The Ruby Suns - Toro y Moi -- Black Cat - March 24 2010

Toro y Moi - The back stage filled quickly with a surprisingly excited crowd pushing forward. It's a little unusual to find such enthusiasm for an opening act, but refreshing. This is a one-man act with a singer playing some keyboards and electric guitar with loads of samples and drumbeats working with him. Very lush pop kind of reminding me of the Eurythmics crossed with Animal Collective. Great vocals and some nice mellotron/organ like sounds in the mix. The rhythms pulsated with a bit more pop than usual and the songs were well constructed. Some light psyche moves and a touch of shoegaze completed this delectable stew. The crowd dug it and I surprised myself by enjoying it as well.

photo: Bradley Fafejta 

 

The Ruby Suns - This trio is located in New Zealand, although they are lead by a Californian singer/guitarist/keyboardist. He is joined with a percussionist and a bass player/keyboardist. I think there was more sampling and knob fiddling than keyboard playing in this set. It was also strange that when they strapped on the guitar and bass, the sound did not change much at all form the lush pop music they created earlier sans axes. The songs did have a vitality to them, although it got a little "samey" for me after a while. They do have a nice cult following, and a Subpop label connection doesn't hurt that, but I was not overwhelmed. I did enjoy the band and would recommend them to people who like the modern pop sound. They do have something to offer in this world.

Quote of the night: from the crowd- "I got to drink all day... disappointing."