CMJ 2009: Day 2 - Surf City + The Love Language + Pete and the Pirates
Surf City
Bell House, Brooklyn
I hate to slap on labels like “buzz” or “bandwagon,” but when every song intro in some way replicates The Pains of Being Pure at Heart and then develops into a more Japandroids concoction, it’s hard not to. The resurgence of, often over-calculated, garage music has fully breached Brooklyn boarders, and New Zealand’s Surf City is wallowing in the flood zone. Though pleasant sounding they lacked innovation, making it harder to appreciate the soothing melodies and hints at surf rock that my ears usually welcome.
The Love Language
Bell House, Brooklyn
Equipped with jangley keyboards and fuzzy harmonies, the Love Language are an attractive seven-piece whose retro 50’s melodies left me pining for more. No wishy-washy pastel suits or choreographed torso swaying here, just spastic tambourines and colliding vocals to round out their vibrant tunes. Though they hardly need such are large band to accomplish their sound, the on-stage community they created last night was endearing. Their nostalgic genre bending is best heard in “Providence” and “Lalita,” both of which were performed.
Pete and the Pirates
Bell House, Brooklyn
When a band’s only real setback is a lack of American distribution, you know they’re something special. Pete and his buccaneers have it, but it’s hard to pin down precisely what “it” is. Perhaps it’s the punchy melodies they churn out, or maybe it’s the way they never attempt to veil their Berkshire accents. It could also be their ability to sound both pointed and smooth, bringing to mind Pulp, Billy Bragg, and Vampire Weekend. Comparisons aside, Pete & the Pirates have a distinct fluidity to them, segueing from the melancholy melodies of “She Doesn’t Belong to Me” to the boisterous chorus of “Mr. Understanding” (which, by the way, immaculately evokes “Flathead” by the Fratellis.) They played a lengthy headlining set at the Bell House, treating fans to almost their entire young catalogue.
Set List:
Little Gun
Knots
Washing
Bump
Not A Friend
Bright Lights
Eyes Like Tar
Come On Feet
Motorbike
Lost in the Woods
Good Girl
Jenny
Cold Black
She Doesn’t Belong to Me
Mr. Understanding
Blood Thin
Comments
“making it harder to appreciate the soothing melodies and hints and surf rock that my ears usually welcome”
What?
Surf City were great and the new songs were a pleasant surprise. Really really looking forward to their album when it comes out next year.
Comment by Marty Bricketto from Jersey City — October 22, 2009 @ 1:25 pm
*hints at surf rock. editorial mistake, calm down.
Comment by c from bk — October 22, 2009 @ 11:27 pm
“garage music has fully breached Brooklyn boarders” ??- er, don’t forget this this kind of garage music has actually been going on in New Zealand since the early 1980s with the Clean and Flying Nun…not everything was invented in Brooklyn you know.
Comment by Martin from New Zealand — October 23, 2009 @ 3:34 pm
RE: “but when every song intro in some way replicates The Pains of Being Pure at Heart and then develops into a more Japandroids concoction, it’s hard not to,” this band predates both of the aforementioned, as their EP came out in the fall of last year, and quite honestly I doubt if they’ve even listened to either band (and they don’t sound a goddamn thing like either of them to my ears).
Comment by John from Brooklyn — October 25, 2009 @ 8:19 pm
Surf City put that record out in 2007, and new Zealand garage has been breaching NYC and the Borough of Brooklyn for quite a long time anyway. Bailterspace/The Clean/3ds for example.
If you have problems with “floods” or “genre” all up in your grill maybe just do some more research on the kind of music you are talking about. Might end up that you are grateful that it got over here. Breaching. LOL
Comment by Thom Burton from Brooklyn/New zealand — October 25, 2009 @ 8:49 pm