Love him or hate him, this guy sure knows how to make an entrance.  Isn’t this what we want from our celebrities?  Drama, raw talent, controversy, tragedy, boldness… Kanye West is a blend of all those things, and I’ll be buying his records until those ingredients change.  So it’s only par for the course that Kanye would jump up on a folding table and lay down new songs acappella at a venue like Facebook.

(photo cred: Mike McDougal)

We all have that one friend who always manages to pull out a guitar at get-togethers, as semi-circles of friends form around them for a mini performance of old cover songs, inviting sing-a-longs, or something new and unique. But not all of us are lucky enough to be able to be a part of a semi circle around someone as talented as the scruffy Mr. David Bazan.  After all, it isn’t every day that the mastermind behind Pedro the Lion does a tour of solely intimate house shows, with only forty tickets sold per house. I was one of the lucky few that got a ticket after hovering over my computer mouse until the tickets went on sale, only to be sold out twenty minutes later.

He sat at the edge of a long couch in the cement-floored loft, embracing his acoustic guitar, as the city lights of downtown Los Angeles glowed through the window behind him. Bazan opened by saying that he’d mostly be playing new material from his anticipated album, Curse Your Branches, coming out August 25th.  Having never seen Bazan live before, I was slightly disappointed that he only played a couple of Pedro the Lion songs, but it was refreshing to hear something fresh and new without a band behind him. With a raspy voice and a squint in his left eye, he sang in the acoustically accommodating loft, as everyone sat staring and listening, as young children would sit around an elder, gazing upward in awe and astonishment.

What really made this performance unique was the way David Bazan paused between each song to ask if anyone had any questions.  At first it seemed as though he wanted people to ask about his music, but when he asked the group what their favorite movies were, it was obvious he was just a down to earth dude wanting to get to know his fans. He even told a story about paying for some program that taught him sweet dance moves, and how his wife walked in on him attempting the moves and failing miserably.  The echoing laughter brought such fantastic energy that added to the already radiant loft.  While playing a bit of a downer song, the host’s Dachshund interrupted the performance, and as Bazan laughed he said how difficult it was to sing about death when a cute dog is chilling next to you. His last song was the cover “Hallelujah,” initially written by Leonard Cohen, but covered by many, including Bob Dylan and Jeff Buckley. Bazan’s brutal and honest songwriting makes him one of most well rounded artists of today, and being able to see him perform his trade with his overwhelming raw emotion in such a setting allowed for a truly exceptional musical experience.

“It’s hot in here,” Cursive front man Tim Kasher said as he worked the mic in front of a sold out crowd Friday. “It’s getting very sexy up here.”

The girl at the base of the stage fondling her man friend nodded in agreement.

This was the Omaha band’s second performance in Los Angeles this week.  The Troubadour and Spaceland shows were part of the promotional tour for their sixth album -Mama, I’m Swollen-, which hit the shelves March 10th.

“This is the week our album came out, so we’re really happy to be here,” said the pretty damn charming Kasher, who sported a plaid shirt and scruffy beard.

While Pitchfork.com said Cursive fans are “likely to be divided” over the new album, I didn’t pick up any “I miss the old stuff” vibes at the show.  I’ll admit it, I’m not a die hard fan and couldn’t always distinguish between the new and the old material, but the audience seemed to be singing, fist pumping and crying during every song the Omaha kings had to offer. OK… Maybe not crying.

One of the old iones I’m certain they played was “The Recluse.”  It’s a song off their Ugly Organ album that every Cursive fan knows by heart. (Well, not every fan. I have no idea what the guy next to me was singing during that number.)  When the choir of fans belted out the chorus of “I’m not that desperate. Oh no. Oh God… I am,” it was pretty amazing.

At one point during the set, it looked like all the energy in the room was going to channel itself into a mini mosh pit, but two girls in the front put the kibosh on that one.  “Chill out,” I saw them mouth as they shoved a guy in back of them.

Kasher made time to thank the two Saddle Creek bands that opened the show, Little Brazil and Ladyfinger.  He said their albums were two of his favorite records this year.  “If you don’t have our record, I’d prefer you have their records instead. They’re great. Check them out.” He insisted this wasn’t a fake sales pitch.

Cursive’s performance ended around the same time their late night television debut aired on David Letterman.   They played “From the Hips” off the new album.  It was much hotter live.

After failing to get tickets for Animal Collective at the Henry Fonda (I did still see a great show at Spaceland - review coming soon), I decided to give the much smaller Troubadour show a shot.  Judging from the climate outside the club, and prices from the scalpers ($150 a ticket - wtf), you would have thought Tom Waits had finally come back to LA.  In reality, the fever pitch was for the once niched out, often alienating collective from Baltimore, who has deservedly grown a larger following over the past year or so.  All it took was a decade of making innovative and constantly evolving music that always sounds definitively AC.

So after two hours of asking every person in sight, I finally found the one person with a ticket (and a heart) to sell me their extra for only a modest mark up.  Finally in, I gave a few new friends from outside a high five, and made my way to the center of the floor.

One of the most dynamic elements of an Animal Collective show is their ability to play a seamless set.  So for 90 minutes there is always music coming at you.  During past tours, the interim between songs consisted of loose percussion and tonal experiments that could grow a bit thin; however, given their evolved electro approach, the show has more of a club experience (in all the best ways).

All great dance and noise musicians shape their music into a series of builds and releases.  Through loops or static a tension is built that slowly swells, until an audience is wound up so tight they are teetering on collapse, and at that moment the flood gates are opened - releasing the built up pressure as euphoria.  While Animal Collective is based in melody and song structure, they are uniquely positioned to also capture this build and release approach in how they transition in and out of songs.  Towards the end, a track disintegrates into a kind of sonic ooze,  which eventually emerges as the pieces to another song.  This cycle continues for the entire set.

The band was in perfect sync all night and of course the sound at the Troub was full and warm per usual. I’ve written out the setlist below.  It’s definitely Merryweather heavy, but there were some older treats in their as well.  This was the warm-up part of the tour, so look for Animal Collective to be in your backyard from now until May.

Setlist:

#1

Also Frightened

Leaf House

Guy Eyes

Summertime Clothes

Daily Routine

Blue Sky

My Girls

Fireworks

Brothersport

Encore…

Winter Love

Lion in a Coma

Slippi

Getting a genuine reaction from a crowd is a hard thing to come by.  Especially when your methods are derived from musical instruments and the city you preside in is Los Angeles.  Let’s be honest, despite my love for the city of angels, we don’t provide the warmest musical environment for younger artists - especially on the West side of LA.  However, No Age are part of a handful of bands that defied LA’s smug attitude by starting their own scene in (still somewhat uncharted) downtown LA at a venue called The Smell.  It was this energy and spirit that filled the Troubadour last week.

Titus Andronicus’ stage presence and strong ability to rock was a great appetizer for people to munch on before the No Age entree arrived.  I grabbed their LP off Emusic a while back, but never got too far into it.  That will quickly change after witnessing their live show.  The night quickly picked up the pace once No Age made it to the stage.

Luckily, the crowd present knew nothing of the traditional cross armed, slouched approach to watching live music, and quickly plowed out a ten foot free flowing dance/mosh pit.  I use the word mosh pretty loosely since at one point someone’s glasses fell off and the “moshers” quickly stopped and started shining their cellphones across the ground until the spectacles were retrieved safely.  The moment proved to be kind of funny, and yet another indication that the fans of No Age aren’t your typical cynics.

This was my third time seeing the wonder duo, and the charm that they speak of is true.  I’ve come to realize that lower-fi the artist, the higher-fi the system necessary for them to perform up to snuff.  It may be an oxymoron or an obvious statement, but I hadn’t thought about it until No Age’s guitar and drum assault began.  Under the roof of a classic music venue, the raw explosion of DIY (hate that term but it definitely works in this case) punk rock finally came into bloom in a way only the recorded albums had before.

Thanks to Shock Hound for putting on this free show!

[mp3] No Age - Everybody’s Down