Tuddd's Muddd

My Weekend - Aminal at Lit, Come at Bell House, and Monogold at Union Pool

    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!

 

Thalia Zedek Band with The Weight at Bowery Ballroom (opening for Deer Tick), February 13, 2009

   

    First post in awhile, although I have several nearly-finished posts sitting in my draft queue.  Indeed, I plan to make good on my intentions to write at least a little something about every band I see live this year.  As I expected, actually having an occupation/having stuff to do during the day has dramatically cut into the time I have available to waste on this blog.  To boot, '09 has been jampacked with visitors from out of town wanting to get toxic, which I have kindly obliged, con gusto.  Also there's been some drama on the homefront with a roomie moving out and having to find a suitable/non-psycho replacement.  And I've been sick. 

    Anyway, Thalia Zedek needs a better publicist... if it hadn't been for me religiously scanning the pages of OhMyRockness I would have had no idea this show was going down at all.  Which would have been a shame, since I really dig her music.  I'm on record (somewhere) declaring Come's 11:11 as one of the most underrated albums of all time.  Furthermore, her 2004 solo joint Trust Not Those in Whom Without a Touch of Madness is a fine record (not to mention an airtight aphorism), and 2008's Liars and Prayers ranked 30th on my year end Best Albums list.  (Also, I bought her first album with Live Skull from about 20 years ago on eBay late last night, so I've got that going for me.)   

    I believe this was to be the fourth time overall I've seen the band, with the first coming on an opening slot with Dinosaur Jr. in December '06 at Rebel on 30th St.  On that night, the band consisted of Zedek on vocals/guitar, backed up by drummer Daniel Coughlin and violist David Michael Curry, with Zedek's thick, morose chording and raspy croon perfectly framed by the expert musicianship of her bandmates: Coughlin's drumming managed to be both substantial and subtle, with Curry deftly switching between melodic leads and harrowing atonal embellishment.  The second time I saw Zedek live I wrote the performance up here, almost two years ago to the day.  Fine show, and the first time I had seen them with the new, full 5-piece lineup (adding Mel Lederman on keyboard and Winston Braman on bass).

    Last year the band rolled through town in mid-June, and although family commitments precluded me from hitting the show down the block from me (at Union Pool), I enthusiastically attended their show at Mercury Lounge the following week.  Not sure why I didn't post a review, but here's the setlist from said show and such.  As you may or may not be able to tell, they focused very heavily on the newest album, skipping old faves like "Ship," "Bus Stop" and "Hell Is in Hello."  Post-set I chatted with the keyboard player for awhile as he related some tragic tales of life on the road as a touring musician over the last decade-and-a-half-or-so.

    So last night I got back to my apartment before 9 and immediately began hitting the dank.  Hustled over to the J and made it inside Bowery Ballroom about 10 minutes into the set of the opening band, The Weight.  As befitting a band named after a song by The Band, these guys were rootsy and twangy and tuneful.  They also sort of had the kinder, friendlier country bar-band thing going, although they ripped off a few tasty guitar solos at times.  The two-drummer setup crossed me up a bit at first, but by and large they kept their rhythms conventional.  Similar to the evening's headliners, Deer Tick, but less angst-y. 

    Moved up to the left side of the stage for the Zedek Band set, and they actually started into their opening song, "Stars," while the house music was still going.  Up next was "Lower Allston" (which incidentally came in at #51 on my '08 Year-End Best Songs list), with Curry momentarily putting aside his viola to perform the song's sad, solitary Mexican-influenced trumpet parts.  After a doleful "Brother," "Body Memory" brought the tempo up a bit, even venturing out into a noisy, seemingly improvised section, a neat diversion while managing to avoid straying into self-indulgent jamminess.  "Since Then" came next, followed by another new song ("Wind?" I can't remember) before the familiar driving waltz of personal favorite "Bus Stop" began.  Awesome.  And a couple of songs later, "Next Exit" closed the set, with the lengthy ensemble sections showcasing the both the band members' individual prowess and the band's tightness as a unit.  Yes, the subject matter of Zedek's songs largely traverses the well-worn area between dreary and dismal, but one can't help but feel affirmed by a performance like this.

    As I predicted pre-set, my back didn't allow me to make it too deep into Deer Tick's set, although I'd seen (and written about) them last year when they played the part of "special guest" on a bill with Death Vessel.  Hopped back on the J and headed home.

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Got some shows coming up, including a few hours from now when I get to see Titus Andronicus open up for Los Campesinos.  I was initially turned off to said Andronicus by the fact that practically everyone compared them to Bright Eyes, who I really don't like, but as it turns out if I had actually heard The Airing of Grievances before January '09 the album would have been Top 5 of '08 easily.  Till next time, Tuddd out.