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indie-snob>+!#
The shins @ the house of blues (11-15-03)
with the aislers set, broadcast oblivion |
 So, perhaps the House of Blues isn't my favorite venue in the world. It's big, impersonal, and tickets tend to be more expensive than the similarly-sized Metro. And, to jump the line, you can have dinner in the restaurant and get inside before everyone else. Kind of irksome when you're waiting for two hours and people get ahead of you. (Not like I'm speaking of Modest Mouse or anything…) This time, we took advantage of that. So, it was fun being front and center for the Shins. It's unfortunate that I couldn't have just erased the "Oblivion" from the first band's name, leaving me with a slightly less mediocre indie rock band. Broadcast Oblivion, however, remained in that dull mediocrity that really doesn't let you place any judgment on a band. It was just some boring garage rock that doesn't leave me desiring more. I was pretty sure that I had heard it a million times before in far more original and aurally stimulating ways. They admit to being loud and melodic, and largely, that's what I can love in a band. Something about them, though, didn't impress me. It's not even easy to say that the band was young and learning. They have a member of the Shins and a former member of Murder City Devils. They share stages with Pretty Girls Make Graves, Electric Six, D4. It just doesn't make sense to me. Of the recordings I've heard, I found that I liked the band a lot more, but live, something didn't cut it for me. Grade: C- I almost saw the Aislers Set last year, but unfortunately, I had to leave early. I was so excited to see them, but the show started late and Hella played longer than expected, and well, it just didn’t work out. So, since that day, I've been terribly disappointed. When they opened for Yo La Tengo on a late summer tour, they skipped over Chicago in an otherwise national tour. Again, my disappointment grew, but thanks to the Shins, my hopes had been satisfied. There's something comforting about the Aislers Set if nothing else. It's definitely sixties pop inspired by the likes of Sonic Youth or Wire, set in a spirit of jubilation and pure bliss. That's not to say that they're sugar-coated, in fact, I'd say quite the opposite; sometimes they give me a headache and other times put me to sleep. I think the real key in the Aisler Set is that half the members are in a different San Francisco "hardcore" band. Despite all my excitement, though, the show was a bit disappointing. I had wanted so much more, and the fact was, their live show let me down. The singer's voice was not up to its usual standards and the instrumentation was not as interesting as I had expected. That's not to say the songcraft wasn't still there or it sounded bad, I just expected more. "Catherine Says" could have been more heartfelt, "Emotional Levy" could have had longer silences… everything was just slightly off from what I wanted. It doesn't change my wonderful impression of them, though. Maybe it was just the overly clean sound of the House of Blues. Grade: B Opening with "Pressed In A Book," the Shins immediately won my affection. Both the crowd and the band were terribly energetic. I really love the Shins, and this show really made me remember how much I love the material of Oh, Inverted World. If it weren't enough that the Shins are an excellent band, they're also hysterical. Every member of the band has a sparkling personality, especially the keyboardist, who Blake of Rilo Kiley refers to as "goofy." It was also the drummer's birthday, so they brought out a cake and birthday shots for the band. The show was definitely more fun than I imagined. I hadn't realized how fun it was to dance to Shins songs, and didn't until the played "So Says I" when I thought: hey, the Shins can be downright dancey. I was largely satisfied with the band's set for the evening. It was a good dose of pop fun that sounded amazing at the House of Blues (despite my hatred, they have a lovely sound system). The one song that sounded a little funny was "Gone For Good," mainly because I think they use a pedal steel on the album and here the guitarist was just playing with a slide. The band closed with "Know Your Onion," certainly the Shins' most "anthem-atic" song and by far the most popular. The crowd sang along and truly a good time was had by all. The Shins played for an hour and a half or so, and to be quite honest, that's too much for any band for me… except Radiohead or Bright Eyes or PJ Harvey or Bjork or Tilly and the Wall or Xiu Xiu or… okay, so there a lot of artists I can stand for more than the standard hour set, but for the most part, I think that works the best. And hey, in this time, they couldn't fit in my favorite song from Oh, Inverted World, "New Slang"? Thanks a lot Shins. Definitely see them. I know I will be again in June. Grade: A- Related Reviews: |