all photos: Irfan Khalil and Jane Briggs
Before yesterday, I’d never left a show feeling like I just got jumped and beat up for my lunch money. And yet, after watching Crystal Antlers’ set at the Black Cat backstage Monday, it would be hard to sum up in words exactly what I felt other than to tell you it hurt: my ears, my bones, my head, everything. But, as these things usually tend to go, it was in the best possible way.
There are few bands who received as much press coverage and great buzz after last week’s CMJ Music Marathon in New York as Long Beach’s Crystal Antlers. I’d been a fan of theirs for about a month or so but with the absurd amount of media and blog attention they’ve been receiving lately, it seems like this week was apparently the week to catch their live show. And going in, I’d heard nothing but raves: earth-shaking, eardrum-crushing, intense; all the good stuff you like to hear before seeing this kind of band. There’s apparently something to it as Crystal Antlers and their intense blend of raw punk, stoner rock and soul pretty much tore the Black Cat down, leaving in their wake a half-full room of either dead bodies or converts.
The openers, True Womanhood, sound like a big, ole breakfast bowl full of blah. I know some people ‘round these parts seen to like them, but I’m convinced they must have seen a different band. But now I feel bad because I didn’t catch all of their set so if you dig things that somehow sound like everything and nothing at the same time (not in that good way, either) and leave your consciousness the second they’re finished, save yr pennies and go to a show or something. After a short break, the room went from silence to caterwaul in a matter of seconds as the band launched into their set. Crystal Antlers draw from a pretty eccentric sonic palette and it shows: EP and performance highlight “A Thousands Eyes” incorporates everything from a Latin-tinged bassline during the verse to a mournful, melodrama-laden chorus. There’s something for everyone in these songs: driving, sloppy shoegaze, spazzy surf rock and tripped-out, crunchy psychadelia. At the end of the brisk, just-right 45-minute set (sans encore), the entire (unjustifiably small) audience erupted in applause and busted out their most effective melted-brain facial expressions, even though not a whole lot was said. Granted, this could have been due to everyone’s inability to hear anything for like two hours afterward.
No Crystal Antlers live review is complete without mentioning Sexual Chocolate.
Who? Oh, just their inane, mustachioed percussionist, Damian something. It doesn’t even matter what his last name is because to anyone who’s seen him perform, he’ll always be Sexual Chocolate. A one-man bongo powerhouse, Sexual manages to turn erect nipples into an art form; theatrical lip-synching into a heartbreaking experience; a staged dance routine set to a dizzying guitar freakout into a must-see. Despite totally not fitting the aesthetic or stage demeanor of the rest of the band, S. Chocolate is a such a totally hypnotic, bizarre figure that he elevated the already stellar performance to an entire different level by being the most watchable thing on stage (though to be fair, organist Victor Rodriguez did at one point bust out a blistering Rhodes solo with help from the side of frontman Jonny Bell’s face).
Don’t go see Crystal Antlers if you’re lame. Don’t see them if you like bitching to your friends how loud the band is playing or if you enjoy spending all your time at a show in the back, chatting up any attractive someone who crosses your path (you probably won’t be able to hear them anyway). Stand in the front and take as much clothing off as possible. You may not start to samba or anything, but you’ll move. And without a doubt, by the end, you’ll feel like someone hit you in the face with a brick. In the best possible way.
Previously in Live DC:
- 5/24: LiveDC: The Adicts @ RNR Hotel
- 5/24: LiveDC: The Donkeys @ Black Cat
- 5/23: LiveDC: The Barr Brothers w/ Kishi Bashi @ The Hamilton
- 5/23: LiveDC: Damien Jurado @ Black Cat
- 5/23: Report: Soundbites 2012
- 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
God loves a cheerful giver.
True Womanhood = great people.
True Womanhood's music = snooze fest.
Phil, I don't get the obsession with their stuff either. I mean, I hope they do astoundingly well, I just don't understand the hype. Sounds like stuff other bands have already done way better. They have a sweet drum though.
To each his own and all that stuff but I thought True Womanhood sounded great. I was especially chuffed they played "The Monk," which may be my favorite of theirs at the moment.
way rad. sexual chocolate rocks my sox
this review is so magical
Love True Womanhood, and thought this set was their best yet. Different people hear different things when listening to the music, hence the line in the review about being "convinced they must have seen a different band." True Womanhood are definitely not a band for everyone. Just as Crystal Antlers were not my thing at all, and I'm not sure how many people would really get very into both. I think True Womanhood's sound is a bit less obvious, more textual, more interesting, and probably plays a bit more to the head than the groin, as did the Antlers. We need someone who might be into True Womanhood's scene to review their show at velvet on Sunday. Can't wait for it.
I thought True Womanhood were on point, and I agree it was probably their best set yet. My thoughts, broadly, on them and their live show:
http://auralstates.com/2008/10/true-womanhood-the-black-cat-20081027.html