all words: Sal
all photos: Sam Goldstein from last time
Every once in a while a band comes along and you say to yourself, "Self, don't miss this band because you will regret it
for the rest of your life." The Pains of Being Pure at Heart are that band for me. Since I discovered them (approximately the same time Sepie discovered MGMT), I realized that bands like this don't stay small for long and next thing you know you are in a warehouse in NE with 2000 screaming teenagers. To avoid the would be death trap given the aforementioned circumstances, I got myself over to the Black Cat Wednesday evening for the mega-triple bill of Cymbals Eat Guitars, The Depreciation Guild, and the Pains of Being Pure at Heart.
I unfortunately had to miss Cymbals Eat Guitars because I was in class until well after their set started, but arrived just in time to see The Depreciation Guild. What struck me about the Depreciation Guild was how they sounded more grunge than pop. I've checked out most of their stuff on myspace (creeper I know) and it has a dreamy almost 80's Phil Collins effect to it. Live however, their music rocked and a lot of the pop endearingness fell to the wayside. A major reason they probably had to scream vocals was due to the GODAWFUL sound that evening, but more on that later. The one downside I saw with the band was how many of their songs sounded very similar and not in the "Oh I've heard this hook before awesome" but more like the "Oh wait....is this the same song as the last one?" It gets a little tedious at points, but I'd definitely check out the album, it has a lot of potential to grow on you.
Anyone who has been to the Black Cat Mainstage knows that the sound can sometimes be really bad. Maybe its the design of the room, the low ceiling, the flat open space, or the lack of proper acoustic padding, but there is no reason why the sound engineer did not tweak the board when he couldn't (like most everyone else) hear the vocals. Regardless, The Pains did their best to put on a great show. The highlight of the show was their opening track off the new EP the aptly titled Higher than the Stars. The guitar riffs and catchy drum beat flow well, and Kip Berman (Vocals/Guitar) looks like a young Bob Dylan as he bops up and down in front of the mic. When you can hear the vocals, their songs are fun and bouncy and the vocals are reverbtastic(TM). Their set was all too short and while I loved the music, I wish I had a better experience.
Ultimately, The Pains=Awesome, check them out, The Black Cat Sound=Bad, try to avoid. I hope next time The Pains come to town they were be elsewhere and I'll get the opportunity to hear them in all their dreamy indie-pop glory.
BONUS: All our previous Pains coverage:
-Long a go "check them out" story here
-Live show review here
-Catch up stories here and here
-AND A GREAT, Candid interview with Kip
-Live show review here
-Catch up stories here and here">here
Previously in Live DC:
- 5/22: LiveDC: Spirit Animal @ Red Palace
- 5/22: LiveDC: Astra Via @ Black Cat
- 5/22: LiveDC: Father John Misty @ Rock & Roll Hotel
- 5/22: LiveDC: Drive-By Truckers and Lucinda Williams @ Merriweather
- 5/22: Photos: Summer Camp takes the "Ladies of Town" Drag Show
- 5/22: LiveDC: Penguin Prison & Class Actress @ RNR Hotel
- 5/21: LiveDC: James Morrison @ 930 Club
- 5/21: Photos: Que Sera L'Anniversaire @ Napoleon
- 5/21: LiveDC: La Sera/ Beach Week @ Red Palace
- 5/21: LiveDC: The Black Keys & Arctic Monkeys @ Merriweather Post Pavilion
God loves a cheerful giver.
in the sound engineers defense, the singer of pains has a really soft voice and the band plays really loud so he did the best he could. often the effect of having a quiet singer is feedback.
in that i mean they try to push the vocals and sometimes you peak. anyways it was a great show!
I got there at towards the end of the Depreciation Guild and liked what I heard.
The Cymbals Eat Guitars slap bracelets totally made up for my missing their set.
The Pains put on a great show, but yeah, the sound was off, I could hardly hear Peggy at all throughout their set.
And NO ONE except for me and like four other people danced. And those awful people that like to complain when people get in front of them at a GENERAL ADMISSION show were there in full force. Stupidstupid.
Thankfully they were easy to ignore (though the dad standing right in front of me, not moving at all throughout the night, was not).
Pains had their own soundguy and yes, he had a tough time cuz they are quiet, I mean really QUIET singers. I did Depreciation Guild... they were whispering. You know - Shoegazer style: Loud guitars/soft vocals. Anyways, you do the best you can with what you get, but sometimes what you get isn't workable.
Also, the club can sound excellent, but yes, it is a tough room and a lot of visiting sound people just can't get it right. I can work that room, no problem, but some bands just sound bad... all I can do is try to make it louder.
So, now that you know something new, maybe next time you won't say ignorant things like the sound at the Black Cat = bad. And, if you feel so compelled to do so - maybe you could run sound. What do you think? I could use a night off.
Or just don't come to our shows.
Either way suits me.
This is a constant problem with POBPAH, quiet singing and shitty mixes. You can never hear the keys right either. I thought they were alright, probably better last time. Depreciation Guild were a snoozefest, their projections were probably the most interesting part of their set. Cymbals Eat Guitars stole the show in my opinion. If you missed them, you missed out.
I second all others who mention POBPAH's role in the sound issues. I saw them at the Talking Head Club back in May, and they had similar problems there. Black Cat's acoustics aren't always great, but the issues came from both parties this time around. Regardless, I really enjoyed the show.
@Nate -- I totally agree with you. Even with the equipment difficulties, Cymbals Eat Guitars were the best band that evening.
I was bummed I missed the first 15 of their set, because I thought The Depreciation Guild would be in the opening slot.