gabedouglas

The Ready Goes started off the night. I was excited for this show because it involves 3 great bands that are all dancey, but all in their own way.
The Ready Goes are local and always put a great almost brit-dance show. Soaring vocals and bumping bass, a la Killers, Franz Ferdinand, but with their own twist of character.
Always a pleasure.

Ra Ra Riot played an invigorating set. They are from New York and you can tell just by looking at them. All the guys had those tight New York indie-trend jeans, the Chuck T’s (or Vans-type slip-ons alternatives). The girls (two of them) played those Bjork-esque electric strings (one on violin, one on cello). I usually hate these things, but they not only let me enjoy them, but the cello player could throw that thing around and she was about the same height as it, so it worked out quite well. The bassist had a mini-mullet and a yellow bass.
They play very tight for a 6 piece and the strings always end the songs so eloquently. Their sound could be compared to the Collectives movement (see Animal Collective, Broken Social Scene, the Aracade Fire, Bright Eyes), but they are much more cheery and more dancey. Very chaotic sound, in the fact that everyone is usually playing different melody lines, but it all works as a cohesive unit instead of just 6 people trying to sort out the other’s parts, it is always layered great and they just stun me with the way the guitar, cello, violin, bass, and drums work together so well. Lots of driving bass drum anthemic starts and breakdowns in the songs, which I always enjoy.

The Little Ones are like the Shins to me in many regards. Very quirky sound that is somewhat familiar. The band members look NOTHING like I would think they would be. They are growing more fans, but I have no idea when I will see them in a larger venue head-lining and playing tracks from new albums that I don’t really know whole-heartedly. They played great as usual. The bass player/back-up singer/keyboardist looks like an extra from a Jackie Chan Hong Kong movie, in that he is CONSTANTLY moving and looks entirely happy to be there.
Great sing-a-long moments, great auxiliary percussion from both the guitarists and the taller, Canadian-surfer looking keyboardist/bass player. They came out and played an encore for the 30 of us who were more than happy to hear another song from them. I forget how much sunny, catchy music is completely infectious and completely consuming. I love it.

It is so great to see everyone smiling and interacting on stage with each other.. not in a ‘oh, are you ready for the breakdown? okay here it comes..’ way, but a ‘i effing love this melody you wrote’..
All the band members are mouthing the words to the songs and believing them.
And that’s what it’s all about.