100 Shows of 2010 - #63: Best Coast/Cults @ Rock'n'Roll Hotel, 9/8/10

In which your two favorite Terribles set out once more on a playdate, and end up witnessing an abundance of the following: LOTS of hair, lots of rock, and lots of sweltering heat. Undoubtedly, Cults and Best Coast brought most of the first two, and while they definitely brought a whole lotta hotness, I think the cramped quarters can be blamed on the latter. To quote my beloved partner, by the time the show was over, things were smelling a "little ripe" up in the Hotel. Chris has brought up the issues with this particular show already (bad lighting, bad smells, bad sound), so I'll nod in agreement and skip on over to the gushing. And...go!

MINI RECAP: Cults = Cultishly Captivating! Best Coast = Bestest Coastest! Overall Score: B+

I've decided that Cults, awesome band #1 of the evening, has more hair on their collective head than any band I've ever seen, outside of the Richmond metal scene, that is. I dug them lots and lots, finding their boy-girl vocals delightful, with the grounded boy balancing the spritely, somewhat ethereal lady. Very jaunty, very shimmering, with a hearty dose of lollipops and candy drops. Yes, I said it. "The Curse" was a favorite of mine, a spooky little song sung by a spooky little girl. 'Twas very nice indeed, as was their entire set. I found their sound to be very appealing, and when I heard a xylophone, well, be it programmed into the keys or no, it earned my eternal love and devotion for Cults. In the end, they left me wanting more, and I guess that's precisely what you're supposed to do, eh? Leave us starry-eyed and clamoring for more?

So then, after some pungent downtime, it was Best Coast's time to shine. Which I'm sure they did, we just couldn't see it thanks to the pretty bad lighting going on at the Hotel. But thankfully, Best Coast could be heard. And that was very, very good because I loved them. Loved, loved, loved. Basically, I'm already predisposed to like bands that do some serious California dreaming, and if you throw in that retro surf thing I'm yours for life. Bethany and Bobb totally rocked my world, with their combustion of lo-fi fuzziness swapping spit with upbeat jauntitude. Those are definitely some great tastes that taste great together! Bethany has quite a strong, sassy voice on her, though she keeps it sweet and girlie, too. The venue's sonic shortcomings somehow worked for the band, in my opinion, adding to their fuzztastic noisiness. Kinda like, at times, throwing girl group songs into a blender with My Bloody Valentine and a Beach Boy or two. Which, as I'm sure you'll agree, sounds pretty darned fantastic. I like to think of bands like Best Coast (and Cults) as a sort of popgaze, where you can close your eyes and see home movies of summertime picnics and afternoons in aging houses, soundtracked by this most splendid post-shoegaze poptasticness. Well, I thought it was poppy. My partner might disagree, but maybe he just couldn't hear it (wink wink nudge nudge).

In short, venue issues aside, this was another one of those well-planned bills. Cults and Best Coast were purrfect together. It was all sorts of ramalamadingdong, y'all. I look forward to seeing both of these bands again soon. Just perhaps not in summertime.

mp3: Boyfriend (Best Coast from Crazy For You)

Live Review: Best Coast with Cults, RNR Hotel, DC, 9-8-10

Contrary to the unfounded rumors i've been spreading to make myself sound like the Mack, even though Megan and i attended yet another concert (third in three weeks?) together, she is not my sugar mama, and i am not her bitch. Well, maybe the latter is true, but if you saw us together again last night, trust me, The Missus already knows and is cool with it. As such, expect Meg's take on this one to follow yet again.

i believe i've come to the conclusion that the Rock and Roll Hotel is perhaps the worst venue to see live music in all of D.C. The sound system is atrocious, and apparently management has something against spending money on electricity. Not only are there no spotlights on the performers, but both fans and A.C. were left in the off-position for the duration of last night's concert featuring the Cults and Best Coast, giving the show the dubious honor of literally being the smelliest show i've ever attended. About half way through Best Coast's set, it smelled like a mixture of girls gym locker room and wet cat. Not a good combo, i guarantee.

Fortunately, the music was better. When i bought the tickets, i didn't even know Cults were opening, which was a nice surprise. i'd only heard a handful of their singles, so i was quite surprised to see the full band. More surprising still was the amount of hair on stage for their performance. While bands bond over numerous things, from shared musical tastes to favored bands in common, i'm fairly sure Cults came together over a mutual love of rich, creamy shampoos and conditioners. The band was pleasantly spry, though their style was pretty consistent throughout, meaning not a lot of tempo changes or the like. And while this made them a perfect fit for BC, it didn't make for the most exciting show. Add to the fact that lead singer Madeline Follin's voice was pretty, but not particularly strong, and you get a better than average, but not stellar, performance. It probably would have been markedly better if i could have heard half of what she said and/or sang, but what can you do?

And i'd say about the same for Best Coast. Again, a lot of hair on stage (is that making a comeback? Do i need to work on a comb over now?). Now, fortunately, their lead singer, Bethany Cosentino, has a powerhouse set of pipes. Sure, she used the same echo effect on mic as Follin, but Cosentino's voice never was lost amongst the backdrop of her bandmates. Speaking of bandmates, even though both bands play similar lo-fi, 50s/60s early rock with surfer tendencies, BC bassist Bobb Bruno adds heft to the sound. Now, i realize you're either a fan of the sound or you're not (i am, but am nearing my limits), but it would have been nice if they had thought their set through a bit more. The only upbeat songs came at the end during the encore. While there was a lot of swaying throughout the show, the bouncing that started at the end finished before it even got fully underway. Sure, Cosentino tried to make small talk periodically between songs, but the mixture of sweaty crotch and barely audible speeches did not do much to bring the crowd into the moment.

Don't get me wrong, shitty venue and horrific crowd stench notwithstanding, it wasn't a bad show. That being said, it certainly wasn't the best i've seen this year, even if we're only talking about the handful i've seen with my wonderful writing partner this past month.

Maybe i'm just a jealous bald guy, though. Hot chicks with long hair have that effect on me. Throw in the dudes with long hair, and i'm completely off my game.

mp3: Go Outside (The Cults from Cults 7")

mp3: When I'm With You (Best Coast from Black Iris 7")

mp3: Sun Was High (So Was I) (Best Coast from Art Fag 7")

FunJunkie's 2010 Summer Burn!

For the fourth or fifth year in a row now, i'm participating in FunJunkie's annual Summer Burn. Essentially, the fine chaps over at the site host an annual "mix swap" with anyone who signs up to participate. To prove you're not a wanker who just wants free CDs for nothing, you have to sign up ahead of time and even send them a postcard to prove you are for reals, but other than that, it's just putting together a mix of just about anything one that you, the sender, feel is "summer-y" music. Pretty simple, eh?

In return for your efforts, you are supposed to receive two random mixes from two random folks who also are in the mix mastering mood. Unfortunately, i think i'm batting under .500 in the receipt department over the past few years, but i do it because i love making mixes. It's called the Summer Burn as CDs are due to be sent out on the actual summer solstice, but, as usual, i'm a couple of days behind. However, my mixes officially are done, i've spent all morning working on the covers, and they'll be in the mail first thing tomorrow (still need The Missus to help a bit with the covers, what with me having sausage fingers and all). But why should the fun stop with two random strangers when i can share the fruits of my loom with literally hundreds, if not thousands, of random strangers?

Now, i'm leaving a couple of tracks off these posts (Part II to follow shortly, but blogger.com only allows for so many labels per post, so...) because A. i don't want to raise the ire of any lawyers bitching about recent releases and B. gotta have a lil' sumfin' special for the folks who actually signed up, right?

Many of these tracks already have been recommended here at LET, but when combined into one mix, well, they'll probably cause an aural orgasm the likes of which your undergarments may not survive, so consider yourself forewarned. For hot, sticky nights. Drugs not included, but certainly not discouraged, either.

Without further ado, Burn, Baby, Burn, Part the First.

mp3: When I'm With You (Best Coast from Best Coast 7" )

mp3: Blackmagic (José James from Blackmagic)

mp3: Snowflake (Malachai from Ugly Side of Love)

mp3: When I'm Small (Phantogram from Eyelid Movies)

mp3: Lovers' Carvings (Bibio from Ambivalence Avenue)

mp3: All I Want (Joni Mitchell from Blue)

mp3: Sweepstakes ft. Mos Def and Hynotic Brass Ensemble (Gorillaz from Plastic Beach)

mp3: Beautiful People (The Books from The Way Out)

mp3: Sole Brother (Born Ruffians from Say It)

mp3: Dontchusee (Chin Chin from Chin Chin)

mp3: Go Outside (The Cults from The Cults 7")

mp3: Where's Danny? (Danny! from Where's Danny? )

mp3: At Last (The Dø from A Mouthful)

mp3: We All Wanna Be Prince (Felix Da Housecat from He Was King)

mp3: Photo Shoot (Gucci Mane Remix) (Flying Lotus from Adult Swim and Beaterator present ATL RMX)

mp3: Fresh Hex (ft. Beck) (Tobacco from Maniac Meat)

mp3: We Are Water (HEALTH from Get Color)

mp3: Hurry Up and Wait (Nocando from Jimmy the Lock)