Last night, after frantically scrambling to upload my review of Wednesday's Shearwater show and just before heading out for the Dum Dum Girls set at The Earl, I checked The Earl's web site to confirm the show's starting time and saw to my disappointment that the show had sold out.
I immediately concluded that I wouldn't get to see the show. Bummer, so much for March Madness, but on the other hand, I could finally get a much-needed night of sleep. Between Monday night's Typhoon concert and Wednesday night's triple-header of Jesca Hoop, Death Vessel, and Shearwater, I'd heard a lot of good music this week. Not to mention the Stephen Malkmus, Jonathan Richman and St. Vincent shows earlier in the month, and I still had Kishi Bashi to look forward to on Saturday.
Speaking of Saturday night, though, after I discovered that the Dum Dum Girls had sold out, a friend had emailed me to ask what time the Kishi Bashi show would started. I went to check my stash of tickets to see, and discovered, there at the top of the pile, a Will Call receipt for the Dum Dum Girls concert that I had forgotten about. Yes, it had sold out, but no, that didn't mean I couldn't go. It was 9:00 pm, and if I left that very minute, I could still catch most, if not all, of the show.
As it turned out, I got to the Earl in time to hear the last two or three songs of Vertical Scratchers' set.
Vertical Scratchers sounded like a power-pop garage band from the 90s, and that's meant as a compliment, although I didn't get to hear very much of them. Additionally, the sold-out club was crowded and it took me a while to work my way through the crowd to a good vantage spot. But as soon as I found a spot and snapped off a few pictures, frontman John Schmersal announded, "We've got one more for 'ya," and after that, they were gone.
The audience dispersed between sets, and suddenly a spot right in front of center stage opened up. I moved up and got a front row view for Blouse's set, which was the band I was primarily there to see.
Portland's Blouse play a retro-sounding blend of dream-pop and shoegaze fronted by Charlie Hilton's breathy vocals. Their set was near perfect by my tastes, loud when it should have been loud, softer when that was appropriate, and always interesting from start to finish.
As it turned out, I got to the Earl in time to hear the last two or three songs of Vertical Scratchers' set.
Vertical Scratchers sounded like a power-pop garage band from the 90s, and that's meant as a compliment, although I didn't get to hear very much of them. Additionally, the sold-out club was crowded and it took me a while to work my way through the crowd to a good vantage spot. But as soon as I found a spot and snapped off a few pictures, frontman John Schmersal announded, "We've got one more for 'ya," and after that, they were gone.
The audience dispersed between sets, and suddenly a spot right in front of center stage opened up. I moved up and got a front row view for Blouse's set, which was the band I was primarily there to see.
Portland's Blouse play a retro-sounding blend of dream-pop and shoegaze fronted by Charlie Hilton's breathy vocals. Their set was near perfect by my tastes, loud when it should have been loud, softer when that was appropriate, and always interesting from start to finish.
I had wanted to see Blouse during 2012's MFNW (RIP), when they played a late-night set at Dante's. I was at the Doug Fir earlier that night watching Black Mountain, and should have been able to make the walk over the Burnside Bridge in time to catch Blouse's set as well, but got roped into having first one beer at Ronton's and than another and another by someone who eventually talked me into blowing off the next night of MFNW (including Kishi Bashi) to see My Morning Jacket somewhere out in the Oregon countryside, until it got so late that I missed Blouse's set altogether. But I digress, as old men tend to do. Last night, I finally got to see Blouse perform, and I think the band, if anything, are better now that they would have been two years ago.
Last night was also my first time seeing The Dum Dum Girls (three firsts for the night!). I wasn't quite sure what to expect from them - garage punk or slick power pop? Their discography suggests both.
The answer turned out to be somewhere in between. Overall, the band was far quieter than I expected - the amps seemed to be turned way down, perhaps to let the audience better hear lead singer/guitarist Dee Dee Penny's vocals. They were the lowest volume band by far I've heard in a while.
Phoning it in: Here's a description copied from The New Yorker, "Burnt out on being in bands, the singer-songwriter Kristin Gundred, who records and performs as Dee Dee Penny, started this act as a home recording project in 2008. Six years later, they have largely outgrown the bedroom, blossoming into an all-female four-piece who just released their third album, Too True. Co-produced by Sune Rose Wagner, of the Ravonettes, and Richard Gottehrer (Blondie, the Go-Go's), the Girls' latest work combines sixties-girl-group tropes with elements of New Wave, punk, goth, and garage rock; it's all tied together by Gundred's impeccable craftsmanship and vixenish allure."
They performed mainly new songs, most of which at least I didn't know, and the songs they played sounded very different from those early ones that I did (e.g., Jail La-La, and Bhang, Bhang I'm a Burnout). The girl-group sound was definitely evident, and the four women in the band looked great (plus one guy on guitar, making me wonder if it was really as much fun as might be imagined being the one male on the road touring with an otherwise all-female glam band). I did recognize a few songs, not the least of which was the encore closer, Coming Down.
Eye candy and ear candy, with just enough substance to let you not feel guilty, and besides, who doesn't like candy? It was all fun and sweet, but a far cry from the Dum Dum Girls of 2010.
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