Frank YangGiven the unrelenting heat that defined the first two days of Pitchfork 2010, a forecast of rain for Sunday wouldn’t have been the worst thing in the world and indeed, we got an impressive flash thunderstorm around noon – perfectly timed as I was still holed up in the hotel room. Unfortunately, said mini-monsoon didn’t actually wash away any of the heat, it just made it more humid. Awesome.

I don’t imagine the heat was bothering Best Coast, hailing as they do from the sunny climes of southern California. Their early afternoon slot on the B stage was pretty good proof that the festival schedule had been set some time ago, because if it had been put together in the last few weeks, the buzz around them and their forthcoming debut Crazy For You – out next week – would have warranted either a larger stage or later set time or both. As it was, the trio packed the field in front of the Balance Stage and delivered a set whose delivery wasn’t especially remarkable, but stripped of the lo-fi, garage-friendly production that has been one of their main talking points, it was evident that their songwriting smarts were for real. Great, hooky throwback pop however it’s marketed. They play Lee’s Palace on September 25.

Photos: Best Coast @ Balance Stage – July 18, 2010
MP3: Best Coast – “Boyfriend”
MP3: Best Coast – “Something In The Way”
Video: Best Coast – “When I’m With You”
MySpace: Best Coast

Over at the Aluminum main stage, Girls were late getting started as girls often are, with frontman Christopher Owens looking dazed and maybe confused. Though their debut Album was one of 2009’s biggest records, their live show got only middling reviews, which was approximately what I thought when I saw them at SxSW last year. You couldn’t go so far as to say that heavy touring had turned them into a lean rock machine, but they did sound fuller and more assured than they once did, if still kind of sloppy. Like their fellow Californians in Best Coast, their jangly pop gleamed in the sunlight where it couldn’t hide behind the fuzz but rather than dispense with the noise and static entirely, the just saved it up for an epic and unexpected shoegaze-worthy guitar squall in the coda of “Hellhole Ratrace”. Wakey wakey.

Photos: Girls @ Aluminum Stage – July 18, 2010
MP3: Girls – “End Of The World”
MP3: Girls – “Laura”
MP3: Girls – “Lust For Life”
Vide: Girls – “Hellhole Ratrace”
Video: Girls – “Laura”
Video: Girls – “Lust For Life”

If it had been the pre-Teen Dream Beach House coming up next on the Connector Stage, then the Girls wake-up call might have gone to waste. But the band circa 2010 is quite a different beast, having given their hazy dream pop enough energy and substance to not only keep an audience awake but enthralled. Their music may have originally been built for dark rooms in the wee hours of the night, but their ever-growing popularity seems to keep forcing them out onto outdoor stages – the last two times I saw them was in front of huge audiences lolling about in broad daylight. And such will again be the case on September 7 when they play the Molson Amphitheatre.

Photos: Beach House @ Connector Stage – July 18, 2010
MP3: Beach House – “Zebra”
MP3: Beach House – “Norway”
MP3: Beach House – “Gila”
MP3: Beach House – “Heart Of Chamber”
MP3: Beach House – “Master Of None”
Video: Beach House – “Walk In The Park”
Video: Beach House – “Silver Soul”
Video: Beach House – “Used To Be”
Video: Beach House – “You Came To Me”
Video: Beach House – “Heart Of Chambers”
MySpace: Beach House

Over at the Balance Stage, I managed to finally rectify a four month-old wrong in catching Local Natives, whom I’d missed at SxSW something like eight times. And the Los Angeles quintet was as impressive a live beast as I’d been told, with them reproducing the complex harmonies and rhythms of Gorilla Manor with even more energy than on record. It almost felt as though they themselves were being propelled by the music and while they lost control early on, with the drums clearly falling out of step with the rest of the arrangements, they quickly got hold of the reins again and didn’t misstep again. I’m looking forward to seeing them again when they play the Mod Club on October 19. Baeble Music is streaming a complete live Local Natives show recorded at the Bowery Ballroom in New York City.

Photos: Local Natives @ Balance Stage – July 18, 2010
MP3: Local Natives – “Sun Hands”
Video: Local Natives – “World News”
Video: Local Natives – “Airplanes”
MySpace: Local Natives

After a brief break from the day’s programme to hydrate and cool down in the media tent, it was back to the Connector Stage where St. Vincent was patiently waiting for the sturm und drang of Lightning Bolt over on the main stage to dissipate. And you couldn’t ask for greater polar opposites than Lightning Bolt and St. Vincent; the change over from their set to hers was like having a post-apocalyptic landscape morph into an animated fairy tale forest. It doesn’t seem like a year since I saw St. Vincent last, but indeed its been and while this show felt very similar to that one, I’m tempted to say that they sound and feel more like a cohesive band than just Annie Clark and some backing players. And while most of the set showcased the more delicate/pretty side of St. Vincent, their set-closing “Your Lips Are Red” indulged her noisier inclinations, building into an instrumental cacophony that those Lightning Bolt fans across the field would have appreciated.

Photos: St. Vincent @ Connector Stage – July 18, 2010
MP3: St. Vincent – “Actor Out Of Work”
MP3: St. Vincent – “The Strangers”
MP3: St. Vincent – “Now Now”
Video: St. Vincent – “Laughing With A Mouth Of Blood”
Video: St. Vincent – “Actor Out Of Work”
Video: St. Vincent – “Jesus Saves I Spend”
MySpace: St. Vincent

I have to confess my tweet prior to Major Lazer’s set was a bit disingenuous as I wasn’t completely ignorant of what Major Lazer was about. That’s because when their debut Guns Don’t Kill People…Lazers Do came out last year, it was accompanied by one of the most annoying and incessant PR campaigns in recent memory. So while I couldn’t help know that it was a faux-cartoon hip-hop/dancehall project by DJs Diplo and Switch, I pretty much refused to pay it any more attention than that. Not that that knowledge would have prepared me for their live show, which was pretty much all party and spectacle. With Diplo on hand to lay down beats, live MC Skerrit Bwoy and two dancers led a ridiculous assault on the senses with faux sex, crowd surfing, dragon dancers and I don’t even know what else. It was something to see if not comprehend.

Photos: Major Lazer @ Aluminum Stage – July 18, 2010
Video: Major Lazer – “Pon De Floor”
Video: Major Lazer – “Hold The Line”
Video: Major Lazer – “Keep It Goin’ Louder”
Video: Major Lazer – “Zumbie”
MySpace: Major Lazer

Choosing between Sleigh Bells and Big Boi was a tough one, and while I’m sure some are shaking their heads at the decision, I opted to go for Sleigh Bells over at the Balance Stage. Their debut Treats has been a bit of a guilty pleasure, with its ridiculously loud production and unrelentingly chipper vocals, and I was curious to see how the Brooklyn duo pulled it off live. And the answer was a qualified “pretty well”. On the downside, they seemed to be taking full advantage of their moment in the hype spotlight, starting a good 15 minutes late, setting up the stage with prop guitar amps and using a lot of prerecorded tracks. The only live elements were Derek Miller’s guitar, though good luck distinguishing what he was actually playing from what was on tape, and Alexis Krauss’ vocals, which largely made the previous points irrelevant. Though the diva persona she affected on stage was at odds with her sugar buzz cheerleader vocals, their set was delivered with so much energy and volume that you probably couldn’t form a coherent enough thought to care. I was only able to stick around for a couple songs as the crush of media was being rotated through the photo bit in waves, and anyways I didn’t want to be late for an appointment with a certain legendary band. The Detroit News, NOW, The Weekly Dig and Prefix have Sleigh Bells interviews.

Photos: Sleigh Bells @ Balance Stage – July 18, 2010
MP3: Sleigh Bells: “Infinity Guitars”
MP3: Sleigh Bells: “Crown On The Ground”
MP3: Sleigh Bells: “A_B Machines”
MySpace: Sleigh Bells

And finally, at the end of it all, there was Pavement. Following a bizarre introduction where Drag City’s Rian Murphy pretended to be a washed up radio shock jock (I only found out for certain it was a gag after the fact, but it was fun to have an excuse to yell profanities at a stranger), the reunited indie rock forebears took the stage to a riotous response and promptly messed up their first song. Okay, it was barely a false start but it definitely set the tone for a show that would be less about big rock moves or a barnburning festival finale than just playing the songs everyone wanted to hear and having a good time. And they started with “Cut Your Hair”, possibly so that anyone who just wanted to hear the hit could go home early, and continued through their entire catalog front to back, one classic track after another, like an amble down a shady memory lane. And while it would have been impossible to play everyone’s favourites in the 90 minutes allotted, they did make the most of the available time by forgoing the ceremony of an encore to squeeze in as much as possible, personal highlights including “Shady Lane”, “Stereo” and “Spit On A Stranger” (I like the s-songs?). And while the reasons for their reunion were more financial than personal or artistic, it really looked as though they were having fun, Stephen Malkmus sporting a subtle but genuine smile (and no handcuffs), Mark Ibold on bass happily bobbing up and down, a (presumably) ironic “Fuck Pavement” t-shirt hung over Steve West’s kick drum and Bob Nostanovich doing what Bob Nostanovich does, which was a lot more than I thought – many of the vocal parts I thought were Scott Kannberg were in fact their invaluable utility player.

There’s been a lot of talk about whether Pavement will or even should continue after their reunion tour is over and the cheques are cashed, and as great as it was to see them and finally hear these songs live, I find myself falling in the “walk away” camp. They and their sound is so intrinsically tied to the ’90s college/alternative rock boom that they sound out of time and place when compared to the bigger, more aggressive sounds of contemporary acts. And I don’t think I’d want to hear them try to keep up or catch up… Pavement had a nearly perfect artistic arc from Slanted & Enchanted through Terror Twilight and this victory lap has introduced their legacy to a new fans and reaffirmed it to old. I think it should be left at that.

Photos: Pavement @ Aluminum Stage – July 18, 2010
MP3: Pavement – “Gold Soundz”
MP3: Pavement – “Rattled By The Rush”
MP3: Pavement – “Heckler Spray/In THe Mouth Of A Desert” (live)
MP3: Pavement – “All My Friends”
MP3: Pavement – “Greenlander”
Video: Pavement – “Major Leagues”
Video: Pavement – “Carrot Rope”
Video: Pavement – “Shady Lane”
Video: Pavement – “Father To A Sister Of Thought”
Video: Pavement – “Stereo”
Video: Pavement – “Painted Soldiers”
Video: Pavement – “Cut Your Hair”
Video: Pavement – “Gold Soundz”
Video: Pavement – “Range Life”
Video: Pavement – “Here”
MySpace: Pavement

Pitchfork – of course – has lots of coverage of their own party including interviews with many of the performers.

So that was my first Pitchfork Festival, and I would recommend it for anyone looking to do a festival without drowning in a sea of humanity. Yeah, there’s not really anyone on the lineup that you couldn’t see touring any other time during the year but seeing these acts test their mettle in front of much bigger crowds than their accustomed to is a different experience. On top of that, it’s quite a well-run fest, not too big and not too small (approximately 18,000 people), well-priced and located and with there’s a good selection of food and vendors and a poster and record fair that I wish I was able to spend more time at. In short, I had a great time. I’m not prepared to commit myself to attending next year – or any festival, for that matter – but if I get the itch to hang out in dusty photo pits while sweating my ass off for a weekend again, it could do the trick.

Check out my Flickr set from the fest for audience shots in addition to artists, though there’s not a lot of LATFH action – people looked disappointingly normal. And my best discovery of the festival? The Arnold Palmer – that is some tasty stuff. Thanks, Matt Picasso!

A return to non-‘Forky stuff tomorrow.

Frank YangEven though it barely counted as a half-slate of acts, day one of the Pitchfork Music Festival had left me feeling more worn than it should have. Chalk it up to not having done a proper outdoor festival in a few years, and having forgotten what it was to deal with the crowds and the heat. Oh, the heat.

I’m not sure if I’ve mentioned it yet, but this past weekend in Chicago was hot. Damn hot. Maybe technical heat wave hot. And while it was enough to make most North Americans melt, one gets the sense that Barcelona’s Delorean felt right at home. Not only do they hail from warmer climes, but the electro-euro, get-naked party anthems from their debut Subiza are tailor-made to celebrate it. The quartet did their best to turn hipsterfest into Ibiza and while they succeeded in getting some of the crowd moving, most could only muster the energy to sway.

Photos: Delorean @ Aluminum Stage – July 17, 2010
MP3: Delorean – “Stay Close”
Video: Delorean – “Stay Close”

Over at the Balance Stage, set a little ways from the main stages and more importantly in a shady grove of trees, Kurt Vile was turning in a set of ’70s-ish art-punk/pop that wasn’t much to look at, with Vile generally keeping his face hidden under a heavy head of hair, but was great to listen to. I think I still have a copy of his 2009 release Childish Prodigy kicking around somewhere – I should get better acquainted with it. Vile comes to town for a show at the Great Hall tonight.

Photos: Kurt Vile @ Balance Stage – July 17, 2010
MP3: Kurt Vile – “Overnite Religion”
MP3: Kurt Vile – “Hunchback”
Video: Kurt Vile – “Freak Train”
MySpace: Kurt Vile

I’d mentioned that a lot of the acts at Pitchfork were performing in a setting far larger than they were accustomed to, and that it shouldn’t be a surprise if what works in a small club doesn’t translate onto an outdoor stage. Such was not the case for Titus Andronicus. Maybe more than any other band still living on the club circuit, the New Jersey punks not only rose to the occasion but used it as a launching pad for even greater things. Tearing through material from their excellent album The Monitor, they had the undivided attention of thousands who were more than up for screaming “you will always be a loser!” at the tops of their lungs. Though guest spots from tourmates Hallelujah The Hills on horns helped classy up the proceedings a bit, it was still all about the fury of Patrick Stickles’ grand and angry anthems. The first truly epic set of the weekend.

Photos: Titus Andronicus @ Connector Stage – July 17, 2010
MP3: Titus Andronicus – “A More Perfect Union”
MP3: Titus Andronicus – “Four Score And Seven” (Part One)
MP3: Titus Andronicus – “Four Score And Seven” (Part Two)
MP3: Titus Andronicus – “Titus Andronicus”
Video: Titus Andronicus – “A More Perfect Union”
Video: Titus Andronicus – “Titus Andronicus”
MySpace: Titus Andronicus

Back at the mainstage, the throngs gathered for a little Wu-Tang action courtesy of Raekwon. Now no one in their right mind expects a hip-hop show to start on time, even at a festival where things had been running pretty damned smoothly, but this time the delays weren’t the fault of the performer – the DJ’s laptop was apparently overheating on stage and generally freaking out over the PA. I’m telling you, people, it was hot. Eventually they sorted things out sufficiently that Raekwon was able to come out and do his thing, and while my hip-hop education has been ongoing, his stuff seemed to have a harder, leaner aesthetic to the beats and backing than the more throwback, old-school (read: ’80s-style) hip-hop that I’d been listening to. But that said, his set had an extremely positive energy, buoyed by a sea of Wu Tang hand salutes from the crowd, and peaked with a performance from a quartet of pint-sized (child, not midget) breakdancers showing off their moves.

Photos: Raekwon @ Aluminum Stage – July 17, 2010
Video: Raekwon – “New Wu”
Video: Raekwon – “House Of Flying Daggers”
Video: Raekwon – “Ice Cream”
Video: Raekwon – “Canal Street”

I’m not sure if Jon Spencer, Judah Bauer and Russell Simins were going by The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion or just Blues Explosion, but I suspect the former was more appropriate as they had taken the project out of mothballs to mark the reissues of the albums which came out under the JSBX name and not the ill-received Damage which was credited to just BX. Whichever it was, they clearly hadn’t let any rust settle because while Spencer wasn’t quite the unhinged blues prophet from their ’90s heyday, he still fit into his leather pants pretty well and those blues still exploded on cue, delivering big guitar jams and plenty of rock’n’roll swagger. Ever the showman. The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion plays Lee’s Palace on July 31.

Photos: The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion @ Connector Stage – July 17, 2010
Video: The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion – “She Said”
Video: The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion – “Sweet N Sour”
Video: The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion – “Wail”
Video: The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion – “Dang”
Video: The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion – “Flavor”
Video: The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion – “Talk About The Blues”
MySpace: The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion

Wolf Parade have always hung around at the periphery of stuff I like – I enjoy the live show but the albums never stay in rotation that long – but with their latest Expo 86, they may well have made an album that I can really get into though it may be for the reasons that some fans like it the least; to my ears, their many quirks and tics have been dialed down and they’ve just made a big rock record. And as such, they were more than suited to play the next-to-last mainstage set for the day, coming as close as the festival would to stadium-size rock anthems. Their live show still relied heavily on Dan Boeckner for stage presence, but it was good to see Spencer Krug not only moving his keyboards to centre stage – last time I saw them he was off to the side – but also contributing some serious hair whipping. JAM has an interview with Wolf Parade.

Photos: Wolf Parade @ Aluminum Stage – July 17, 2010
MP3: Wolf Parade – “Ghost Pressure”
MP3: Wolf Parade – “What Did My Lover Say? (It Always Had To Go This Way)
MP3: Wolf Parade – “Language City”
MP3: Wolf Parade – “Call It A Ritual”
MP3: Wolf Parade – “My Father’s Son”
MP3: Wolf Parade – “Shine A Light”
Video: Wolf Parade – “Modern World”
Video: Wolf Parade – “Shine A Light”
Video: Wolf Parade – “I’ll Believe In Anything”

I have never counted myself as an Animal Collective fan, but was still curious to see what Noah Lennox, aka Panda Bear, had up his sleeve for his Connector stage-closing set. As it turns out, he had pretty much nothing. Taking the concept of “solo act” very seriously, he was set up on a platform positioned well towards the back of the stage, standing with a guitar behind a bank of keyboards. And from this position, he played tuneless drones and random beats seemingly designed to test peoples patience. It was hard to tell if it was a deliberate anti-performance or if it simply hadn’t occurred to him that what he was doing was extraordinarily dull to watch, but from the faces in the crowd, the reaction seemed to be somewhat blissful but mostly bored and a few confused. If Panda Bear ever goes on tour, I’d like to suggest that he keep the same wheeled platform, but have it spew flames while being pushed around by armoured dwarves. Or something. Anything.

Photos: Panda Bear @ Connector Stage – July 17, 2010
Video: Panda Bear – “Take Pills”

The Toronto stop of LCD Soundsystem’s supposed farewell tour was an unqualified slice of amazing, but somehow I knew that this setting would potentially provide an even greater high, to say nothing of extra personal space for dancing. After all, the bigger the crowd, the bigger the party, right? In this case, absolutely right. James Murphy and crew seemed to be feeling extra loose and riding the vibe from the audience, as though their set list read much like that in Toronto, the rockers seemed wilder and the dance numbers groovier and Murphy’s between-song banter extra droll. It was 90 minutes of steady, throbbing good times with the highlight of many highlights being, unsurprisingly, “All My Friends”, which just sounds better and better the bigger and louder it’s played. I may have come late to the LCD party, but I’m not leaving till they kick me out.

Photos: LCD Soundsystem @ Aluminum Stage – July 17, 2010
Video: LCD Soundsystem – “Drunk Girls”
Video: LCD Soundsystem – “All My Friends”
Video: LCD Soundsystem – “Someone Great”
Video: LCD Soundsystem – “North American Scum”
Video: LCD Soundsystem – “Tribulations”
Video: LCD Soundsystem – “Daft Punk Is Playing”
Video: LCD Soundsystem – “Movement”
Video: LCD Soundsystem – “Losing My Edge”
MySpace: LCD Soundsystem

Frank YangThe Pitchfork Music Festival occupies an interesting niche in the festival landscape. It’s too small to fairly compare with the national destination-type events, even though people such as myself do travel from afar to attend, but too high-profile to be considered properly boutique. The lineup is generally solid from top to bottom, but in a mid-level club sense. Almost all of the acts, at least for the 2010 edition, are touring relentlessly and aren’t hard to catch at some point in most urban centres, and for many this is probably their first experience with a festival setting and such large stages and audiences.

So despite the fact that I had already seen or could see in the coming weeks/months many of the acts on the bill, I decided to attend this year because a) plans to hit last year’s fest were scuppered by real life, b) I skipped out on the Toronto edition of the Pavement reunion tour in favour of Iggy & The Stooges at NxNE and c) the total dearth of outdoor festivals in Toronto this year meant that to get my heat stroke in the photo pit action on, I’d have to leave town. Also, I hadn’t been to Chicago in years.

Pitchfork Fridays past tended to feature a single evening feature event like a “Don’t Look Back” full album performance, but this year they opted for a half-day of regular programming and squeezing in a couple more headliners. I arrived at Union Park, just a little outside of The Loop, just in time to hear Sharon Van Etten kick the day and the festival off on the main stage, dubbed Aluminum, previewing songs from her forthcoming album Epic. The bright – nay, blazing – afternoon sun wasn’t the most natural setting for her dark and vulnerable songs, but it’s remarkable that even massively amplified in the outdoors, her gorgeous voice was able to sound so intimate. She may not have had the same name recognition as some of the others in the lineup but hopefully for the festival early birds, she’ll have been a welcome discovery.

Photos: Sharon Van Etten @ Aluminum Stage – July 16, 2010
MP3: Sharon Van Etten – “Love More”
MP3: Sharon Van Etten – “I Couldn’t Save You”
MP3: Sharon Van Etten – “For You”
MP3: Sharon Van Etten – “Consolation Prize”
Video: Sharon Van Etten – “For You”
MySpace: Sharon Van Etten

The two main stages at Pitchfork were set up in close proximity and at 90 degrees to one another, and Friday’s staggered set times made it easy to dash from one to the other – or just turn your butt, for the seated – and catch the next act. Inaugurating the Connector stage was The Tallest Man On Earth, and though also performing solo he clearly didn’t suffer from any lack of audience familiarity – folks were stoked for Kristian Matsson and his set didn’t disappoint them. The charisma on display the one time I’d seen him at an in-store scaled quite well to the bigger venue and as he lurched and lunged around the stage whilst showcasing the upbeat folk from The Wild Hunt, the crowd collectively swooned. Though that may have also been from the heat. The Tallest Man On Earth plays Lee’s Palace on September 24.

Photos: The Tallest Man On Earth @ Connector Stage – July 16, 2010
MP3: The Tallest Man On Earth – “King Of Spain”
MP3: The Tallest Man On Earth – “Burden Of Tomorrow”

Liars and I had never been properly introduced, with the one time I tried giving them a listen apparently coming when they were at their most abrasive and I quickly moved on with my life. This first encounter started out rockily, with my camera seemingly self-destructing as soon as the band took the stage. It turned out that my camera grip was actually overheating just from the ambient temperature and was shorting everything out, so once removed and with things working again, the panic began to abate I was able to turn my attention back to the Brooklynites. I didn’t know any material and they were hardly what you’d call an immediately accessible pop, but their first dose of proper rock energy for the day and festival was welcome. Frontman Angus Andrew was a compelling frontman and stage presence, aggressively prowling around the stage during songs and cracking off-colour jokes between, including an invitation to use the water station in his pants. Entertaining, but the lack of familiarity kept me from getting too engaged. Liars play Lee’s Palace on September 29.

Photos: Liars @ Connector Stage – July 16, 2010
MP3: Liars – “Scissor”
MP3: Liars – “Plaster Casts Of Everything”
MP3: Liars – “Loose Nuts On The Veladrome”
Video: Liars – “Scissors””
Video: Liars – “The Overachievers”
Video: Liars – “Houseclouds”
Video: Liars – “Plaster Casts Of Everything”
Video: Liars – “The Other Side Of Mt. Heart Attack”
MySpace: Liars

The aforementioned lack of familiarity didn’t affect enjoyment of Swedish dance-pop diva Robyn’s set because, well, it was Swedish dance-pop and that stuff is made to cross all lines, borders and bring world peace. Big hooks were the order of the day as she, backed by two drummers and two keyboardists all clad in white, got the Pitchfork crowd – pretty sizeable by point in the day – dancing at best, bobbing up and down at worst. I’d never quite understood the massive acclaim that Robyn got, I mean I thought her stuff was perfectly enjoyable but not commensurate with the level of hosannas laid at her feet. On stage, however, she did a great job of earning the hype, dancing, strutting and posing like a pro and just working the crowd perfectly; good times abounded. Someone is due for some reevaluation by me. That someone being Robyn. In case that wasn’t clear. She plays the Molson Amphitheatre on July 30.

Photos: Robyn @ Aluminum Stage – July 16, 2010
Video: Robyn – “Dancing On My Own”
Video: Robyn – “Dream On”
Video: Robyn – “Konichiwa Bitches”
Video: Robyn – “Handle Me”
Video: Robyn – “Do You Know (What It Takes)”
Video: Robyn – “My Only Reason”
Video: Robyn – “With Every Heartbeat”

Oh Broken Social Scene. I’ve covered my own history with the band, but that in-store appearance aside it had still been almost four years since I’d seen a proper Broken show. And while that full-lineup throwdown was as good a last show as you could imagine, I was interested to see how they sounded with their slimmed-down lineup and fully awake. The deliberately lean aesthetic carried over to their live show, which despite supplementing the now core seven members with Forgiveness Rock Record producer John McEntire as second drummer and some locally-recruited string and brass players, sounded much less grandiose than the old days where they’d trot out six or seven guitarists all doing god knows what simultaneously. Their new approach was certainly more focused, but I can’t say I didn’t miss some of the old grandiosity, some of which – okay, a lot of which – was captured in their finale of “Meet Me In The Basement”, which sounded fantastic and proved that even when you think you’re done with them, Broken Social Scene are still capable of stop and marvel. NPR has a World Cafe session with the band and Asia One an interview.

Photos: Broken Social Scene @ Connector Stage – July 16, 2010
MP3: Broken Social Scene – “World Sick”
MP3: Broken Social Scene – “Fire Eye’d Boy”
MP3: Broken Social Scene – “Hotel”
Video: Broken Social Scene – “Meet Me In The Basement”
Video: Broken Social Scene – “7/4 (Shoreline)”
Video: Broken Social Scene -“Fire Eye’d Boy”
Video: Broken Social Scene – “Ibi Dreams Of Pavement (A Better Day)”
Video: Broken Social Scene – “Her Disappearing Scene”
Video: Broken Social Scene – “Major Label Debut”
Video: Broken Social Scene – “Cause = Time”
Video: Broken Social Scene – “Almost Crimes”
Video: Broken Social Scene – “Anthems For A Seventeen Year-Old Girl”
Video: Broken Social Scene – “Lover’s Spit”
Video: Broken Social Scene – “I’m Still Your Fag”
MySpace: Broken Social Scene

My interest in seeing Modest Mouse was pretty close to nil, but considering they were the headliners, I figured I should at least sample their set and get some pics. As it turned out, the process for rotating photographers in and out of the pit didn’t have the kinks worked out and as a result, I got to shoot maybe a minute of one song before getting the boot. I wasn’t especially disappointed and seeing as how nothing they were playing was either familiar or especially interesting, I took it as a sign to call it a night and go get some dinner.

Photos: Modest Mouse @ Aluminum Stage – July 16, 2010
MP3: Modest Mouse – “Worms Vs. Birds”
Video: Modest Mouse – “Dashboard”
Video: Modest Mouse – “Float On”
Video: Modest Mouse – “Ocean Breathes Salty”
Video: Modest Mouse – “The Whale Song”
Video: Modest Mouse – “King Rat”
Video: Modest Mouse – “Satellite Skin”
Video: Modest Mouse – “Missed The Boat”
MySpace: Modest Mouse

iTunesThere aren’t many better out there than Calexico at crafting covers that do the originals justice while becoming wholly their own – after all, not many others out there have their secret recipe of southwestern (musical) herbs and spices to work with. They don’t just save them for the live setting, either – more than a few of their reinterpretations have been recorded and officially released.

This includes their take on Arcade Fire’s “Ocean Of Noise”, a song they have some extra familiarity with having contributed the horns on the Neon Bible original. They later recorded a version of the whole song and it clearly met with the writers’ seal of approval – Arcade Fire released it as the b-side to their 2007 “Intervention” single.

Calexico are in town for a show at the Phoenix on July 22, and are about due for a new record though no formal announcement about a release has been made. Arcade Fire will release their long-awaited third full-length The Suburbs on August 3 and follow that up with a show on the Toronto Islands on August 14.

MP3: Calexico – “Ocean Of Noise”
Video: Arcade Fire – “Ocean Of Noise” (live)

MySpaceWho: Hercules & Love Affair
What: New York DJ-turned-band with a penchant for high-profile guest stars keeps the disco flame alive
Why: Road-testing both new material and new band members before their second album is due to come out in September
Where: The Mod Club
When: July 26, 2010
How: Tickets are $18.50 in advance, but courtesy of Embrace, I’ve got two pairs of passes to give away for the show. Email me at contests AT chromewaves.net with “I want to have a Love Affair with Hercules” in the subject line and your full name in the body before midnight, July 21.
What Else: Pitchfork talked to Andy Butler about their new record back in April. They also recorded a rooftop video session for them.

Video: Hercules & Love Affair – “You Belong”
Video: Hercules & Love Affair – “Blind”