Punk | LovetheMusic

Oh yeah, I saw Gogol Bordello @ State Theatre 6-16-08

How did I almost forget that one? On Monday I went to the State Theater in St. Pete and saw Gogol and the crew. Or maybe they ARE the crew…dunno. A lot of the time there was 9 people on stage in a theater was meant for punk music and moshing. My friend Jason’s first show at that venue, back in the day, was Bouncing Souls.

Gogol put on a great show, for sure. We almost didn’t get in, because they ran out of tickets, and then were accepting cash for no ticket, so I had to run across the street in a halter top that was not meant for boobies jiggling. I had a line of punkrockers/retro/50’s dressed people looking at me. Anyways, found an ATM. Got in. Sweet. The beer was pretty cheap, too, only 3 bucks for a Miller Lite. They took their sweet ass time coming on though. 45 minutes between the openers and Gogol. My buzz was gone.

Do I have the setlist? Hell no. No idea what they played. I can tell you that I WORE PURPLE, and I got that whole song on video….not on my camera. They played Alcohol, returning from their break as an encore. And, my friends decided to go out back and try meet them, and they did! Me and the boyfriend hit the road. I’m not much for trying to meet bands and such, I never know what to say…”Hey man, ….how’s….work?”

Cool, eh? Lots of sweat, wine, and people on stage. Kickin’ show. can’t wait to see them again.

An Apology to Opening Bands

Astute readers may have noticed a recent sharp decline in my commentary on opening bands at the last few shows I’ve been to. Normally I like to give them a reasonable amount of room in my review because, if they’re good, they deserve a bit more exposure. This past few weeks, however, going back to the Arcade Fire on Sept. 26, I’ve had a bad habit of showing up kind of late.
I would like to say that the two songs I caught from LCD Soundsystem at the Arcade Fire show were excellent. They play an interesting mix of indie rock and electronic dance music, and are not afraid to jam on either of those tips. Their last song was called “New York, I love you But You’re Bringing me Down” and I thought it was decidedly worth listening to you, so that’s the song I’ll be providing.
The Bravery opened up for the Smashing Pumpkins, and I likewise only heard the last couple of songs. I rather enjoy their hit single “Time Won’t Let me Go” because I can relate to it; I never had a Summer of ‘69, either. I assume this was played earlier in the set because I didn’t recognize any of the stuff I heard. And if I heard it again, I still don’t think I’d recognize it, whereas I could tell either LCD Soundsystem song I heard, and maybe spot some stuff I didn’t hear as being LCD SS. The Bravery sounded pretty much like…I dunno what the hip kids are calling the genre, but whatever you’d call the Killers. Also: Bands from New York and LA, you look as stupid in skin-tight denim as Stryper looked in spandex twenty years ago. Cut it out, seriously.
Really all I can tell you about the bands that opened for Saves the Day is that they were called Single File and Dr. Manhattan, and that Dr. Manhattan is a really cool name for a band. I missed these sets due to all the walking involved in getting to Kilby that night. Sorry guys, maybe next time.
So the winners of the winners of Best Opening Band during my Early Autumn Concert Blitz is LCD Soundsystem. Give ‘em a nice round o’ applause!

[Jen applauds here]

LCD Soundsystem // MySpazz // Buy their new album

LCD Soundsystem - New York, I love you but you're bringing me down [5:36m]: Play in Popup | Download (2874)

Inappropriate!/A History Lesson -> The Violent Femmes

It is a very respectable thing to know more about the Violent Femmes than their über-hit "Blister In the Sun." For a long time before I really got into the Femmes, I got by on my knowledge of "Gone Daddy Gone" but with that being recently covered by Gnarls Barkley, it won't quite do anymore. On the radio today I heard the Femmes classic "Add It Up" and it hit me that I need to be doing double duty with this post: educating you fine people about the Violent Femmes and giving you songs that are horribly inappropriate for a mixtape directed at your significant other! All at once!

Violent Femmes Official // MySpace // Buy One of Their CDs, for good measure.

Add It Up MP3

[audio:http://lovethemusicreviews.com/audio/Violent%20Femmes%20-%20add%20it%20up.mp3]

Gimme The Car MP3

[audio:http://lovethemusicreviews.com/audio/Violent%20Femmes%20-%20Gimme%20The%20Car%20%5BLive%5D.mp3]

Band Spotlight : Bad Brains

So, Bad Brains have a new album out, Build a Nation, which was produced by Beastie Boy Adam Yauch. Chances are that you like several bands who would list Bad Brains as a strong influence. They were founders of the D.C. hardcore scene (which brought you the likes of Fugazi and Rites of Spring) and threw down an eclectic sound with roots in punk, prog and reggae (which influenced Red Hot Chili Peppers, Sublime, 311, Beastie Boys, Black Flag, Rage Against the Machine, Faith No More and about a billion other bands). The band is one of those 'as volatile off stage as they are onstage' situations, and have broken up and reformed plenty over the years. The album can be heard on their myspace page, and is rightly hailed as a return to their hardcore roots.
I've been listening to it, and I've gotta say that I've really enjoyed the reggae jams, but I reacted to the hardcore parts the same way I react to most hardcore– unimpressed. It might be hard for some to go from hardcore to reggae and back like this, but the whole album's up, give it a listen. I'll give you some older Bad Brains tracks for you to mull over, too. It's historical, ya'll!