3 nights, 3 shows. Ain't no thang / that's how I roll, beetchez.
So, we got to Lit a bit early, and headed across the street to Kabin, one of my least favorite bars in NYC... my buddy Devin was already trashed so I had some serious catch-up to do. Several pints later (and, regrettably, a 'conversation' about evolution with a gravely-misinformed, semi-literate racist piece of garbage later) we headed back over to Lit and down to the basement.
I had missed Aminal's set when Devin's band, the newly (as of last week) rechristened Big Shots, played with them at UC Lounge about a month ago. Anyway, tonight I caught the full set, and these bastards have got some honest to gawd straight motherfuckin' TALENT. I'm not going to tidily try to pigeonhole their music into one convenient category, because I'm pretty sure that would be missing the point entirely. Instead, what I was hearing veered chaotically between prog, funk metal, and some parts that reminded me of all the alternative rock radio I listened to in the '90s. Needless to say, I enjoyed the shit out of it.
[Go HERE to hear Aminal's track, "Krill."]
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The post-Aminal party ran late and had me hurtin' Saturday... I wound up not getting out of bed until 3:30 PM. I knew this Come show was going to be an earlier affair (doors at 6) and with the rain coming down in buckets Saturday night, I wound up driving over to Gowanus for this show with a sack of White Castles in tow.
At some point in or around summer '07 [uh, I think?] I was totally obsessed with Come's fantastic first album, 11:11. I'm pretty sure that said obsession coincided with the bizarre period of my life where I was running a door factory out on Long Island, which makes perfect sense because 11:11 is pretty damned bleak and disheartening at points (although it still manages to rock), and working at a door factory is fucking depressing shit, especially when your boss is a vicious wifebeating multiple felon scumbag. Anyway.
I totes missed out on Come the first time around during the '90s. Actually got into their shit when I saw Thalia Zedek open up for Dinosaur Jr at this show years ago. Over the years I saw Zedek's solo band four times total, including this one at Tonic in early '07 and this one at Bowery in '09. So, it's pretty safe to say that I celebrate Ms. Zedek's entire catalog, and I was pretty psyched when I randomly noticed that Come would be playing Bell House.
Got there towards the end of the opening act, D. Charles Speer, who were just finishing their set of what seemed to be uptempo rockabilly instrumentals. No complaints from me there.
Eleventh Dream Day took what seemed like forever [remember, I was hung over as fuck] setting their gear up. Not gonna lie, I really didn't care for their music. Most of it sounded like tired '90s tropes, and the stuff that didn't totally suck sounded like Neil Young retreads. Meh.
Come's set, however, did the trick. Much to my delight, they performed over half of 11:11 as well as reaching back to several other notable highlights from their career (including personal favorite "In / Out" from Don't Ask Don't Tell). Zedek's raspy vocals effectively clawed their way somewhere between her own insistent, hard-driving chording and the more twangy, bluesy riffing of Chris Brokaw, with the ensuing turmoil driven onward by drummer Arthur Johnson's shifting rhythms. This was EXACTLY what I thought the Come live experience would be like. Well done.
[See directly below for the setlist.]
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My third time seeing Monogold this year [brief review of a previous show located somewhere in this slovenly mess], only this time I pre-gamed with one of my friend Cindy's insane pot brownies. Having seen Godspeed at Terminal 5 last month (and having had my Godspeed live experience thoroughly augmented by said baked goods), I figured "what the hey" and threw down accordingly. I had a feeling that my exhaustion would combine with Monogold's heavily reverbed poppiness and the splendid acoustics of the room at Union Pool to create a superior listening experience, and I was right. Yay!
Seriously, do your ears a favor and see these guys live, and check out their new record, The Softest Glow, which is really fucking good.
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Yes, I'm pissed about Mogwai canceling their NYC dates, but fret not. I still get to see the Raveonettes Thursday night at Music Hall, Austerity Program with The Netherlands at Charleston Friday, and Crocodiles Saturday at Music Hall.
And where are my manners... HAPPY 420 Y'ALL'S!
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