LCD Soundsystem at Metro, 5/26/2010

It was a packed house last Wednesday at the Metro in Chicago for LCD Soundsystem. James Murphy and co. made the crowd wait it out for a bit before taking the stage, but once they did, it was one big party.

LCD opened with one of my favorites from their Sound of Silver album, "Us v Them." I like this tune as an opener, as it sets the tone for a high-energy set and gets the crowd into the show right off the bat. When the bass kicked in and the disco ball started spinning, I had a good feeling this would be a great show.

Heading into the show, I was anticipating hearing mostly newer songs, with a heavy dose from LCD's recently released This is Happening. However, they only played four songs from that album -- "Drunk Girls," "Pow Pow," "All I Want," and "I Can Change." Of the four, I'd say "Pow Pow" was my favorite, but as a whole, I thought the new material didn't match the older stuff. It wasn't terrible, but I feel like the new songs could use a little work to smooth out some of the rough edges.

The songs from the group's first two albums sounded great, and the crowd seemed most into "All My Friends" and "Daft Punk is Playing at My House." Other highlights of the show, for me, included an extended version of "Yeah" (along with a kick-ass light show), "Someone Great," and "Losing My Edge."

The closing song of the encore -- "New York I Love You But You're Bringing Me Down" -- left me a little disappointed. For one, I don't really like the song. Also, in general, I don't like when bands close with slow songs. I like things to go out with a bang. Something like "One Touch" or "Home" off the new album would have been better, I think. But I can't really complain. The show, as a whole, was really excellent. Can't wait to see them again at Pitchfork this summer.

Setlist:

1. Us v Them
2. Drunk Girls
3. Yr City's a Sucker
4. Pow Pow
5. Daft Punk is Playing at My House
6. All I Want
7. All My Friends
8. I Can Change
9. Tribulations
10. Movement
11. Yeah (Crass version)

Encore:
12. Someone Great
13. Losing My Edge
14. New York I Love You But You're Bringing Me Down

No. 71: HEALTH

HEALTH is a noise rock/electronic rock band from Los Angeles. I would describe them as a classic example of a "weird" Pitchfork band: Part Animal Collective, part Dan Deacon, part No Age, part Crystal Castles. Since I've been known to enjoy all of those groups to a certain degree, a likely conclusion would be that I enjoy HEALTH. However, they don't exactly blow me away. (Side note: I'm kind of annoyed that their band name is written in all caps.)

I haven't listened to HEALTH a ton, so there's a possibility that they could grow on me. I caught some of their act at the Pitchfork Music Festival in 2008 and was not very impressed. Very loud and chaotic, which I realize is their thing, but it was not working for me early on a Sunday afternoon. I do like some of the building progressions on some of their tunes, but it's not enough to hook me, exactly. I'd probably be willing to give these guys another chance at Lollapalooza this year if they have a favorable time slot, but I'm not going to go out of my way to see them.

HEALTH on MySpace

No. 72: Rebelution

Hey! Anyone ever wonder what happened to that shitty rapper Snow? Yeah me neither... He's probably face down in a ditch somewhere being pissed on by a dog. But maybe, just maybe there was a kid that idolized him and that kid started a band called Rebelution based on Snow's influences. That's right Rebelution is everything you hate and more about bad reggae/ dance hall music. It's almost a bastardized Backstreet Boys- type reggae with white boys singing in that "Oh gurrrrl" style that makes your stomach turn. Rebelution might be one of the worst bands I have ever heard. One look at the cover of their live album, Live From Las Vegas At The Royal Palms, and you just know you're in for one sordid fucking affair. Just to illustrate my point, this band sounds like a cross between O.A.R. and Color Me Badd, which I hope paints a vivid enough picture for you. The band just released Bright Side Of Life and unless you're my worst enemy, you should try to steer clear of it.

You're killin me, Perry.

Myspace

No. 73: The Constellations

A little bit soul rock, a little bit funk, The Constellations have seamlessly blended these and other genres of music.  The eight member group, headed by Elijah Jones, son of a Baptist deacon is comprised of members of veterans of the Atlanta indie scene.  First picked up by a small radio station in Milwaukee, the band is currently on a national tour that includes many prestigious events, such as Austin City Limits, Bonnaroo and Summerfest to name a few.  

Their latest album really provides an entertaining listen, as most every song brings its own unique sound.  “Love is Murder” is one of their more popular songs, using a driving piano riff and catchy lyrics to make this a great song.   “Setback” is a really cool tune, using electronic effects and nice vocal harmonies; this song has an “easy listening” feel to it.  From the songs I checked out, each song is really distinctive and likeable for different reasons.  As for the future, Jones isn’t worried about creating new material saying, “as long as I can find a bar, I can write new material.”

Submitted by S. Kostal 

No. 74: Javelin

For Brooklyn's Javelin, life is all about samples, samples, samples. Best buds george Langford and Tom VanBuskirk are all about creating an original mix of R&B flavored beats with just the push of a few buttons, and hey, maybe I'm oversimplifying that, but I'm pretty sure that's what it boils down to.... They can probably best be described as a mix between Major Lazer and LCD Soundsystem. There are a few songs from their debut No Mas that shape up to be pretty tight little house-style ditties, but some of their other songs are a little too all over the place for me (Picture a more modest Dan Deacon). Figure all the ADD beats in with a Myspace that is an epileptic person's nightmare, and you'll get a pretty big picture of what Javelin is all about. I do have to say that the track "Soda Popinski", a fresh take on the theme song of the infamous opponent from Mike Tyson's Punch Out! from their Myspace page is pretty cool. Also, check out the remix of the Health song "In Heat" they got up there. I don't know.... I think these guys might put on a pretty good show, but right now it seems like more style over substance to me. You might want to check them out if you prefer laptop heavier bands that look like they are busting their asses to finish a spreadsheet in Excel onstage.

No. 75: The Morning Benders

The Morning Benders are from California and have released two records filled with sunny pop songs.  This year they took the core of their music and put layer upon layer on top of each other. Their sophomore effort, Big Echo, is much better than the first record they put out and is filled with experimental orchestral music ala Grizzly Bear and Deer Tick.  They have more hooks and stronger melodies than those two bands and this record has been playing on my iPod for the past month or so. Its a great album and each song grows on you after multiple listens.
I will definitely be seeing this band at Lolla this year and I suggest you do the same.

I will be coming back with a more in-depth look at Big Echo because this album should be reviewed on Claptrapped.  For now check out the video to the first song on the record, "Promises".

No. 76: My Dear Disco

My Dear Disco, an electronic pop group, grew out of three University of Michigan students experimentations with a bagpipe and bass and techno drum beats. The group later added 4 additional members including lead female vocalist Michelle Chamuel. From here the band started to produce a brand of music they referred to as Dancethink.

Their first full length album, appropriately titled Dancethink, is a high energy effort filled with synthetic sounds and up tempo beats. The music brings to mind other electronic groups such as Hot Chip, Scissor Sisters, Daft Punk and Zero 7, but the prospect of their live show which has included a cover of Will Smith's Wild Wild West and a tribute to Michael Jackson is the real reason I look forward to seeing this band at this year's Lollapalooza.

My Dear Disco on MySpace

Videos of My Dear Disco

No. 77: Violent Soho

So anyone remember the band Sponge and their album Rotting Pinata? Remember how the album as a whole was okay but there were a few solid songs you just needed to listen to? Well Violent Soho's self titled 2010 album is exactly like that minus the solid songs. It's definitely a flash back to the grunge of the nineties and it's not bad, but it's not really good either.

The foursome from Queensland, Australia was described in Blunt Magazine as "reviving the grunge era" and the similarity of sound is definitely there, I just wouldn't have referred to it as reviving. I don't hate it, and could see a more mature band putting together a complete album in the future, but for now I will probably skip this show.

Violent Soho on MySpace

No. 78: The Kissaway Trail

The Kissaway Trail is a five-piece band from Odense, Denmark. The first thing you want to do when describing this band's sound is compare them to some other band. Take your pick: Broken Social Scene, Modest Mouse, Flaming Lips, The National...

Many people compare this band to Arcade Fire, and I agree in certain aspects. Kissaway Trail songs definitely have an "epic" feel to them at times, similar to Arcade Fire, with big crescendos and soaring vocals. But I think to say the band is a complete Arcade Fire rip-off would be unfair. (Even though they have a song called "Don't Wake Up.")

The group has one album released in the U.S -- Sleep Mountain. It was produced by Peter Katis, who has previously produced albums for The National and Interpol. Highlights include "SDP" and "Friendly Fire."

Despite their not-very-original sound, I like what I hear from this band, and I think there's a definite possibility that I would go see them at Lollapalooza this summer. So I guess this brings up the same debate we ran into with Freelance Whales -- should a band be punished just because they sound like some other band? I think this band's emotional sound would make for a good, short set at Lolla, and I'm looking forward to it.

Kissaway Trail on MySpace

No. 79: Warpaint

L.A.'s Warpaint wafted, it seems, out of the local underground music scene out there just a few years back, and blew in to the national spotlight like a tempest to become one of the most buzzed about bands of the new year. What else would you expect from 3 lovely women with a cadre of hauntingly beautiful songs and a shared love of The Wu-Tang clan? The band released Exquisite Corpse last year, an album mixed by Red Hot Chilli Pepper John Frusciante, to great fanfare from the so-hip-it-hurts set. Little fun fact about Warpaint; Their first drummer just so happened to be one Shannyn Sossamon an actress best known for her work in A Knight's Tale as well as The Rules of Attraction, but soon quit due to a hectic schedule. Warpaint's sound can best be described as post-rock with vocals. I like their songs, but most seem to lack conventional structure, opting out of the verse-chorus-verse framework. There are only a couple of songs on the EP that follow this blueprint, the most notable being "Billie Holiday", a tune that finds the girls spelling out the title of the song as a chorus all while re-dedicating the song "My Guy" by Mary Wells as the verses. Interesting to say the very least. The rest of the album contains a patchwork of songs that give the overall product a sometimes wistful, sometimes vengeful split personality and creates a dark backdrop for which little melodic points of light are allowed to flicker through. Core members Jenny Lee Lindberg (vocals/bassist), Emily Kokal (vocals/guitar), Theresa Wayman (vocals/guitar) and new addition Stella Mozgawa (drums/keyboards) also shine on the album's standout track, "Elephants" where angelic guitars flutter around a tribal beat that transfixes the listener immediately. I feel like these ladies have major potential and will really start to gel on their next release, which is being recorded as I write this. I can only see myself getting more and more attached to Exquisite Corpse and will more than likely be fully hypnotized by the time Lolla rolls around this year.

Myspace

Video for "Elephants"