9 Concerts in 10 Days. #2: Glasvegas @ Rock and Roll Hotel, Washington DC 10/3/08
Posted by Val in The Yellow Stereo
Sorry to have delayed so much between #1 & #2 but I wanted to wait until the full review had been posted over at DCist. Here are a few notes on the show to expand on the actual honest to goodness review.
* How is it that I only found out about these guys two weeks ago and they’re selling out venues all over the States?
* The lead singer looks a lot like John Cusack to me.
* Their energy was all over the place and completely unforced. They completely did The Walkmen thing better than I’ve ever seen The Walkmen do it.
* They still had that deadpan Scottish sense of humor but they seemed less dour than other bands I’ve seen recently out of that country: (Read: Camera Obscura, The Twilight Sad, Arab Strap.)
* I repeat: when your band thrives on a sort of Jesus & Mary Chain/Wall of Sound type of fuzz, it is painfully obvious when one of the members of your band has a glaringly inferior skill level. The member that I’m speaking of is drummer Caroline McKay. She can keep a simple beat, but Glasvegas, although pop-ready, does not play basic minimalistic music. The last time I saw a drummer standing (for lack of a bass drum) and playing very simple beats, it was with The Crystal Stilts, and with their style of music, it works fantastically. In the case of Glasvegas, it doesn’t ruin the sound, but it does stick out like a sore thumb.
*Damn were they good. I loved it that the entire venue went on to sing “Daddy’s Gone” during the chorus. So cool. Go Square Go was another highlight for me.
*It will be nice to see them next time around when they have more than eight songs to play, but the short setlist was a blessing for my eardrums seeing as how I accidentally left the earplugs at home.
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Finally picked up the album… and I’m digging it. I’ll have to see them if they ever come this way.