Index of Shows | Homepage | Write to me
The Dears are playing when I get to TT's, and there sure are a lot of them! Actually, there are only six, but with all those mics and instruments the stage looks really full. They've got kind of a funky, soulful rock thing going on, which wouldn't normally be my thing, but they're just so damned good at it! Every single one of them: lead guitar is mixed too low but usually very interesting, bass is hugely fat and funky, the drums are fast, creative, and absolutely solid. The lead singer (who also plays guitar, but that's mixed even lower) is phenomenal, crooning sweetly, wailing, or screaming wildly as the song requires. There are two keyboard players, who provide really up-front and melodic keyboards and sing gorgeous harmonies, and one of them plays flute on one song in a total '70s-funk-session-player way that sounds fantastic! One or two songs get a little jammy, and go on long enough for me to start getting bored and want something different, but around the time I explicitly think "Okay, enough, do something else now," they do. They're from Montreal, and they're a tough act to follow.
The Brett Rosenberg Problem are great in almost the opposite way. Brett's songs are tight, beautifully crafted, totally straightforward rock 'n' roll gems. The sound is built around the stellar, frighteningly creative guitar leads, although the mix is really good tonight and I can hear everything. The vocal melodies don't always grab me, but the whole front line sings beautifully, and I'm a sucker for a great three-part harmony. "Orange Line" stands out in this regard. Of the four or five times I've seen this band, this is by far the best. Jason is playing with a borrowed amp, a borrowed distortion pedal, and, by the end of the set, a borrowed guitar, (props to the lead singer of The Dears for helping out in the clutch!) but seems unfazed.
After all that basic-rock-done-right, I have very little patience for The Star Spangles. They're working a Look, and working it hard, but they lack the basic skills to justify it. In fairness, they have some really good pop melodies, about half the time. (And nearly half the time they shout along together in monotone unison.) And they impress me deeply in their ability to stay together and follow the drummer, while he wanders aimlessly through an unending succession of unrelated tempi. These aren't hard parts that he's failing to play well, just dumb basic 4/4 pounding. Less time on the hair, dude, and more time practicing. I really can't enjoy a band with terrible drumming. And I think you only get a maximum of two songs with "Whoa-oh-oh" choruses per set before you should think about maybe writing more lyrics. I mean, you're getting paid for this.
