I first saw Jay Reatard play at the Mercury Lounge in New York City last fall when in town covering the CMJ Festival. I’d gone there that night to see The Dirtbombs (an amazing band live) and had time to kill before their show. Jay Reatard’s opening thirty-minute set proved to be some of the most balls-out rock n’ roll I have ever seen. The crowd, worked into a complete frenzy, had a “holy shit did that just really happen” look on its collective face at the conclusion of a most-amazing performance. And so it was with high hopes that I approached the show at Harpers Ferry.
Reatard took the stage and, with no further ado, launched into a short but blazing set. Starting off with the title track from his 2007 solo debut Blood Visions, Reatard proceeded to tear through the album, playing “Death Is Forming,” “Oh It’s Such A Shame,” “It’s So Easy,” “Greed, Money, Useless Children,” and “My Shadow,” to name a few. With each song averaging a short, fiery two minutes, the show was characteristically brief. But don’t equate brevity with lifelessness. Never before have I seen anyone pack so much rock into a tight amount of time.
After the show, I spotted Reatard sitting to the side of the bar and took the opportunity to thank him for the music and for opening the show to melophobe. Extremely gracious and relaxed, Reatard even posed for a quick post-show shot between discussion of his experiences at a show a few nights before in Toronto (read about it on Reatard’s blog here and see video here [shit starts to go down around minute 1:10 -ed.]). The subdued crowd at Harpers Ferry on Sunday must have been a welcome relief after the melee in Toronto.
An excellent act, Reatard is not to be missed by those who enjoy a bit of rock.
he is amazing bro his style can not be touched....some people dont know what he is talking about caz u dont do what he does he is sickkk bra
by dylyn on Thu Mar 18, 2010 at 11.59 am from the entry: Wiz Khalifa: Burn After Rolling (Mixtape)
Wow,Great post.Thanks for sharing with us. land wi
by wisconsin land on Thu Mar 18, 2010 at 09.53 am from the entry: of Montreal + Gang Gang Dance - Orpheum Theatre (Boston, MA; Oct. 30, 2008)
Ugh. Paste’s profile of Free Energy made me kind of hate them. So does your review. It’s this unctuous defense of good-time rock-and-roll ("we’re just here to party, and we’re awesome!") that seems more self-serving than fun-loving.
by beth on Wed Mar 17, 2010 at 09.41 pm from the entry: Foreign Born + Free Energy - The Knitting Factory (Brooklyn, NY; Mar. 12, 2010)
that inescapable feeling you are referring to, is that like when you hear something and you could have sworn you heard it before because of the nostalgic catchy quality? or is is like when you’ve heard a band exactly like said band?
great post by the way!
by paul on Wed Mar 17, 2010 at 03.15 pm from the entry: The Novel Ideas - "The Sky Is A Field" - Borrow It
Whoa! I had no idea she was enegaged. You would never know with the way she behaves! Wow!
by art on Wed Mar 17, 2010 at 09.48 am from the entry: Nikki Darlin and John McCauley: 1+1=1
This comment stream is so meta. Great review Kelly.
by chris on Tue Mar 16, 2010 at 07.50 pm from the entry: Flying Lotus - "Cosmogramma" - Buy It
no prob. The whole album is excellent, combining some of the harder sonics of Los Angeles with the meat of his debut and obviously difficult to summarize in only 50 words… 
I’d say it’s on par with the debut, but better than Los Angeles.
by kelly on Tue Mar 16, 2010 at 06.23 pm from the entry: Flying Lotus - "Cosmogramma" - Buy It
