Viet Cong - TV Ghost -- DC9 - Jul 9 2014

TV Ghost - It is nice to see this Lafayette Indiana quartet back in DC as they offer a familiar yet original sound into the post-mod psyche musical universe. They have a steady mesemerizing rhythm section working non-stop that allows the gutiars to weave psychedelic patterns from spacey waves to sharper bursts of power and melody. The vocals are interesting as they shift from various Robert Smith and Ian Curtis moves, moving along various waves of intensity. He even sounded like the singer from an obscure Spanish band Pan & Regaliz at one point. They handled the stage lights going out for a few songs without missing a note, and frankly that just added to the overall sense of edgy mystery that they manage to concoct. It was another fine set from a band who always has a big welcome back sign from me.

Viet Cong - This band is new on the scene and hails from the fine distant evirons of Calgary. The drummer and bassist/vocalist are from the band Women, who tragically lost their guitarist whose guitarist sadly died in his sleep. They are now with two guitarists and have a powerful sound that works well fresh off of TV Ghost's set. They start with that same intense brand of psychedelia but explore even crazier variants of this theme. They combine the jagged and smooth tones of the guitar in far more extreme ways than other bands would dare attempt. And somehow it all works. At times the songs go power pop, yet there are strong post-punk moves slashing and attacking as well. And then, just when I am getting somewhat comfortable, they throw out an oddball prog-math song that sounds like XTC covering Chrome. But to top that all off they go into a long jamming psyche song that sounds like Wooden Shjips on meth. Crazy fun, here, this band will wake you up and get your blood moving. It may be better for them if they learn to harness this into something more focused, but frankly, I hope they don't. I like the challenge they bring to their audience, who seemed to enjoy this every bit as much as I.

Quote of the Night... Let's head back to the list of musician on musician insults, today from a guy who is coming to town next week...

18. Nick Cave on Red Hot Chili Peppers
“I’m forever near a stereo saying, ‘What the fuck is this garbage?’ And the answer is always the Red Hot Chili Peppers.”