Moon King - A little late but you can only do so much with a candy
hangover. Two things; Moon King are a lot louder than I had expected.
Immediately I am greeted with a wall of bright pop rock. It is certainly a
significant change of pace from the dark sounds that we have been seeing
recently. The long march to Halloween has finally ended. Secondly, 9:30 is
empty. This isn't a slight towards the artists playing tonight but perhaps an
indictment against how we all left whatever we had on the floor last night. The
day after Halloween, especially one that lands on a Saturday, is rough.
It's quiet. That may seem obvious but with each piece; the
crowd has become increasingly silent. The lead singer, Matt, has taken
notice and calls us all out. He implores that tonight will be ‘chill’ as to not
interfere with all the hangovers that are being recovered from. Despite all of
our lackadaisical attitudes I am really enjoying this. And as I said earlier,
it's a nice change as I was expecting something far different. Going into a lot
of these shows I try not to be judgmental or form an opinion beforehand. I wasn't so successful
tonight. I had assumed, incorrectly, that this would be another male/female EDM
duo; quiet, sad, and contemplative. Vocally it couldn't be further from the
aforementioned example. The two are clear, loud, and the harmonies match due in
large part to Daniel’s falsetto. The two, Daniel and Maddy split singing but
considering Daniel's range, sometimes I find myself looking up just to make
sure. Maddy's guitar work is good; it’s full, switching cleanly between the
upbeat and more complicated patterns when appropriate. It's not overtly
complicated but it doesn't need to be. It does the job and if everyone wasn't
so apathetic tonight, they would surely be dancing.
To be honest, it has become kind of awkward between songs,
as the attitude of this crowd seems to be taking a toll on them. Daniel still
checks in making sure that we are all still alive and the response is tepid at
best. Perhaps I am relying too much on my personal opinion but it was a great
set despite the audience. Occasionally
the bassist, takes to the keyboards to add an additional layer. Although not
unexpected the occasional triplets meld well.
As far as comparisons; since they rely so heavily on vocals,
I am reminded of Kill Hannah and Silversun Pickups. They are definitely radio
friendly and I am surprised that they don't have more of a following. Let's be
honest though, when was the last time any of us listened to that antiquated
platform.
Youth Lagoon - Even between sets the crowd is suspiciously quiet. The music
is barely audible, while the majority of those on the second level sit as they
nurse their beverage of choice. Though as Youth Lagoon take the stage they seem
to be somewhat more receptive. Compared to Moon King before them, Youth Lagoon relies
heavily on Trevor's keyboards. He definitely leads, as his surprisingly simple
keys finally get some of this crowd moving. It's surprising; so far the
majority of what I am hearing from the keys is piano. Even though that sounds
derogatory, it shouldn't be taken as such; I assumed that this would be more
reminiscent of effect heavy bands like Tyco or Neon Indian. While there are
patches here and there, it's that piano that is leaned on for the majority of
the set.
The drums are great. They too seem to lean on a particular
sound rather than pattern. The constant thumping of the tom is an excellent
choice when paired with the more traditional keys. It's sweeping and adds a
Hollywood feel to these songs; the calm before an inevitable storm. Hints of Rufus
Wainwright seep through, though only occasionally as the quiet quickly makes
way for some very aggressive changes. And then the bass starts moving and the
snare remains steady. It's low key dance, lots of fuzz. While we all wait for
it to drop, it does in a most unexpected way; the bassist moves to the drums as
extra hands are needed for the crashes, the guitar slowly builds, and Tony runs
unencumbered, hands raised as he frantically tries to get the crowd excited.
Then as quickly as it began, it ends.
This frantic back and forth, manic. The changes are unexpected;
it gets so quiet I can hear the dishes in the kitchen drop into the sink as the
water bounces off them. An excellent comedown from a hectic weekend even if the
bros in front of me are checking out their fantasy stats.
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