From the positive reviews and airplay of Transfer‘s new album, Future Selves the show was sold out two days prior.  If you missed this one, you should be feeling bummed. It is shows like this one that make me energized about music in San Diego. This show had everything: sweat, lights, good friends rocking the stage and hanging out, new bands I never heard of blowing my mind, and incredible performances all the way around.

For photos and a detailed show review:

Talking to a few of my musician friends about going to this show, I was explicitly told not to miss the first band. It was pretty much an order. I had to be there front and center when the show began. In their first ever performance, Hong Kong took the stage. I mean they took the stage. This well-dressed, three-piece band energized the crowd with their instrumentals of something between 70s soul and 50s surf rock. Many commented that it would be their soundtrack of choice if they were the star of a film, walking down the streets of downtown or along the railroad tracks of California.

I wish I could direct you to when and where they are playing next, but since there seems to be another band in this world with the same name, they are pretty much impossible to search for. Hint: you may want to consider another name.

The only time I have seen Wirepony, the next band on the bill, was at a solo show at Lestat’s. NOT AT ALL the same. Patrick Dennis (from the Truckee Brothers and other projects) has put together an awesome line-up for this band. On lead guitar is his son, Aaron Dennis (from Tan Sister Radio). O is on bass (from Fluf, Reeve Oliver, and many other bands past, present, and future) and Charlie McCree on drums (from bands fromerly known as Hatchet Brothers and Momma/Vertibird). Incredible talent separately, but together they have audible power that could trigger a revolution.

This night was the release of their physical album, Right Hook of Love recorded and mixed in just two days at Chaos Recorders. Here is video of “Willing to Break,” that is on the album, shot by Aaron using a camera hidden in the back of the stage:

Their energy and passion for the music prevented me from taking quality photos. Look at that, I’m blaming the band for my poor photography skills. The only time I could get a good photo of Aaron was while he was tuning.

The high level of emotion and energy did not stop there. Oh no. Transfer stormed through their set filling the room with heart drenching resonance. Waves of unassailable harmonies drifted through the air into the minds of the crowd causing them to lurch and shake. Their live performances can never be duplicated. Although great, both albums (Future Selves and Sunken Eyes) do not compare to seeing them in person. 

With the sold out crowd and awesome tour lined up, I imagine that seeing them play at the Casbah and smaller venues may be a rarer thing in the near future. Catch them while you can.

“Are there any free Twitter tickets left?” I said greeting Ben at the door of the Casbah, while rolling in late, around 10:15 p.m. on Tuesday night.

“Just say the words,” he responded.

As I recited, “Free the Turkeys,” he stamped the inside of my wrist, granting my entrance to my chapel.

The Casbah offers free tickets nearly every Tuesday through giveaways on Twitter, offering a secret password to gain access to the show for a limited number of entries. It slightly feels like an old speakeasy but it’s all legal and no one is really hiding anything.

I arrived right after Freelance Whales finished their set. Since I had no prior knowledge of either of the bands playing that night before coming to this show (or so I thought, as you will see), I didn’t really know what I would be missing. I was out on a whim. It wasn’t until after the show that I found that Freelance Whales was listed as Stereogum’s Band to Watch at the end of September 2009. From the conversations I had on the smoking patio and the back bar, they were a perfect match with Fanfarlo (the headlining band), and yes, I really did miss something good.

Drawn into the main room by the harking sounds of mandolin and trumpet, I was certain that I would be in for a perfromance that I actually would dig (yeah, I said dig).

The symphonic melodies surrounded your senses, knocking out your heart with the beat of two drums. The trumpet and keys fill your lungs with a sense of anticipation and hope. The lyrics and harmonies caused my mind to drift away like a small sail boat on the ocean into the setting sun.

Fanfarlo captured the audience similar to finding a lost puppy to take it back home, showing them the good in the world through their music.

It wasn’t until halfway throught the show that I had figured out that I had heard Fanfarlo before. “The Walls Are Coming Down” sounded echoes from the past that I couldn’t quite put my finger on. The trumpets swelled and ebbed in dreamlike sequences through your head. The violin and xylophone twinkled like stars in the night sky swirling with catchy lyrics.

It wasn’t until the following day that I realized exactly where I had heard “The Wall Are Coming Down” before. I kept thinking, maybe a new song on FM94.9 but I don’t recall ever hearing it while in my car which is about the only time I listen to the radio. I was also thinking that maybe it was one of the albums given to us by our friend Lyn, http://www.chickrawker.com/ as she send us a lot of albums. But if that was the case, I would have recognized more than one song in the set. Then I discovered and confirmed that it was from listening to the Paste Magazine Sampler: Issue 55 (August 2009).

Walking out of the Belly Up Tavern last Tuesday with my fedora brim filled with confetti, my spirit soared from one of the most over-the-top, ultra-amazing shows that I have seen at that venue ever. Yes, I saw Death Cab for Cutie months ago hit me in the heart with an arrow of emotionally beautiful songs. I have seen Johnette Napolitano streaming tears down the faces of the crowd from her powerful voice. I have also seen Bob Schnieder on several occasions get the crowd in such a ferver that girls and guys are nearly crawling up on stage to get at him. All of these incredible shows I’ve seen at the Belly Up Tavern over the years still can not compare to the energy and playful production that They Might Be Giants brought to their stage last week in the last show on their 8 Bit Tour.

The moment Roger and I walked into the venue, we were blown away by the amount of equipment on and around the stage. TMBG brought in their own lighting, video and sound (minus the main speakers). The AV boards took up the most of the seating on stage left (the right hand side of the stage as you are looking at it). No front seats available there.

We stood with our Red Stripes in hand, in awe of the equipment, when the opening act started. Guggenheim Grotto caught our ears with a whimsical melody played on a ukeleli. I heart ukes and this tune made me want more. Sadly they switched to an acoustic electric for the rest of the set, only bringing the uke back for the closer. Even they realize that their uke songs are their best songs by far. The duo, Mike Lynch and Kevin May harmonize like blood brothers, singing songs of fancy based on literary characters and real life. It is easy to see how these two acts came together on this tour.

When They Might Be Giants took the stage, the lights went crazy in a ballyhoo and the crowd went nuts. My stomach all flittery as I realized that I finally was going to see TMBG play. Yeah, I know, I must have seen them before but somehow it never happened until now (and same for Roger).

They began by playing “Meet the Elements” off the Here Comes Science album, their newest album geared towards teaching kids about the wonders of science. Right away I felt cozy and warm with goodness. Their songs brought back a time of playing tag, digging in the sandbox to finally reach China and talking in secret languages our parents wouldn’t understand.

At one point in the show, The Avitars of They, sock puppets in the likeness of John Linnell and John Flansburgh, took over the performance though live video projected on a screen in the back of the stage. Hilarity ensued with a mini comedy performance, playfully bashing They Might Be Giants by They themselves. The Avitars of They performed two songs, then returned to the regularly scheduled performance.

Disco lights spun around the room, entrancing many as they sung “What is a Shooting Star?” Probably one of my favorite songs of the night from Here Comes Science ending with confetti cannons shooting multi-colored confetti over the front half of the room. And we were no where near the encore.

The night would not be complete without hearing songs from their second album, Flood, the album that brought TMBG radio play and the “fame” that came with it (aka bringing home the paycheck). We were privvy to “Particle Man”, “Birdhouse in your Soul”, “Istanbul (not Constantinople)”, “They Might Be Giants”, and my personal favorite, “Whistling in the Dark”.

The night of music came to a close after two short encores and another cannon blast of confetti over the entire room. I can only imagine what the Belly Up staff thought of the drifts of small pieces of crepe paper. The room was cleared by 11pm. Early night for most rock shows. But for They Might Be Giants, early nights are the standard. About fifty percent of their scheduled shows are geared towards a younger audience, a much younger audience of preschoolers with their hip parents. I totally would have brought Thomas to one of these shows, but the last one scheduled on this tour was in LA. Next time, oh definitely next time.

I was asked to do a concert review of the Fastball concert cruise with KPRI for another site, Your Concert Reviewer. Check out my review here.

It has been awhile since there has been a new band that charged me up and made me happy that live music exists in this world. Some of the bands that I have seen that have this ability to continually blow me away include Silent Comedy, Get Back Loretta, Nada Surf, and The Smart Brothers.

The common thread between these bands is that they don’t take things too seriously and have fun with what they do. You can see, hear and feel that they love music and want you as a fan to love it too. Their performances feel like parties on stage and off) where you can’t resist dancing and singing along… even if it is your very first time seeing them.

This weekend, I was able to revive myself and get out of the house to check out a couple of bands that I had never seen or heard about before. I saw the video for “Thin Sides” by Army Navy with Paul Scheer, from “Human Giant” and “Best Week Ever,” and was excited about what I saw and heard. Apparently Army Navy had a few songs on the “Nick and Nora’s Infinite Playlist” soundtrack, but it has been a while since I have seen a movie. Seeing that this band was energetic and could poke fun at themselves, drove me down the boulevard to the Beauty Bar for a night of music.

Here is the video if you haven’t had the chance to see it already:

When we arrived there was a band already playing on stage. I first thought that it was Army Navy, but figured out fairly quickly that it wasn’t. Wow, another band that had energy and happy vibes! Awesome night. The band happened to be The Takeover UK, a name that still doesn’t roll off of my tongue. This Pittsburgh band actually struck a chord with both Roger and I. Roger stated that The Takeover UK made him “feel like picking up his guitar and tossing it out the window.” At least that is what I heard/remember. They inspired me to think happy thoughts while bouncing around on the smoking patio that is the bar’s dance floor.

Army Navy from Manhattan was up next. I think I had pretty high expectations at that point after the video and seeing The Takeover UK. They were great, but I was more into The Takeover UK. Sadly the guitarist had injured his foot while on tour and ended up in a low stool for the night. Actually, I think the drummer from The Takeover UK had just gotten back from the emergency room for some stomach/pancreas problem… on pain meds surviving the night. From either bands performance, you could not even tell.

It was the last night on tour. The energy was high. For the final song of Army Navy’s set, they invited to the stage members from both The Takeover UK and The Shys, the headlining act. It reminded me of earlier shows with Silent Comedy and Get Back Loretta. Powerful ending to the set, and for me the night. I really wanted to stay to see The Shys, but my bed was calling through my belly.