all words and photos: Alyssa Lesser
When Kurt Cobain said that Kim Deal was the best part of the Pixies, he might have been onto something. Deal came back this week, with her twin sister Kelley and her amazing side-project The Breeders, for twin sold-out shows with Whispertown2000 at the Bowery.
An old friend used to play in Whispertown, and I really like them, so I was excited to see them play – albeit a little confused by the pairing of them with the Breeders. Whispertown is a little band from LA that produces very folky, cutesy graceful little tunes that are hardly heavy; somehow, when they took the stage before the Breeders, they worked. Whispertown was fun, lighthearted, and full of energy, and a nice segue into the following band.
If you, like me, grew up in the DC area, pre-ipods and XM, you probably grew up hearing “Cannonball” on DC101 every day after it came out. And if you, like me, were really into the songs, and really into the whole female musicians/riot grrrl movement (not that the Breeders are riot grrrl), you investigated the band that played “Cannonball” further and came out with a profound love for the Breeders. Or, you know, did it a different way.
The Breeders took a hiatus for a long time, and came back to music a few years ago – and then again last year, with more new material and a tour. I never got to see the original Breeders in the early 90s, but I can only imagine they were as good live as they were the other night.
The band was totally electric, busting out song after song, comprehensively covering the span of their catalogue. Every single patron in the Bowery seemed to hang onto every floaty melody. Everyone was rocking out. Frankly, the floor underneath us all could have collapsed and the band probably would have kept playing, and we probably wouldn’t have cared. Kim and Kelley were charming and truly grateful to be playing together again. It was THAT good.
I ended up spending most of the time between sets speaking with the man next to me: he was at least twice my age, and used to be a music photographer, too. He told me about photographing Peal Jam at the Limelight and seeing bands like Blondie, the Pixies, and the Tom Tom Club in tiny venues. I was infinitely jealous – parts of me always feel like they were raised in different decades. Bands today aren’t the same as they used to be…but at least we still have the Breeders.
i vividly remember them supporting Nirvana in Philadelphia back in 1994. I was quite young then. And awfully good they were, too.
No, bands today are not what they used to be: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aLE4w43g_Ak
Now, imagine being actually present there!.. Being carried away in the whirlwind of the amazing sound of this phenomenal band. Few bands kicked ass as hard as this one.
August 24, 2009 at 2:34 pm
I walked into the Black Cat last Friday prepared for disappointment and instead was blown away. That Breeders show was fantastic. The Deals seemed just delighted to be on stage playing and the feeling was infectious; the musicianship was very tight and rock solid and I wondered, “what other women have been playing hard guitar like this for as long?” And how about that voice? Unique, effortless, mature-while-youthful, Sinatra-esque in entering and exiting a touch off…super impressive. My only complaint, I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, is with the crowds here in DC that refuse to dance to eminently danceable music.
August 24, 2009 at 1:37 pm