Thursday, October 7th, 2010

Matador At 21: The Lost Weekend Day Three

Guided By Voices, Yo La Tengo, Liz Phair and more at Matador at 21

GBV Photo By Frank Yang Frank YangIf there’s an upside to getting a full night’s sleep after turning in at 5AM, it’s that it eliminates a lot of the decision-making around what to do with one’s day. Hauling my ass out of bed at almost 1PM meant that all I had to do for the last day of Matador at 21 was shower, cram myself with enough food to get me through till the wee hours of the morning and stand in line waiting for the doors to the Pearl to open. Easy peasy.

The weekend’s grand finale was led of by Shearwater, who this show and ACL aside, were taking a short break before a final, extensive November tour in support of this year’s The Golden Archipelago. And if this performance was any indication, the US cities on that itinerary had best be prepared for a Shearwater that’s making a strong argument for themselves as a rock band. I’d seen Shearwater a number of times through a number of lineups, including their last visit to Toronto in April, but this was the most punchy and aggressive I can recall hearing them and that they were able to convey that kind of energy and dynamicism without compromising the majesty and mystery that makes up so much of their appeal was really remarkable.

Photos: Shearwater @ Pearl at The Palms – October 3, 2010
MP3: Shearwater – “Black Eyes”
MP3: Shearwater – “Castaways”
MP3: Shearwater – “Rooks”
MP3: Shearwater – “The Snow Leopard”
MP3: Shearwater – “Red Sea, Black Sea”
MP3: Shearwater – “Seventy-Four, Seventy-Five”
MP3: Shearwater – “I Can’t Wait”
MP3: Shearwater – “Room For Mistakes”
MP3: Shearwater – “An Accident”

Though only a recent signee to Matador with this year’s Brutalist Bricks, Ted Leo seemed to have been anointed man-about-fest and label ambassador for the weekend – he was ubiquitous at events and after parties, guesting in MC sketches, karakoeing and generally seemed to be having a great time, as someone who’s finally found a stable home after being on way too many failing labels reasonably would. That positive energy gave his set a distinctly different vibe than the last time I saw him in June during a totally different kind of insane weekend. Highlights included bringing Sally Crewe out to add vocals and tambourine to “Bottled In Cork”, a rampaging “Ballad Of The Sin Eater”, the best one-liner of the weekend (“this is champagne, not my own urine”) and being joined by Carl Newman for a closing cover of “I Love My Label”, though delivered sincerely rather than ironically as songwriter Nick Lowe had intended. This weekend, we all loved his label.

I had spent much of the weekend playing The New Pornographer bingo and had managed to spot half the lineup in the wild before they took the stage. I was excited not just because they were one of only two Canadian acts in the lineup – gotta have some national pride – but because I hadn’t yet seen them on tour for Together. Whereas some of their label peers were using the occasion to do something a little different, be it a guest appearance, deep cut or cover, the Pornographers instead went for maximum content, cramming a dozen of their biggest, hookiest songs into their allotted time. Things were hampered a bit by a questionable mix that was far too light on the vocals for a band with so many great vocalists, but the sheer concentration of tunes and the presence of a happy and chatty Neko Case and a Dan Bejar who didn’t look like he wanted to bolt for the nearest exit as soon as his song was done made for a great set that finished with the unbeatable one-two punch of “Letter From An Occupant” and “Bleeding Heart Show”.

Photos: The New Pornographers @ Pearl at The Palms – October 3, 2010
MP3: The New Pornographers – “Your Hands (Together)”
MP3: The New Pornographers – “My Rights Versus Yours”
MP3: The New Pornographers – “Myriad Harbour”
MP3: The New Pornographers – “Twin Cinema”
MP3: The New Pornographers – “The Laws Have Changed”

Of all the acts playing this weekend, the most intriguing was Liz Phair, who was originally listed as a performer when Matador 21 was announced, then mysteriously removed, then added again weeks later. The prodigal daughter, whose disastrous major label reinvention is used as a cautionary tale for others considering same, had been out of the public eye for some years but was apparently staging a comeback with the recent release of the perplexing and deliberately awful Funstyle and upcoming unearthing of the legendary Girlysound recordings on October 19 (as a bonus disc to the physical release of Funstyle, natch). Who would show up? The mainstream pop punch line or the revered indie queen? Would she be welcomed with arms open or crossed? The answer to both was clear when she strode out on stage, looking as great as ever, to huge applause. And in return, she opened with “Supernova” and the great Liz Phair resurrection was underway. Playing with just a second guitarist, the rest of her set was made up of highlights from Exlie In Guyville and Whip Smart that culminated in a terrific duet with Ted Leo on “Fuck & Run”. In the course of a 20-minute set, Liz Phair was able to largely erase the last 10 years from our memories and remind us why we cared so much about her in the first place. Where she takes things from here is anyone’s guess but either way – welcome back, Liz.

Photos: Liz Phair @ Pearl at The Palms – October 3, 2010
MP3: Liz Phair – “Fuck & Run”
MP3: Liz Phair – “Polyester Bride”

It must have been some bad luck the first couple of times I saw Yo La Tengo live because those shows, way back in the early part of this century, gave me the impression that the trio were first mates on the USS No Fun, so sullen and inward did they seem at those performances. But the music keeps bringing me back and every show since then – particularly in recent years – has been better and better as they’ve found a good balance between the extended jams and the pop gems, the deep cuts and the fan favourites. And while they still seem prone to bouts of moodiness, when they’re feeling good their shows are great and at Matador 21, they were feeling good. The trio – as synonymous a band with Matador as ever there was one – started off with the slow-burning “Our Way To Fall” but all the many sides of Yo La Tengo were represented, including the organ-driven “Autumn Sweater”, the goofy synchronized dance-move enhanced “You Can Have It All”, the eternally wonderful “Sugarcube” and epic drone-to-freakout finale “Blue Line Swinger”. I’d commented earlier in the day that the shortened set time might force them to stay focused and hopefully “Nuclear War”, which had been a 20-minute nadir of the worst Yo La Tengo show I’d ever seen, would be omitted but they made be eat my words as the Sun Ra cover was indeed in the set but flipped around lyrically to shout out to every member of the Matador staff. Hilarious and perfect.

And finally, at long last, after three days or six years – whichever you like – it was time for Guided By Voices. It wasn’t the first time I’d seen them – I caught one of their final tours, and the last to come to Canada, back in the Summer of 2002 at the Horseshoe – but certainly the first time with this “classic” lineup associated with their very best mid-’90s records. To be honest, I was less excited about the who that was going to be performing, though the presence of Tobin Sprout was a definite plus, than the what – a set made up of exclusively pre-1996 material was going to be pretty sweet. My anticipation was nothing compared to many of those in around me, though, waiting for that iconic “The Club Is Open” neon sign to light up. It seems that there had been convoys of Bud Light-wielding proto-bros from Ohio to Nevada and they spent the entire weekend to this point out in the parking lot having a giant tailgate party. That things were going to get rowdy was a foregone conclusion, as was the fact that my spot right up against the stage – claimed and held onto for the past seven hours or so – would get pretty painful as a result. But these are the prices you pay in the name of rock.

And it was indeed rock. Guided By Voices have never been a young band and were clearly even less so now – Robert Pollard in particular looking older than his 57 53 years – but they clearly weren’t going to let a little thing like age slow them down, at least not while they were on stage. Pollard had all his signature moves ready to go – the mic twirl, the skipping, the scissor kick – and he wasn’t even the most enthusiastic of the band. That honour went to guitarist Mitch Mitchell, who was so gleeful to be back out there with his windmills and rock poses, it was as though he’d been waiting by his phone for the reunion call for the past 14 years; bassist Greg Demos’ enthusiasm levels weren’t far off. Sprout, on the other hand, was more reserved with an amused professorial air about him but I suspect that was the case 15 years ago as well. I couldn’t see drummer Kevin Fennell behind his kit, but I will assume he was having a good time.

It wasn’t the old days – the mandatory cooler of beer wasn’t tapped in to nearly as much as it might have been a decade ago and with this being just their third show, the 90-minute set was a far cry from the 3-hour marathons they were once known for – but they certainly couldn’t be accused of not trying their damnedest. 30 songs ranging that dipped into more obscure EPs, but mostly they gave everyone what they wanted to hear – gem upon gem from Propeller, Bee Thousand and Alien Lanes. I would have liked to hear more from Under The Bushes, Under The Stars but couldn’t tell you at the cost of what selections. A show without “My Valuable Hunting Knife”, “Echoes Myron”, “Game Of Pricks” or “Gold Star For Robot Boy” would have been unthinkable. The actual execution of said songs wasn’t perfect; more than once Pollard and his bandmates had to catch their breath and they weren’t overly tight, but even in their heyday slop was part of the mystique and so that it now came from rust rather than beer didn’t matter so much. What did matter was that this was Guided By Voices, one more time, and that they were the perfect cap to an outstanding weekend and something I thought I’d never experience – a good time in Vegas. See everyone at Matador @ 22? Olé.

Photos: Guided By Voices @ Pearl at The Palms – October 3, 2010
MP3: Guided By Voices – “Everyone Thinks I’m A Raincloud”
MP3: Guided By Voices – “Window Of My World”
MP3: Guided By Voices – “I’ll Replace You With Machines”

Las Vegas Weekly, Billboard and North County Times have interviews with Liz Phair, who herself contributed a piece to The Wall Street Journal about the phenomenon of ’90s nostalgia.

Paste checks in with Mitchell and Fennell about the road to the Guided By Voices reunion, and one of the reunion shows is available to download in whole for free at GBV Digital.

The Los Angeles Times, Las Vegas Weekly, The AV Club, Wall Street Journal and Rolling Stone have writeups of the final night’s festivities while Pitchfork, Entertainment Weekly and Spin opt for complete weekend feature pieces. Also check out the oral history of Matador at MySpace, a complete set of festival feature articles and interviews at Las Vegas Weekly and a list of acts who could have/should have played but didn’t and why not at Spinner.

And tomorrow, back to reality.

By : Frank Yang at 8:31 am

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Wednesday, October 6th, 2010

Matador At 21: The Lost Weekend Day Two

Belle & Sebastian, Spoon, Superchunk and more at Matador at 21

B&S Photo By Frank Yang Frank YangThe generally packed Matador At 21 schedule didn’t allow time for much activity beyond getting rocked and sleeping it off, but on Saturday I still managed to get away from The Palms and over to the strip with Dave Rawkblog and Brad Almanac for some Vegas-style (read: totally excessive) buffet and celebrity-sighting (Pete Rose and Tim Gunn were hanging at Caesar’s Palace while I bought a new mouse), and it’s a good thing that I loaded up before the evening’s festivities, because this day was going to be a long one.

So long that I had to skip out on the first mainstage act of the day – Girls – to take care of some business, and was okay with that. I’d seen them at Pitchfork and that was enough for a while. I did make sure to catch Come, however, seeing as how it was just the Boston quartet’s third show in 15 years. And yeah, it was a good thing I did as they played the role that Chavez had the night before of groundbreaking ’90s act whom if not for the relative misfortune of being ahead of their time, might have found a much greater audience. Led by Thalia Zedek and her worn, emotive voice, their set was heavy and atmospheric with her and Chris Brokaw’s guitars weaving through and around each other overtop the steady and grinding rhythm section. Like Chavez, Come were a band I tried out some time ago and couldn’t quite get into – their performance made me think it might be time to try again.

Photos: Come @ Pearl at The Palms – October 2, 2010
Video: Come – “Cimarron”
Video: Come – “Submerge”

I figured I’d gotten enough The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion back at Pitchfork, but found I actually enjoyed this performance considerably more. Surely the setting was part of it – the JSBX are far more suited to playing dark, grungy clubs – or fancy theatres masquerading as dark, grungy clubs – than bright, sunlit afternoons at festivals, and being in their element definitely helped their vibe. They sounded jammier and greasier and angrier than they did there, that last one partly thanks to Spencer’s dissatisfaction with the sound onstage – at one point, he smashed his mic and tried (unsuccessfully) to sing through the kick drum mic. They eventually got things fixed in time for their big finish, but the stage crew was clearly unimpressed with Spencer exploding his blues all over their equipment and cut their set off at the earliest opportunity though they probably could have squeezed one more in. This wasn’t well-received by the audience, resulting in one drink thrown and one demonstration of the Pearl security’s lack of tolerance for thrown drinks.

Photos: The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion @ Pearl at The Palms – October 2, 2010
Video: The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion – “Dang”
Video: The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion – “Flavor”
Video: The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion – “Talk About The Blues”

While most of the performers at Matador at 21 were veterans that represented the pinnacle of the label’s roster, there were still a few new acts injected into the lineup, including one of their most recent signees – Perfume Genius. Though the piano duo, playing some songs on separate keyboards and some on the same, took the energy levels down several hundred notches following Jon Spencer’s over-the-top set, the stark beauty of their short set largely and impressively silenced a room that had been absolutely adrenalized minutes earlier. I tend to approach the sensitive, piano-based singer-songwriter thing with some trepidation, but I think Mike Hadreas is the real deal. They’re currently on tour in support of debut album LearningLearning and at the Drake Underground in Toronto tomorrow night. If you’re on the fence, let me nudge you towards yes.

Photos: Perfume Genius @ Pearl at The Palms – October 2, 2010
MP3: Perfume Genius – “Learning”

The evening’s timetable had been overly optimistic in thinking that the simplicity of Perfume Genius’ setup would allow them to segue directly into Cat Power’s set, and the changeover and soundcheck ended up taking considerably longer than zero minutes and set things back by at least half an hour. Anyone hopes that the occasion would find Chan Marshall revisiting the days of Moon Pix and You Are Free evaporated when the band setup was clearly that of the Dirty Delta Blues Band that had supported her on the Jukebox tours but when her set finally got underway, there was a nod to those simpler, starker days as Chan offered her version of The Rolling Stones’ “Satisfaction” accompanying herself only on electric guitar. But then the guitar went away and the band came out and the rest of the set featured the southern soul diva Cat Power who dazzled on 2006’s The Greatest with a brace of largely unfamiliar songs and covers. I admit to having some reservations of her continuing on in this style as it puts too much focus on Cat Power the voice and that’s not nearly as compelling as Cat Power the songwriter but regardless, she sounded great, looked radiant and seemed pretty together save for some random repositioning of her mic stand.

Photos: Cat Power @ Pearl at The Palms – October 2, 2010
MP3: Cat Power – “The Greatest”
MP3: Cat Power – “He War”

When 2010 began, high up on my list of bands that I had yet to see (but really wanted to) was North Carolina’s Superchunk. I finally got to check that off thanks to their short but sweet set at SxSW in March, and as energized as they were there I clearly hadn’t seen anything yet. Playing half a year later with a terrific new record in Majesty Shredding and some touring under their belts, Superchunk were a rock revelation. Easily the most energetic performer of the weekend – and that’s saying something – the former Matador signees and current Merge masterminds incited a pogo party in the crowd, pounding out power punk gems from all points in their career, wrapping with an explosive “Precision Auto” and just generally being awesome. Superchunk. Super. Chunk. Can’t wait to make it a three-peat when they play the Sound Academy on December 9 opening up for and inevitably upstaging Broken Social Scene.

Continuing the Matador-Merge cross-label summit were Spoon, who started their career on the former but found their fame on the latter. And like their label bosses and lead-in act, it’s kind of funny that I’d gone some five years without seeing Spoon live and here this was my third Spoon show in the past six months. This one wasn’t too different from those, with the band tight and taut and embellishing their sound with a locally-recruited horn section and guest percussionist. Their special treats for the occasion were a cover of the late Matador artist Jay Reatard’s “No Time” and a few seriously old-school back catalog selections including fan favourite “Car Radio”. Their set may not have offered a lot of surprises, but it certainly didn’t disappoint.

Photos: Spoon @ Pearl at The Palms – October 2, 2010
MP3: Spoon – “The Underdog”
MP3: Spoon – “I Turn My Camera On”
MP3: Spoon – “The Way We Get By”
MP3: Spoon – “This Book Is A Movie”
MP3: Spoon – “Mountain To Sound”
MP3: Spoon – “Chips & Dip”
MP3: Spoon – “Idiot Driver”

Oh, Belle & Sebastian. The only British act on the mainstage this weekend and really, not having a lot in common stylistically with most of the other performers but still big enough and beloved enough to rate closing out the second night’s programming. Their presence at this event was something of a surprise since they had been on an indefinite hiatus since 2006’s The Life Pursuit and Stuart Murdoch was devoting all his energies to last year’s God Help The Girl project. But it apparently doesn’t take long to get the band back together and though most would be happy just to have the band back, they’ve returned with one of their best records in some time with Write About Love, out next Tuesday and currently streaming at NPR. I’ll comment more on the record next week after their Toronto show at Massey Hall also on the 12th – for now, just their Vegas appearance.

And it’s a show that opened with a new song – “I Didn’t See It Coming”, the first track on the new record – and even if it was unfamiliar to most of the audience, the duet between Stuart Murdoch and Sarah Martin was immediate enough to announce that Belle & Sebastian were back and hadn’t lost a step in the time away. And if anyone had forgotten how good they were as a live band, they were well reminded by the Scots’ wonderful hour-fifteen set. In between songs that touched on every one of their albums, going back as far as their debut Tigermilk for “The State I Am In”, Murdoch and guitarist Stevie Jackson tossed off wonderful bits of banter to the audience and each other and Murdoch demonstrated his throwing arm by tossing autographed toy footballs into the crowd and later, audience members were enlisted to clap and dance through “There’s Too Much Love” and “The Boy With The Arab Strap” and rewarded with gold medals. Those of us not so fortunate as to cut a rug with the band had to settle – so to speak – for bobbing up and down to energetic readings of favourites like “Get Me Away From Here, I’m Dying” and “I’m A Cuckoo”. By the time they wrapped up the set with “Sleep The Clock Around”, things had already run almost an hour later than scheduled and it was unclear if we’d be allowed an encore, but clapped and cheered for one anyways. The band returned in short order, saying they’d been given permission for one more song if they made it “fucking quick” and though “Me And The Major” was quick, it was still glorious. And yes, I do feel incredibly fortunate to be seeing them again so soon, particularly since I’ve been so handily reminded of how much I love this band.

Photos: Belle & Sebastian @ Pearl at The Palms – October 2, 2010
MP3: Belle & Sebastian – “Write About Love”
MP3: Belle & Sebastian – “Funny Little Frog”
MP3: Belle & Sebastian – “Another Sunny Day”
MP3: Belle & Sebastian – “Take Your Carriage Clock And Shove It”
MP3: Belle & Sebastian – “Storytelling”

If I had any sense this would have been the end of the night but I’d skipped out on the previous night’s after party festivities and damn it, this was Las Vegas – you don’t go to sleep at a reasonable hour. Instead you go to indie rock karaoke and rush the stage when Matador staff are called on to sing Pavement’s “Summer Babe” and crowd surf Ted Leo. If you’re wondering, it looks something like this. And then at 5AM – 8AM your own time – you go back to your room and pass out.

The Patriot-Ledger and Phoenix have features on the Come reunion. Rolling Stone talks to Cat Power about her plans for her next record, and they include playing all of the instruments herself. If that pans out, then it surely won’t be sounding like The Greatest or Jukebox – colour me intrigued. Interview and NPR have features on Superchunk. The Guardian interviews Belle & Sebastian, who are running a contest wherein a winner gets to spend a day with Stuart Murdoch and co-write a song for a forthcoming 7″.

The AV Club, Rolling Stone, Wall Street Journal, Los Angeles Times and Las Vegas Weekly all have further Saturday night recaps.

By : Frank Yang at 8:26 am

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Tuesday, October 5th, 2010

Matador At 21: The Lost Weekend Day One

Pavement, Sonic Youth, Fucked Up and more at Matador at 21

Pavement Photo By Frank Yang Frank YangLas Vegas is the sort of place that everyone should go to once in their life, if just to bear witness to the astonishing and grotesque excess of the city. If you couldn’t tell, I am no great fan of the place and, having been there once as an adult some years back, I had been there, done that, eaten the deep-fried twinkie and had no need to ever go back. Matador Records, however, felt otherwise and so when the astonishingly stacked lineup for their 21st anniversary celebrations was announced earlier in the Summer, I begrudgingly made plans to return to Sin City.

And it was a hard deal to pass up. Beyond the sheer amount of indie rock royalty that was being crammed into three nights, there were packages that included rooms at the casino where everything was going down – The Palms – which as I learned was regarded as a party hotel even by Vegas standards and had a history of hosting such cultural watershed events as The Real World and hosting luminaries from Jersey Shore. But while the couple thousand Mata-fans who descended on Vegas Friday, Saturday and Sunday were but a drop in the ocean of decadence that was a normal weekend at The Palms, we were able to commandeer their fancy-pants Pearl concert theatre, fittingly located underground so as to keep the Morlocks apart from the Eloi, to celebrate the days when indie rock was called college rock.

The Friday night program was thankfully the most compact of the three, a thoughtful bit of consideration for those who traveled several time zones to be there (aside: Vegas is in the Pacific time zone, not Mountain, which is an interesting thing to discover when you land and it’s not what time you thought it was). But it was still as laden with great bands as you could hope for, though it was almost a little less laden before things even got started. In mid-afternoon, word was going around that Japan’s Guitar Wolf had had their flight delayed and weren’t going to make it in time to kick things off. Writing them off turned out to be premature, though, as they apparently opted to drive to Vegas rather than wait for a flight and were able to storm the stage with their leather pants and pure garage rock posture for an abbreviated but still incredibly bould electrifying set. Pretty great for a band that wasn’t even supposed to be there.

Photos: Guitar Wolf @ Pearl at The Palms – October 1, 2010
MP3: Guitar Wolf – “After School Thunder”

Next up were one of a few old-school Matador alumnus who had been largely inactive for the past decade but got it back together for the occasion – New York’s Chavez. Their aggressively mathy yet melodic sound was very much of the ‘90s but still undeniably potent. Led by Matt Sweeney’s vocals and Clay Tarver’s searing guitar lines, they played a tremendous energy you wouldn’t expect from a band that’s only occasionally active. Their compact set whipped the crowd into a delirium and offered a glimpse into what an alternate universe where these singles had been hits might have looked like – graying and clad in faded t-shirts, yes, but still delirious. I’d listened to a little Chavez in the past; clearly there’s a need to listen to a lot more.

Photos: Chavez @ Pearl at The Palms – October 1, 2010
MP3: Chavez – “The Guard Attacks/Unreal Is Here”
MP3: Chavez – “You Faded”

Considering the veteran demographic of much of the attendees, it’s not surprising that Fucked Up seemed to be the designated pee break band. They were the only band representing the Matador new school on this night and even though they’ve succeeded as a sort of gateway hardcore act, they weren’t exactly classically Matador-sounding. And it’s just as well that some of the audience cleared out as it gave the youth contingent more room to lose their shit, which they did with gusto as Fucked Up provided the ideal soundtrack for shit-losing. As his bandmates churned out an unrelenting rock attack, frontman Pink Eyes was in fine form with a plastic cup smashed and stuck on his forehead for am impressively long time as he roamed the stage, bellowing and hollering all the while. The highlight of their set, though, wasn’t Fucked Up per se but one of their fans who went on an epic-length crowd surf that found him on stage singing with the band, back into the crowd, back on stage, out into a cluster of photographers (not a good idea we don’t have free hands and dropping you is a preferable scenario to dropping our gear), way out the far corners of the Pearl floor, back on stage and then heaved up fireman-style onto Damian Abraham’s shoulders and once more back into the crowd. No, this was not something you were likely to see during Belle & Sebastian’s set.

Photos: Fucked Up @ Pearl at The Palms – October 1, 2010
MP3: Fucked Up – “Neat Parts”
MP3: Fucked Up – “No Epiphany”
MP3: Fucked Up – “Twice Born”

Sonic Youth have only been a Matador band for one record so far, but they certainly they shaped the landscape that allowed the label to exist and are spiritually intertwined on countless levels. But rather than focus on their official Matador material – last year’s The Eternal – they instead performed some revisionist history and adopted their back catalog with OLE numbers and delivered a jaw-dropping set of exclusively pre-1994 material in their original four-piece configuration, with Kim Gordon on bass full-time. The throwback song selections was a great contrast to their show at Massey Hall last year where they focused almost exclusively on the new material and while that was certainly a great show in its own right, this one was another level of riveting entirely. And maybe most terrifically, they closed out with a genuine, physical guitar duel as Lee Ranaldo dashed across the stage to cross guitar necks with Thurston Moore, laying flat on the stage. It was great to see the musical godfathers of nearly everyone playing this weekend still having fun like, well, youths.

Photos: Sonic Youth @ Pearl at The Palms – October 1, 2010
MP3: Sonic Youth – “Sacred Trickster”
MP3: Sonic Youth – “Incinerate”

The night closed with the reunion that a year ago no one ever thought would happen – Pavement – winding down a year of shows that had taken them around the world to claim some of the reward that largely eluded them when they were an active proposition in the ‘90s. And while Pavement 2010 has been a success by most standards, on this night there were clearly signs that the tensions that split them up a decade ago were resurfacing. Just one song into the set, some technical issues with Steve West’s drum kit opened up some dead time, prompting Steven Malkmus to invite Bob Nastaonovich to join him in an impromptu reading of “Perfect Depth” but not extending it to Scott Kannberg – whether it was an oversight or deliberate slight, only SM knows but the net result was an unhappy Spiral Stairs (credit to Prefix for catching it). Kannberg’s unhappiness boiled over when he stepped up for “Kennel District” and while Malkmus – who had earlier turned his mic stand so as to have his back to the band – rolled around on the floor covering his parts, Kannberg alternated verses with grimaces and by song’s end was fuming over perceived flubs, though it sounded fine in the audience.

Seething and palpable tensions aside, Pavement sounded great and their performance had an extra bit of looseness that wasn’t there when they played Pitchfork earlier in the Summer. Malkmus, in particular, was in a strangely goofy mood, cracking jokes and batting around the mic like a toy and Nastanovich was, well, Nastanovich, bounding around the stage like a kid while belting out his parts. The SM/SS dynamic would still be the biggest take-away from their set as Kannberg walked off stage a couple times before the set was done, only grudgingly returning to finish things off. It was a very Pavement moment that rather than have a properly grand finale prepared for their final North American show, they went with an off-the-cuff “AT&T” and, uncertain if they had any more time but down a guitarist, shuffled off stage. No handcuffs made an appearance but no one in attendance will likely be surprised if it’s announced that Pavement are, again, done. And for night one, despite some sweet-ass after party type events scheduled, I was also done.

Photos: Pavement @ Pearl at The Palms – October 1, 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”

You may note that no mention was made of the evening’s MC, Jeffrey Joe Jensen. This was deliberate.

eye talks to Fucked Up’s Damian Abraham at Matador at 21 while The New York Times considers the Pavement reunion and the band’s legacy. There’s more night one writeups at Las Vegas Weekly, The AV Club and Los Angeles Times. And loads more are out there, just look.

By : Frank Yang at 8:33 am

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Sunday, October 3rd, 2010

"A(nother) Salty Salute"

Everyone covers Guided By Voices

GBV Photo By Michael Lavine Michael LavineWhen Guided By Voices announced they were calling it a day back in Summer of 2004, I marked the occasion with a tribute cover of the week which basically consisted of me scraping together all of the GBV covers I could find and tossing them onto the internet (where they mostly came from in the first place). So it seems appropriate that as Guided By Voices have reunited and will play tonight as the grand finale of Matador at 21 in Las Vegas, I should bust out some/most of those same tracks to, again, mark the occasion.

And interestingly, many of the artists who are represented are also returning to active duty following long breaks. The Strokes, after an extended hiatus and countless solo projects, are back in the studio and Julian Casablancas has announced their fourth album will be released on March 11, 2011 though it’s doubtful anyone will actually try to hold them to that. Spoon have become one of the biggest and most reliable rock acts in indiedom, releasing Transference earlier this year and also appearing at Matador @ 21. For many years, Portastatic was Mac McCaughan’s primary creative outlet but now that Superchunk is back with Majesty Shredding. their first album in a decade – they too are celebrating their tenure on Matador in Vegas this weekend. Vancouver’s Salteens are putting out their first album in seven years in Grey Eyes, due October 12. Jimmy Eat World’s new record Invented is their first in three years; they’re at the Kool Haus in Toronto on October 17. And finally, Jon Auer’ Posies have just released Blood/Candy, their second post-reunion record but still first in five years.

Odds of any more Guided By Voices remain slim to none, but Robert Pollard will surely keep putting out at least a dozen records a year. Give or take.

MP3: The Strokes – “A Salty Salute”
MP3: Spoon – “Melted Pat”
MP3: Portastatic – “Echoes Myron”
MP3: The Salteens – “Motor Away”
MP3: Jimmy Eat World – “Game Of Pricks”
MP3: Jon Auer – “Gold Star For Robot Boy”
Video: Guided By Voices – “A Salty Salute” (live, 2007)
Video: Guided By Voices – “Auditorium/Motor Away”
Video: Guided By Voices – “Game Of Pricks” (live)
Video: Guided By Voices – “Gold Star For Robot Boy” (live)
Stream: Guided By Voices – “Echoes Myron”

By : Frank Yang at 3:38 pm

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Saturday, October 2nd, 2010

CONTEST – The Walkmen @ The Phoenix – October 9, 2010

Walkmen Photo By Billy Pavone Billy PavoneWho: The Walkmen
What: Veteran New York art-rock act who rose from the ashes of Jonathan Fire*Eater, a fact which probably means nothing to most of their fans.
Why: They released their sixth album Lisbon in September to some of the best reviews of their career.
When: Saturday, October 9, 2010
Where: The Phoenix Concert Theatre in Toronto (early show – doors @ 7PM)
Who else: Support comes from AA Bondy and Blood Feathers
How: Tickets for the show are $18.50 in advance but courtesy of Collective Concerts, I’ve got two pairs of passes to give away for the show. To enter, email me at contests AT chromewaves.net with “I want to see The Walkmen” in the subject line and your full name in the body; contest will close at midnight, October 5.
What else: The Phoenix has a feature piece on the band and Spinner talks to them about the Inteface session they recorded for them.