San Francisco - Every musician dreams of having ability to fully command an audience’s attention, but it’s a skill is one that takes years and years to perfect. I know of many bands that have yet to achieve such fluidity and grace onstage, bands that have been together for years—even decades—yet they still lack the kind of charisma that one hopes to witness at a live show. tUnE-yArDs is not one of these bands.
tUnE-yArDs is the brainchild of musician Merrill Garbus—who, like me, is a Connecticut native who made her way out West in search of greener pastures— that sprouted its humble roots in the late 2000s with Garbus’s patchwork debut Bird-Brains. After piecing together her debut, she moved—to Oakland, where she currently resides (as do I)—and enlisted the help of musician Nate Brenner to fill out the sound for her breakthrough sophomore effort, 2011’s w h o k I l l.
Now, tUnE-yArDs are touring behind their third album, the playful Nikki-Nack, and although Garbus has surrounded herself with a collective of colorful musicians, she remains the true focus. Her powerful, androgynous vocal stylings, matched up with glowing eccentricity and wacky fashion choices, have no trouble at all catching the eyes of her faithful audience.
Tonight was the second of two hometown shows (accompanied last night with the help of blossoming duo Sylvan Esso), and Garbus was a little emotional and overwhelmed (because she was “a little sick, and might be PMSing a little bit too”), but it hardly showed. Set against a luminescent backdrop of giant cartoony eyeballs pasted among the curtains, she seemed right at home on the Fillmore stage, seamlessly switching between sound machine and ukulele and belting near-perfect melodies like it was nobody’s business.
The set was heavily reliant on tUnE-yArDs’ new material from Nikki-Nack, peppered with a few classics from w h o k I l l. They began with the newer track, “Hey Life,” a thumping soon-to-be classic that electrified the crowd to their feet, and was swiftly followed by the 2011 single “Gangsta,” which incidentally was the first tUnE-yArDs song I ever heard. The band then returned to newer material with the unapologetically infectious dance anthem “Sink-O”, followed by the 90s-R&B-tinted “Real Thing” and the droopy, more pensive sounds of “Wait For A Minute.” This was followed by another w h o k I l l track (also my favorite), the incomparable “Powa,” which might be the first song built around electric ukulele. It’s slow and steady, yet Garbus’s attentiveness and fascinating focus (as well as some killer high notes that would make Prince turn green with envy) make this track an easy classic, and a true joy to experience live.
From here tUnE-yArDs blasted through a few more new tracks, including the echoing siren song “Time of Dark” and the slippery “Stop That Man,” and even threw in a throwback from Bird-Brainsinto the mix with “Real Live Flesh.” The band’s last three songs were heavily celebratory in nature, starting with the runaway 2011 hit “Bizness” which swiftly transitioned into the joyous romp that is “Water Fountain,” Nikki-Nack’s second track and the album’s lead single. Garbus closed her set with Nikki-Nack’s “Left Behind” (whose lyrics lend the album its title), leaving the audience to erupt with cacophonous ecstasy. As an encore, tUnE-yArDs played the first song off their new record, “Find A New Way,” and then closed out the show with the album’s last song, “Manchild,” which was a fitting farewell to an illustrious performance.
tUnE-yArDs have only been around for a handful of years, yet they already boast a rather impressive reputation of being one of the best bands to see live. Following the release of w h o k I l l in 2011, my roommate saw them “at least five times,” not only because she loved the music, but mostly because their performances—Merrill’s especially—were completely electrifying.
Merrill Garbus’s tUnE-yArDs are one of the most exciting musical outfits around. The sound is completely original and emulates a fascinating blend of genius and mystique, as well as a level of peculiarity that would make David Byrne blush. And while the music of tUnE-yArDs is wonderful in the studio, their live shows are where they shine. Even when fighting off a cold and cramps, Garbus has the chutzpah necessary to get everyone on their feet. We, the audience, are at her mercy, and it’s a wonderful kind of surrender.
Corey Bell
Latest posts by Corey Bell (see all)
- Jagwar Ma’s ‘Every Now & Then’ is Quite the Ride - July 31, 2017
- 2 New Bands at Voodoo Music Festival Day 3 - November 4, 2016
- 5 New Bands at Voodoo Music Festival Day 2 - October 30, 2016