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Why I Decree it to Be So:
I'm still hoping (i.e. deluding myself) that the disintegration of Women as a band is a mere hiccup, but on the slight chance that it's a little more permanent, well, at least they went out with one hell of a bang. Public Strain is absolutely golden, a hotbed of dissonant dreams and unexpected beauty. It's a record that shows tremendous musical growth, and even more tremendous awesomeness. Opener "Can't You See" puts typical Women-esque dissonant discordance against Velvet Underground-inspired strings for a perfect introduction to what else lies in store. "China Steps" is a favorite of mine, with the sinister repetition of drummery as well as in the severity of the guitar. It's almost violent in its' aggression at times, and damned if it's not one of my favorite songs of the year. The whole record, really, is a jaw-droppingly jarring jangle, a crack'd looking glass of 60s psych, perfect pop nuggets, and even some good old fashioned noise rock thrown in for shits and giggles. Squeamish folk might want to look elsewhere, because Public Strain bares its' teeth early and often. But for those of us who dig that kinda thing, well, this record's a welcome treat.
mp3: China Steps (Women from Public Strain)
Upon seeing this here show, I’ve come to a conclusion, my sweetest of sweet loves. We could each and every one of us benefit from more Women in our lives. No, not women women. I mean Women, the Canadian ensemble full of much supreme awesomeness and an excess of sonic splendifery. Though, come to think of it some of you could probably use more women, too, but that’s neither here nor there. So let’s consider #75 here as the one in which two bands of northerly neighbors come to DC and lay down some seriously bitchin, spectacular noise. Mama like.
MINI RECAP: DD/MM/YYYY = Dashingly Thunderous! Women = More Than Women To Me! Overall score: A
I’d been curious about DD/MM/YYYY (aka Day Month Year, just so you know) for a little while now, and was exceedingly pleased with the live stylings of their befuddling, bulky sound. Wishing us all a Happy Columbus Day, they thrashed through a set full of goodies. I’d call it a mish mash of the bratty spittle snarl of Black Eyes (RIP), the dark synthy rhythms of Underworld, and the general jarring, angular dissonance of what the kids might call art punk. Whatever the ingredients, the finished product was a fine little nasty wallop, and I kinda sorta really liked it. In fact, this (and really, this applies to Women, too) was probably what Heather Chandler had in mind when she uttered the immortal words, “fuck me gently with a chainsaw.” Between the deafening waves of blistering attitude and the drummer with a major case of the spazz, I was totally enamored.
The glorious insanity didn’t stop there, my friends. Oh no. For up next was the band I had been wanting to see since, well, the last time I saw them. Which, quite frankly, was far too long ago. Women, o Women. How much I love thee. “We’re gonna play songs now,” they stated, and play songs they damn well did. It was just what I had hoped it would be, the giant wall of noise tempered with the hint of melody here and there. The stark leanness of the older songs was balanced by the more structured, dare I say almost psych-influenced songs to be found on their new record. With the stridence came the loveliness, and it came as quite a pleasant surprise to hear this evolution. At times I felt as if my head might explode with the dazzling wonder of it all. Hearing my favorite of favorite Women songs, “Black Rice,” was the sweetest of cherries. The slightly sped-up, but no less killer, song is so rad to hear live that that one song pretty much made my night. These guys are straight up artists of the aural assault, turning the onslaught of noise into something almost beautiful. Having seen them a second time, I can confirm that Women is getting better. And that is almost scary.
So guess what I’m gonna tell you kids? Go see these two bands live. Seriously. It’s for your own good.
mp3: Narrow With The Hall (Women from Public Strain)
