Holy Fuck - I saw this Toronto band at Red Rocks in Colorado at a festival a couple years back and was more impressed than I expected. Rather than electronic noodling, this four piece has a powerful sound. It starts with drums and bass that do what drums and bass do best by keeping a killer beat and solid bottom. The drums clearly start off in that Neu! mototik style that really gets a song off to a great start. There's a little variety thereafter, but that is the dominant style. The two guys up front play a variety of electronics, some keyboards and heavily distorted vocals used more as an instrument than a lead. The songs are loaded with hooks and with the rhythms, the crowd was moving a bit (this is DC, so I wouldn't call it dancing exactly). A few songs toward the end did not move me as much as others, but they momentum was still in their favor. They closed strong and while I may not exclaim their band name after hearing them, I would probably say "Man, these guys are good".
No Age - This LA trio has a guitar, drummer-vocalist, and a guy making noise at a table full of electronics. I was not quite expecting the hard edge, yet accessible songs they dealt out. It was droning, psychedelic, yet rocking and in song structures. It had sort of a post-punk sound with an early punk mentality. Intense, but lots of hooks to pull you in. Decent vocals... I am straining to find something wrong here, but I am not finding it. There are even traces of power-pop songs in here if you listen closely enough. This is a great reminder that good creative people can mix up a few classic forms and turn it into something original enough, while garnering genre-specific fans. But I am over thinking this. It rocks, it was good and the half (or more) full club at the Black Cat had a great time.
Quote of the Night: From the opening band... "This next song is based on the essays of Audre Lorde" which is something I never quite thought I would hear on stage at the Black Cat.
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