Tuesday, November 18, 2008

The Known Unknowns/Lovelikefire/Friends of the Library - The Red & the Black - Nov 7 2008


A nice set of bands at the tiny club in the Northeast. I mainly went to see Lovelikefire who are a fabulous band from San Francisco who I saw twice in Denver. They are one my "discoveries" this year who I think can make it big if things break right in an industry I have trouble understanding these days.

Friends of the Library had some nice songs that rocked lightly. They seem a bit on the raw side but were enjoying the experience. The female vocals were a little thin, a bit due to the sound, but mostly due to a tentative singer who will probably find more confidence over time. An enjoyable band that may get better in time.

Lovelikefire is a four-piece with the usual guitar/bass/drums and a female singer/guitarist/synth player. Ann Yu is a killer singer with great personality and stage presence. She is the focal point whose vocals can soar majestically over the strong musical backing. The rhythm section is deceptively good doing a lot more than I first guessed. The guitarist brings a great British post-punk style in the manner of John McGeoch (Banshees/Magazine) and mayber a bit of Johnny Marr. The overall sound is a very accessible pop-rock that does much more than that category generally allows. They have two self released eps and are now signed to a European label with an album release next year. They've toured hard and hopefully things will payoff for this fun, exciting band.

The Known Unknowns are a local band that plays around the area. They have a good smart rock sound, but their songs just don't grab me as much as I like. I will happily sit through their set on the underbill, but probably won't go out of my way to see them on their own. They have potential, so I'll stay tuned. Check them out for yourselves. They are certainly accomplished enough to appeal to the college rock crowd (if I may stereotype which all categorization does).

No comments:

Post a Comment

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.