On January 16th, an all-ages show put on by Unity Crayons and Landon of the Jump Offs took over Next Door. Lots of people came out to support. It was a really neat happening all together, even if the all the bands played short 20-minute sets. The show even ended early enough for me to drive home and catch the tail end of Fox Saturday primetime on KHON. Har! Genres tonight spoke: dancy, dark, jangly and noisy. It was all in there. Though did I like everything I heard tonight? Hrmm. Mayhaps?
On the bill, in this order: Fittedoar, Clones of the Queen, Girlfriends and Painted Highways.
Fittedoar, first up to bat, started with an instrumental opener that sounded like something from a John Zorn album, unorthodox but catchy. Good, now I’m interested. Young dudes, long hair and with a grindy, yet thick-grungy (though not too heavy) ala 90’s Subpop Records appeal. Bass player stands out and seems to be very influenced by reggae, judging by his groovy, walking bass lines. Also looks to be a sister project for one of the Jump Offs band members. Fittedoar has a unique sound that is probably unlike many others in the local circuit right now. I’d recommend you give these guys an ear. myspace.com/fittedoar
Tonight, Clones of the Queen put on the best set I’ve ever seen them perform thus far. The way the guitars reverberated off the walls only enhanced the dark, ambient-electronica institution they’ve been known to astound their fans with. To me, “Clones” sounds like a like a shadier version of Ivy, working with a remix engineer from the down-tempo moguls of Ninja Tune Records. Their singer, Ara, has been in some very interesting projects within the last few years. Out from the indie-pop era, now turned dark diva. Bravo to her new project, ‘cept I ask, what’s up with that *pushing down hand dance* she does during their set? Rock out with your perm out, sister! Or hair straightener from what I’ve seen. Joking aside, hey, fooken good job, guys! Excellence! myspace.com/clonesofthequeen
GRLFRNDS killed it tonight. Killed it! Very high energy and great dancibility during their performance. They were easily the highlight of this evening’s show. I’ve heard them compared to Hot Hot Heat, but I personally think they sound more like The Killers and Departure from the UK. It’s those catchy guitar riffs and in your face drumming that inspires one to *thud* their feet and head together, all in syncopation to those dynamic sound waves. The vocalist, Alex, who grew up mostly in Hawaii but with British parents, puts on his British accent when he sings, and hey, it works! Thing is, with a band like this, I’m sure you can all agree its also imperative to have “good” stage presence. Just about everyone in GRLFRNDS does their thing, shaking their wee-wee for all their lady fans. All except their keyboardist. He has so much potential to rock out, but NO! You’re probably in one of the better Honolulu live bands right now, so point to the ceiling when you hit an endnote or something! myspace.com/grlfrnds
And then it was time for the finale. The band I actually came to see after hearing so much about them. Painted Highways does sound like the genre they’ve branded themselves with: Americana and like the Pixies (mainly from the fast strumming and jangly six-string, to the reverberation in the vocals, which did sound Frank Black…’ish). Cept, I didn’t hear any of the “big guitars” or “nostalgia” reminiscent of Dinosaur Jr. and Radiohead, as captioned on their website. First song they presented was okay but it didn’t really grab me like I thought it would. Though the second song did give me a better spark of hope, as people in the audience started singing along. Usually a good sign, right? The tune sounded like a New Order song, with it’s new wavy’ness and keyboards towards the end. But the remaining songs that followed? Nothing to write home (or in this review) about. Myspace.com/PaintedHighways
I hear the next Unity Crayons show will happen at Nextdoor on February 27th with The Jump Offs, Painted Highways, and others from 6 – 10pm. Don’t miss one of the few all ages events available. You know I’ll be there.
