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indie-snob>+!#
clem snide @ logan sq. auditorium (10-25-03)
with okkervil river, califone |
 Here's a quiz for you: it's 8 o'clock on a Saturday evening, your parents are out and you feel lame stuck at home watching the Disney Channel, what do you do? Well, if you're Chicago's self-proclaimed indie snob (a name lovingly given to myself not out of pretentiousness or hatred toward "other" genres, but rather for the beauty of independent music), you go to a concert. Okay, so my experience with any of the three bands that played was quite limited. I had a split 7-inch with Okkervil River (although I bought it for the A-side with a Centro-matic off-shoot). I knew Califone was a popular experimental local band on Thrill Jockey (kinda tells you what it'll sound like right there), but hadn't heard much. And, at most, I had heard a song by Clem Snide, but certainly nothing more. But hey, I love going to concerts. I was pleasantly surprised with the rest of Okkervil River's material, though. While I must say that two of indie's favorite words came to mind frequently (I'll give you a hint, it has a Bright and an Eyes), there was definitely more to the sound. Something about them was emotional and raw, but another part had a very polished folk feel. It definitely was Centro-matic fronted by Conor. Or maybe Spoon gone into a quiet folk fix. There was just something about their set, though, that kept me involved and interested, and even more than that, wanting to hear more. (Maybe it was just the pretty lights…) Grade: B+  Okkervil River For me, Califone has always been one of those bands you've been dying to hear but never get around to. I like local music, and I love supporting local bands, and as I see it, there are a couple distinctive Chicago sounds. One is alt-country, specifically Bloodshot's take on the genre. Another is power-pop (my favorites Troubled Hubble come to mind, also Wolfie, the New Constitution and if you stretch it, Alkaline Trio). And finally, we have the Thrill Jockey sound. It's quiet, polished, but amazingly dense. And good ole Califone is part of the latter. At first I was really interested by them on stage. The percussionist had about a billion random/odd little things surrounding him, bells and shells and who knows what else. There was a banjo, an old keyboard—basically everything I love in a band (well, randomness that is). But, for as interesting as Califone is, they were also terribly boring. My art teacher told me that they used to open up for Modest Mouse when they came here often (back in the late 90s people!), and that the crowd would fall asleep. Not only has Modest Mouse kept that formula (see my review on the site), but Califone seems to be doing the same thing. I mean, for god's sake, it's 10 o'clock and I'm in a quiet, dimly lit room with stationary bodies playing quiet music. How do you not expect me to nap? But I do like Califone. I ended up buying two of their albums… I just don't have any plans to see them live very soon (well, at least not intentionally). Grade; B-
I had no real excitement to see Clem Snide. My parents were picking me up at midnight from the show, so I knew that I would only have half an hour with them, and I knew that it wouldn't really matter. Oh, but thank God they did. I think I was ready to sleep even more than I was during Califone's set. It's not that their music was energetic or played at a high enough volume (in fact, I was practically deaf after the thirty minutes I did stay), but it was the fact that their music really just wasn't interesting. From what I know, Clem Snide has kind of gained their fame with their last EP that featured some odd covers, including Christina Aguilera's "Beautiful." Unfortunately, they didn't play that within the time I spent. All I got to see was a singer that looked just like Elvis Costello play a more mainstream rocking version of the Old 97s in a suit. I think they covered a Dylan song… maybe something else, too. But hey, who really knows? And as far as I'm concerned, who cares? Clem Snide was most definitely disappointing. I do not doubt that there is more to hear than I have heard on my own (and I think I'll download more of their stuff, soon), but their live show definitely left something to be desired. Overall, the show was just surprisingly disappointing. It's not often, though, that bands seem to get worse throughout the night. Grade: C-    All photos by Chris Aque
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