the Seattle show, but I think that was the best show we've ever played up there.

I was there. I've seen the band live three times, and I'd definitely agree that it was the best I've seen you.

Courtney pointed out that we hadn't played in Neumo's in forever, and aside from them being absolute Nazis about their backstage rules, it just shreds in there, sound-wise. There's such a fun, super-rock sound in 'Mo's that I think it made it really easy for people to move around and feel the music. That kind of reflects back to us.... It was an easy gig to play.

The audience was definitely into it. It's the most packed I've ever seen Neumo's....

...And Seattle crowds aren't usually super-responsive to us. It felt more like a Portland show than a Seattle show....

It's a little before 7 p.m. on Friday, December 11. I'm standing outside of Neumo's, fighting back the winter chill and doing a little happy dance over the free parking spot I've found just across the street from the Capitol Hill club. In just a few minutes, I'm meeting Zia McCabe--keyboardist for Portland's favorite shoegazing Artful Dodgers, The Dandy Warhols--for a pre-show interview. The hell with jaded rock journalist detachment: I'm pretty stoked.

Back in the mid-nineties, when most of indie rock was in still in the throes of whinging post-grunge, McCabe and her partners in crime (lead singer/band mastermind Courtney Taylor-Taylor, guitarist Peter Holmstrom, and drummer Brent DeBoer) had the unmitigated gall to proffer a shiny, catchy, sexy sound that was equal parts sixties pop yumminess, seventies new wave, and eighties college rock; all stirred together with deadpan humor and hooks to burn. It's a rich, fat sound that I've been in love with for over a decade, and speaking to one of its architects promises...

At all "last" shows, the band must perform three acts:

1. say thanks
2. invite some friends on stage
3. achieve catharsis

Saturday night at El Corazon, two bands fulfilled these three requirements in front of a sold out, all-ages crowd.

Kane Hodder seemed almost gleeful about their band's demise. They created a bit of a funeral theme to it and put in a lot of work for things like screenprinted posters and funeral programs. Some bands are ready to be done.

They thanked everyone profusely, satisfying a third of their responsibility easily. Their thanks were not forced or awkward, but natural and genuine. This is one of the reasons I've like Kane Hodder the few times I've seen them. The dudes are not pretentious or false, they are just up there sharing as much of themselves as possible in an authentic way. And it was clearly an emotional night.

This emotion was meant to be shared, so they also invited friends up to stage dive and sing along. Some friends had not seen the top of a crowd in a while and others would be joining them again in the future. It seems like all of the Hodder kids are in new projects, whether they be new bands or new lives. Some of the same strains of that old band will undoubtedly carry on in the new ones....

Exohxo and Santa

'Tis the season for Christmas songs, I guess. While the malls and grocery stores are blasting out tried and true covers of carols and seasonal songs, indie rockers are in their basements making cute and clever recordings of more obscure selections.

If you're tired of hearing "Let it Snow" by Dean Martin, Gene Autry's "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer," or the best Xmas song ever, the Jackson 5 version of "Santa Claus is Coming to Town," I have a local solution for you.  And, unlike most the rest of the Christmas songs ever made, the goal is not to cash in on our generous spirits, but to simply spread some musical cheer.

Local indie septuplet Exohxo have released five freely downloadable X-mas songs for your listening pleasure. Their carefully placed orchestrations and They Might Be Giants indie voices will bring new joy to the following seasonal standards:

1. "All I Want for Christmas is You" [yes, Mariah Carey's song]
2. "Blue Christmas" [an old country song, but Elvis popularized it, of course]
3. "Shchedryk" [a Ukranian New Year's carol, says Wikipedia]
4. "Snoopy's Christmas" [Guest vocals by Speaker Speaker's Colin McBride]
5. "Happy Xmas (War is Over)" [Guest vocals by the amazing Shenandoah Davis]

To download, follow this link: http://tinyurl.com/exohxmasmp3s. If that doesn't work, try this one: http://tinyurl.com/exohxmas. There seems to have been some difficulty with one or the other for some people.

Exohxo are playing next at Q Cafe with Post Harbor and Trevor Davis this Friday, December 11. It's all-ages and starts at 8 p.m.

Happy holidays!

Japandroids playing the Capitol Hill Block Party this summer, care of everybody's favorite photog, joshc.

Chop Suey last night was a major dude fest.  Not that most rock shows aren't--it's a simple fact that your basic concert tends to have more men than women in attendance (and no, John Mayer doesn't qualify as a "rock show").  But for Tuesday night's Surfer Blood and Japandroids show, it was as if every dude in town had brought his best dude on a dude date.  I mean this in a good way.  There was not a single douchebag in attendance, but there was plenty of bromance in the air.

The man-on-man camaraderie was onstage as well.   Both Surfer Blood and Japandroids consist of guys who have been long-time friends and formed a band.  (Sadly, we missed World's Greatest Ghosts, but from what we've heard of them, we'll be sure to make their next show.)  There's something about seeing a group of guys together just getting off from the thrill of making music.  With Surfer Blood, the up-and-coming West Palm Beach band put on a solid, energetic opening set true to their California-leaning album Astro Coast, out in January. 

And with Japandroids, the Vancouver duo's had a hell of a year:  accolades up the wazoo, the occasional emergency surgery, and tons o' touring.  This was their last show before a brief respite from the road (to record, of course) and the dudes gave it all they got.  Let's just say that there was lots of air guitar antics (while actually playing a real guitar), and the fan perpetually blowing Brian King was in full effect.  They played a couple songs that they'll be recording soon, including one epic that ventured into Black Mountain territory.  I'm glad to hear they're working on a follow-up to Post-Nothing, but after such a busy year, Japandroids should probably take a little breather.  You've earned it, dudes.

West Palm Beach's Surfer Blood went from being ignored to hot shit virtually overnight.  Coming off a successful run at CMJ, the boys are touring in anticipation of their upcoming debut album, Astro Coast (out in January).  It's full of super-catchy indie rock--though they're from South Florida, the album feels more like California, with Beach Boys harmonies here and a Weezer guitar riff there. 

Meanwhile, Vancouver BC's Japandroids plays Seattle for, like, the nineteenth time this year, continuing to ride the accolades from Post-Nothing, one of the best-reviewed albums of 2009.  They have a big, bombastic, flat-out fun, fuzzed-out sound, all the more impressive, considering it's just a dude on the guitar and a dude on drums.  In doing so, Japandroids throw down the gauntlet:  Who needs a bass when you've got cymbals?

• Surfer Blood opens for Japandroids at Chop Suey tonight.  World's Greatest Ghosts plays first.  8 p.m. doors, all ages, $12.

A wide range of folks descended on the Paramount to see the iconic and enigmatic Morrissey on a Sunday evening. Seattleites from all over the subcultural spectrum showed up to sway along with their favorite British crooner.

Capitol Hill hipsters made sure their hair was perfectly styled, goth girls made sure their makeup was fully applied, tattooed hardcore kids wore their Smiths shirts, new Belltowners wore their suits, and a slew of regular people filled in the empty seats between them. Ages ranged from middle school to 40th-high-school-reunion.

There's something special about a singer that can attract such a variety of fans, especially a singer that is not particularly exciting to watch or listen to. Yet, Morrissey has been steadily adding to his fan base since the early '80s. It's a fan base that, while not quite Beatles-esque, is remarkably dedicated. One gentleman way up in the front even cut his hair to resemble the traditional Morrissey shaved sides and pompadour look that he has sported for the past...

Less Than Jake have been playing music for over 15 years. Their blend of the punk and ska genres carved them out a unique niche in underground music. So unique that they didn't stay underground. With a couple major label releases under their belts, Less Than Jake have "escaped" their contract and started their own label. They are re-releasing their first record and embarking on a tour to celebrate this achievement and the fifteenth anniversary of the Warped Tour.

Warped Tour has been branching out from its image as "Punk Rock's Summer Camp" by including hip hop and rap groups. In the early years, I saw Jurassic 5 on Pier 30/32 because of Warped tour, for example. More recently, bands like Gym Class Heroes have participated. As a preview of possible upcoming rap acts, Monday's show includes a set from Chris Palko (aka Cage). Fans of intense, nontraditional rap with a rock feel like Eminem will enjoy Cage. Shia LeBeouf directed his latest video.

• Less Than Jake, Cage, and The Swellers visit the Showbox Market, November 30th. Doors at 6:30 PM, tickets are $20 advance, $23 at the door.

The winter holidays quite often mark the beginning of a long season of depression for some folk. If it's not seeing your family that depresses you, the weather in these parts might do the trick. Never fear! Someone from England feels your pain and already wrote every song you need to sing until Spring cycles around again. In the 80's, he was doing exactly the same thing as the frontman for The Smiths. Now, he's living the solo project dream as the enigmatic Morrissey.

Morrissey will be in town Sunday promoting his new B-sides collection, Swords. He'll be moping about on stage and collecting bouquets of roses from enthusiastic fans. His entire band will have the same signature Morrissey pompadour. He'll be filling The Paramount with his melancholy, breathy voice and somehow making us feel better about our lives. Perhaps it is true that misery loves company, because Morrissey has been publicly miserable since 1982. And it seems like he loves it.

• Morrissey begins the festivities at The Paramount on November 29th at 7:30 PM. Tickets range from $52 to $72, plus fees.

Every time a venue stops hosting music, the world gets a little bit darker, even if that venue is 90 miles north of here.

Friday, I took a trip up to Bellingham to see one of The Rogue Hero's last shows. After traffic died down, I pointy my trusty steed northward and made the trek through the darkness and the rain to an unfamiliar college town near the Canadian border. After a wrong turn or two, my companion and I stood in front of a large wooden door guarded by a warmly dressed gentleman asking for $5 and our IDs. A simple transaction afforded us entry to the keep, and we were welcomed by the first couple notes of rock and roll for the evening.

A clear drumset and a couple small Fender amps powered the energizing set by the young Mount Vernon duo known as The Mission Orange. Their eclectic and technical songs warmed the hearts of a small group of locals. Heads were nodding under black longshoreman caps and many a music nerd marveled at the precision guitar work. Sporting a huge sound for a duo, the gentlemen of The Mission Orange wove wonderful melodies around powerful rhythms. Though under 21, they bring a swagger and a complexity to the stage that rivals their legally adult compatriots. I'm a big fan of their mix of garagey and technical sounds, particularly on "Hammer Fever" and I hope it's included on the record they mentioned they were recording. On Friday, they brought that just-right mix of excitement and rest for the end of a long drive and some hanging out in an unfamiliar town.

Yet, while the town was unfamiliar, the venue was beginning to grow on me. There was a pole covered with stickers just like at El Corazon. Groups of acoustic ceiling tiles were missing and replaced with black painted plywood. Fluorescent lights were missing their bulbs and stained with the familiar beige that comes with years of cigarette smoke or greasy food preparation. It might be the 12-year-old in me, but having one bathroom labeled "chicks" and the other labeled "dicks" was pretty hilarious. People were lounging about the two brightly lit pool tables and in the booths at the front near the inauspicious bar. It was starting to feel pretty welcoming.

These people were clearly different from my hometown folk, but somehow strangely similar. They wore a little bit more flannel, but in a non-ironic way. They were a little less afraid of enjoying themselves through ballroom dance or random yelling. Everyone seemed a little friendlier, as well. I've always considered Seattle to be the biggest small town ever, but it's good to visit smaller towns every once in a while to see how they really are supposed to be. The age range of the patrons was wide and the subcultures represented were varied. The lack of pretentiousness was palpable. People seemed a little more "real."

After a last minute slice of the local pizza, we were pumped and ready for Rooftops to celebrate their CD release. They augmented their sound Friday with a trumpet/flugel horn player and a violin. These additions were a bit buried in the small P.A., but their presence was appreciated nonetheless. Rooftops employs three guitarists/singers and a drummer in their normal mode. Each guitarist is well versed in the art of tapping. Taking a cue from bands like Minus the Bear, Rooftops create lovely melodies by constantly moving the notes around. With three guitars, countermelodies and counter-countermelodies are the modus operandi. Using pauses and some sparse singing, they provide enough break from the twiddly bits to keep you from being overwhelmed, however. They were also clearly enjoying themselves up there, making the live experience a wonderful end to a long week.

After a raucous celebration of melody and rhythm, I drove back south through the rain towards my bed for the night. Those Notherners aren't so different, they're just looking for something to entertain them for an evening. They're just trying to make the best of things, just like the rest of us. And I think they'll be a little sad when they have one less place to make both of those things happen. Hopefully, this will motivate them to come south and visit more often.

It used to be throwing devil horns was enough to show your appreciation for a good metal band. Now, forming the classic "rock on" sign is simply not enough. Bands these days have gotten so technical and interesting that it takes a little more effort to show how much you care.

The new sign of approval is the "rock claw." To perform this move, imagine you're lifting a golden goblet of fine wine to the sky. Hold it there a moment. Then, slowly crush it and bring your elbow back down to your waist. You've just shown a metal band that they have melted your face off with awesomeness.

Helms Alee provided quite a few rock claws at the beginning of the evening. A local group comprised of Ben Verellen (formerly of local noise/hardcore legends Harkonen , and who now makes a successful line of beautiful custom amplifiers ) and two viciously talented ladies named Dana and Hoz. The audience was very appreciative of their--dare I say it--grungy and dark sound.

Helms Alee reminds me of this small barn at the intersection...

Notorious for their creative schizophrenia and chameleonic nature, The Fiery Furnaces have bounced back-and-forth between a dizzying array of styles over the years. And when they tour, this sibling-fronted indie rock outfit often follows one of their genre tangents for an entire show, only to completely switch gears for the next night's gig. All of the genre hopscotch would irritate...if they didn't do it so much of it so damned well.

Wednesday night's Chop Suey show didn't bring the bouncy, giddily-loopy pop Fiery Furnaces, or the Wildly-Experimental Electronic Noodler Fiery Furnaces, or the eccentric-but-charming Partridge-Family-from-outer-space Fiery Furnaces, or the Mutated Electric Blues Revivalist Fiery Furnaces. Nope, the Garage-Rocking Fiery Furnaces came to town. To which I say, right on.

A great rhythm section (drummer Robert D'Amico and ex-Sebadoh bassist Jason Loewenstein) kept things hopping, and lead singer Eleanor Friedberger held centerstage...

The more time I spend cozied up with the debut disc from Paul Banks' solo project/nom de muse Julian Plenti, the more I like it (initial reaction documented here). And that like is metamorphosing into adoration after seeing Banks'/Plenti's great set at Chop Suey on the 16th.

Julian Plenti pulled off that greatest of hat tricks with his live show--namely, pointing up the strengths of the original album while still rocking enough to turbo-charge an already-enthusiastic club audience.

Banks reputedly considered bringing a small orchestra for this solo tour, but the Interpol singer eventually opted for a tight, four-man team of back-up players. The decision paid off in spades on Monday. The stripped-down backing gave even the most pastoral tracks definition and strength, repainting pencil sketches of atmosphere with sharply defined and expansive brushstrokes.

The band maintained the fragile beauty of "Skyscraper," even as the taut electric-guitar-toughening brought a sense of menace to the fore. And converting the stark piano on "Madrid Song" into mournful six-string notes made it sound almost psychedelic. A single cellist filled in for most of the frills and filigrees on the record (keyboards, horns, strings, etc.) brilliantly, but the sound always coursed with energy. The added oomph brought out the sexy big-time on "Fly as you Might," which contrasted the interplay between Banks' and Damien Paris's axes with a near-coital grind.

Best of all, the band gave the rock numbers a swift kick in the pants, to killer effect. Banks and company chucked the burbly keyboards and studio fuss on "Fun That We Have," mashing the song's memorable hook into the floor (mad props to Paris, guitarist for Brooklyn metal-punks The Giraffes, for the extra heft). And "Unwind" got a much more bottom-heavy stomp in the bargain.

Paul Banks (aka Julian Plenti himself) seemed genuinely elated by the scruffy energy his compadres generated, ending most of the songs with a broad smile and genuine happy surprise at the thundering enthusiasm of the crowd. I'd argue that he's an even more charismatic--and more relaxed--frontman when flying solo. How charismatic? Well, he converted America's granola-rock chestnut, "Horse with No Name," into throbbing post-punk magic for the encore.

Flags adorned the stage at the Croc last night for Fanfarlo.  That seems to be their thing, if Flickr is any guide.  Opener Freelance Whales were really cute, precious even, but sometimes too cute by half.  The world already has one Ben Gibbard, and that's more than enough.  My friend called them "Happy Meal-sized Architecture in Helsinki," and to be fair, they had good songs sprinkled here and there.  Just less Death Cab lite and songs with wordless choruses and more like their final number, please--which is to say, less of "Generator^First Floor" and more "Generator^Second Floor" (mp3s here).

The New York Times described Fanfarlo as looking like extras form There Will Be Blood, and the description is apt.  However, they are much more lighthearted than the film.  I bounced along to their poppy songs with a big dopey grin on my face, and much of the crowd looked to be similarly gleeful.  The six-piece trumpeted the trumpet and bowed a saw, and on a couple songs, even broke out the extra snare drum and...