Oh So Peligroso - Edgewood - Technicians -- Black Cat - Jan 15 2012

Technicians - A couple of guitars, bass and drums with one guy taking the vocal duties. A familiar formula and what might be considered a familiar shoegaze sound. Except that it did not appear to be true shoegaze to me. There was certainly some Brit dream pop/rock in there, but it was quite heavy even to the point of almost being too thick and unrelenting underneath. But the strong vocal work countered that nicely and ultimately it was a rather intriguing sound that sort of crossed the Feelies with the Melvins or thereabouts. You can head over there to the site and listen to their ep and judge for yourself. I may come up with some new comparisons next time around, but I hope there is a next time.

Edgewood - Wait a minute, according to their Facebook site, this group has members from the Mostly Dead, the Goons, and Mahogany Rush? Almost as odd as the bass player from the Spice Girls joining Public Image Ltd. (but not really if you think about or especially if you heard it). The sound tonight was a lot closer to the punk bands than that of Mahogany Rush. The first song sounded like a mid-80's Dischord band covering Muse, mostly due to the intensity and range of the vocals. The third song went into a Ronnie Dio vocal style. Don't tell me Freddie Mercury is next? No, not really, just solid on top vocals that sometimes went into the more intense Dio/Matt Bellamy style. The band kept things rocking along with nice pace and power like a more modern post-hardcore band. I was not sure it would work, but the half-hour set was most successful when it chugged along at a good pace and did not try to get too big and open in the sound.

Oh So Peligroso - This band was the highlight for me at the last Black Cat birthday party showcase, so it was nice to see what they could do in a longer set. It went just under 45 minutes tonight and the band had it going great the whole time. They have an interesting murky garage sound with a certain post-punk flair. They could be the offspring of the Shadows of Knight and Fugazi. The sound was a bit tricky in the beginning but it got better as the set went on as the keyboards became more audible and the swirling guitar crisped up a bit. The rhythm section was the most creative of the evening and the vocals were solid and playful. They emit a sense of fun which is always welcome if you're not going for the Joy Division thing. The crowd was really enjoying it, although it was an odd crowd tonight with a lot of people in and out and spending too much exclusive time with the one band they came to see. It may have been 90% full if everyone was there at once, but it was usually about half full. No matter as I could just sit back and enjoy the music or try to work out the fascinating cross-genre and cross-time period moves that Oh So Peligroso was making on stage. I will keep on preaching to get out and see some of this fine local music that DC has to offer. Tonight was just one more example of the fun you can have for $8.

Quote of the Night: From the opening band and a fan...
"We have not played in two months, so if we're a little rusty..."
"Stop making excuses!"
"I'm not, I'm saying it's amazing how we're still so awesome."