Young Sinclairs - Garage rock and power pop is the theme for tonight with the venerable Groovies and the openers have the formula down pat. A 12-string guitar provides the jangle while the 6-stringer has the crunch. The rhythm section is steady, but the best part is the two-part harmonies they employ. The songs are solid, although they are the typically short pop ditties that start to blend together a bit too much. I would have enjoyed a reverb drenched extended jam to break things up a bit. They had a really sharp song that was their second-to-last cut that livened things up nicely. Oh wait, that was there last song as they were unceremoniously told after saying they had one more song to do. And thus concluded their 24-minute set. Now if you are going to cram two separate paying shows into one night, U Street Music Hall, perhaps you will let a band start a little earlier to get a full set in, rather than delay the start time to one hour after the doors open. The crowd was there.
Flamin Groovies - It is hard to believe this is the first ever show in Washington DC for this band that formed in the 1960s. Granted, their career has not exactly been on a straight trajectory and there were many years of down time, but this rare event did bring out a good crowd tonight. But based on tonight's show, this likely will also be their last show in DC as I doubt too many people would bother coming back. It is a credible line-up with 2-3 long-time members manning the guitars and bass along with a newer drummer. And there was some of their signature energized power pop flair evident in the set. But with the awful, awful sound full of feedback, there were plenty of grumbles on stage and in the crowd. They played a lot of cover songs which was ok, although when they played "Jumpin Jack Flash", it reminded me that I only saw the Stones play this a few months ago. They had a guitar string break (with no back-up), leaving one guitarist to go solo by playing the second Byrds (Dylan penned) song of the night, "Chimes of Freedom". I am not sure there was any magic even early on, but any positive vibes were slipping away, even as some of the crowd was trying to keep it lively. I had to laugh and agree with the shout of "Nooo!" when they said they were going to another Jagger-Richards cut. "Paint It Black" came out and again reminded me of the real deal just this past summer. I decided I had enough and followed a few people out the door, not waiting for the mighty "Shake Some Action". Serves me right for not following my own advice I wrote only yesterday about shelling out $25 bucks for a name band as opposed to checking out 3-4 bands at the smaller clubs for $8. Oh well.
Quote of the Night: From a Groovie (Chris Wilson) to the sound booth after some feedback "This better stop, right now!"
This was one of two complaints about feedback after complaining that he couldn't hear himself in the monitor. Bravo, U Street. It will take a very special show to pull me back into your club with your supposedly great sound system. Whether the band deserves some blame, or whether it was double booking tonight, this was yet another dud.
7 comments:
I guess I'm glad I passed - too cold to be standing around later waiting for an infrequent metrobus. About all I knew about the band was that the Ramones opened for them on a tour way back when.
Speaking of a good $8-10 show, check out Courtney Barnett at DC9 next year(!). She was streaming on Brooklyn Vegan, not sure if she still is. I thought she was exceptional, though your mileage may vary.
You could have seen Hayden at DC9 afterwards...awesome show.
Thanks for both tips. I'll keep Courtney Barnett in mind and hope to see Hayden back next year (I'm listening as I write and it sounds good). Where would any of us be without good referrals?
Honestly....The Groovies were fine, but the club sucked! They forced the band to cut out both encores (Slow Death, Teenage Head). If there was a real problem (other than the continuous mike feedback and inability of Chris W to hear himself in his monitor), it was their decision to play that club, and in an early show. If they ever come back, play the Black Cat instead.
I think you are right. The playing was enjoyable at times, and even the sloppiness was clearly a result of bad monitors and feedback. I agree, a Black Cat show or R'n'R Hotel show would have had a different outcome. Thanks for the add about their encore issues--fits with the cutting off of the first band. I think everyone should be very cautious of clubs that do two shows in one night, and be particularly cautious of this club for rock shows (although Mudhoney went well).
David - One other thing....I saw the Groovies twice in NYC this past July. They didn't play the two Stones covers either time, and there's a reason for that. Cyril and Chris were invited to play at a show at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame on 10/26, which was a tribute to the Stones. Other participants included Merry Clayton, Ian McLagan, Chuck D, Sugar Blue, Bobby Keys, Nils Lofgren, Dave Pirner, Waddy Wachtel and others. "JJF" and "Paint It Black" were the 2 songs performed by Chris/Cyril that night. I doubt they'll be playing the songs in their set much longer. At their 7/7 Maxwells show, 10 of their 15 songs were originals....not as cover-heavy as this past Tuesday.
David, hope Hayden comes back next year. It was his first DC show in 5 years. He doesn't tour much. He's so underrated. Glad you took the time to listen to him.
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