Sic Alps, Spectre Folk, and Weekends at Death by Audio

Written by  Published in Live Reviews Monday, 27 June 2011 10:00

Weekends

Going to Death by Audio to see Weekends, Spectre Folk, and Sic Alps was the best decision I could have made on Friday. I was really impressed by all three of these bands, and I feel compelled to recommend seeing all of them live. Any chance you get, do it. Death by Audio was also probably the best place to catch all the bands together, since it’s another one of the venues run by artists in Brooklyn, with crazy murals and random graffiti on the walls, plus a really laid back atmosphere that makes everyone relax more like they were at someone’s private basement party.

Weekends_wild

To put it simply, Weekends rocked. They’re a 2-piece rock band from Baltimore, with the members switching between drums and guitar. The vocals were really distorted, the guitar beyond blown out, and the drum beats were hard and furious. They played with a punk energy, and after the first two songs the members switched instruments and went even more wild. The drummer-now guitarist jumped on the bass drum, jumped into the crowd, jumped on the amps, then jumped on the bass drum again, steadying himself by touching the low ceiling. They made me wonder if this was as close as I could get to having an idea of what The Stooges may have been like live in the 70s. A bold claim, I know, but my association has to start somewhere.

Sonic Youth’s drummer (which this Village Voice article confirmed for me). Their show basically conveyed the fact that their recordings don’t do the band nearly enough justice. They played great psychedelic jams, but the live experience was so much more than that. I don’t even know exactly how to describe it, except to say that it was a sonic pleasure. If I were to make a comparison for them, it might be like if Yo La Tengo and Sonic Youth had a baby.

Spectre_Folk_full_band

Sic_Alps_sick

Sic Alps was the headliner, and after effectively having my mind blown by Spectre Folk, I was kind of just coasting on a musical high, which Sic Alps continued to float along. Drummer Matt Hartman (formerly in Henry’s Dress) also played electric guitar at his drum set, and singer/guitarist Mike Donovan played an acoustic guitar that he effected to sound just like an electric. They have an atmospheric noise pop sound that kind of descends upon the ears like a haze, gradually getting thicker and thicker until it almost feels tangible but is really still a ghost that can go through you when it wants to. All of their songs are on the short side, averaging about two minutes, but live their music felt much more sprawling, and definitely more magical.

Sic_Alps

Weekends are playing Death by Audio again this Thursday, and also have a show tonight in Denver, CO. With all the members in Spectre Folk being involved in a number of other projects, they have few live dates, but they will be playing Cake Shop in July. In July Sic Alps are part of a killer Woodsist Festval lineup in Big Sur, CA, and then they hit Europe.

Last modified on Sunday, 26 June 2011 23:51
Kelly Knapp

I grew up listening to the music my parents listened to. My mom gave me some of her “Golden Oldies” cassette tapes, and I could sit in my room for hours harmonizing with The Ronettes, and staring at Del Shannon, who I thought was a total stud in his tiny black and white photo on the glossy fold-out insert. I listened to Willie Nelson because my Dad admired him so much, and I wanted to understand what was so great about him too. My first concert wasn’t a huge life changer; I saw Inner Circle at a local Jambalaya festival in Central Florida. Their biggest hit was “Bad Boys,” the theme song to COPS. If anything, that concert should have traumatized me. But, at the time I had no comprehension of any crassness. I just remember the guitarist making eye contact with me and smiling, and feeling excitement over having a brief connection with someone who was making me dance.

It’s the same thing with listening to music with words in another language. It’s not necessary to understand words or literal meanings. It’s the way the melodies and rhythms evoke feeling. It’s like that saying about art, how you may not be able to explain it, but you know it when you see it. I can’t always describe music (although obviously, I sure as hell try to), but I know what I like when I feel it, and I think those who can evoke that feeling deserve to be acknowledged for it. That’s what I want to describe. That’s what I want to share.

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