It was a crowded bill for a Sunday at Satyricon, with four bands playing to an audience that seemed to steadily grow over the course of the night. Along with the number of those in attendance, the quality of music was also on a steady upward crawl as the event wore on.
The smell of the venue, the graffiti-laden walls and, of course, the all-ages atmosphere all harkened back to days of high school punk shows, smoking weed in an alley behind the local pizza shop and making out with your spikey haired boyfriend in the shadows. Scum Grief, the first band to play, hit a little too close to home on this front with what may someday be good music. For this set, however, their performance was sloppy and they band had difficulty keeping time on some of their songs. While their music did possess a few catchy hooks and a nice raw energy, their over all feel was just too raw to really work at this point.
Following this quaint display of punk rock was a collective of musicians called Foot Ox. The group topped off at 10 members, looking as though they had stepped out of their jobs at the local co-op and straight onto the stage. While they too had kind of a messy feel to their performance, their set was a lot more fun to watch, and they seem to have a knack for lush instrumentation. Their lead singer’s voice is a little on the shrill side, but not without its own special kind of charm. Song after song dissolved into cacophony, with their singer going solo for a bit at one point. They did gain some major points for all of their musicians being more than capable and possessing a good degree of individual talent.
The Max Levine Ensemble took he stage next and showed everyone how punk music should be. This D.C. band possesses an amazing energy and an incredible amount of skill in what they do. They don’t seem like the kind of group that could carry a show all on their own, but the did an amazing job at riling everyone up and getting the crowd moving.
Nana Grizol finally made their appearance to a packed room of eager listeners. The band recently released their second album Ruth and a lot of their set consisted of songs from that album. The six-piece was an interesting contrast to the other bands, radiating an unwavering air of optimism and peppiness throughout their set. With several members switching between percussion, various brass instruments, keyboard, and the occasional guitar, there was a constant flutter of energy and an interesting dynamic between the six members that made for a riveting performance and a beautiful base to their thoughtful lyrics.
DOWNLOAD: Nana Grizol - Cynicism (MP3) or Follow us for more Nana Grizol MP3s (Twitter)
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
By the way, I really liked the mp3 posted. Thanks.
by Joshua H on Tue Mar 16, 2010 at 06.17 pm from the entry: Flying Lotus - "Cosmogramma" - Buy It
WHO WROTE THIS...PUKE ! “WHO WROTE THIS...PUKE ! “Picture yourself coasting your bike past space funk palm trees, homeless harpists, vintage video arcades, electronic drum circles, and 60s psychedelic singers who’re waiting for the bus. Cosmogramma is kinda like that if someone suddenly tripped you just as you’re starting to enjoy the ride. But in a good way.””
by Joshua H on Tue Mar 16, 2010 at 06.17 pm from the entry: Flying Lotus - "Cosmogramma" - Buy It
Love Nana Grizol! Dude looks so different without his glasses. And I agree their peppy style makes them stand out.