Coachella for poor people, part 7

Hooray, this will be my last “couldn’t afford to go to Coachella” post. Yes, I do know it’s Monday and the festival is over and everyone has gone home. But I had an opportunity to go see some live bands last night at TT the Bear’s place in Cambridge, so I jumped on it, figuring Virtual Coachella could wait. Reviews of those sets (and another night out at the infamous Toad) coming up within a few days. Plus a profile of the very cool L.A. band Radars to the Sky. They’re all stomping their hooves impatiently, so I’d best get on with it.

Sunday, April 19

The Murder City Devils (Mohave Tent, 5:20-6:10 pm)

Rock / Gothic – Seattle, Washington | MySpace | official site

A garage rock band (not goth, despite what they say on MySpace) was active between 1996 and 2001. They’ve performed occasional shows since 2006. While signed to Sub Pop they released five albums: The Murder City Devils (1997), Empty Bottles, Broken Hearts (1998), In Name and Blood (2000), Thelema EP (2001) and a live album of their last show at Seattle’s Showbox, called R.I.P. (Oct. 31, 2001).

Devendra Banhart (Gobi Tent, 7:00-7:50 pm)

Folk / Indie | MySpace | official site

(from Wikipedia): “an American/Venezuelan folk rock singer-songwriter and musician. Banhart’s music has been classified as indie folk, psych folk, Naturalismo, and New Weird America; his lyrics are often surreal and naturalistic.” An interesting mix. “Shabop Shalom” is a crazy stomp, “Rosa” is meandering with a beautiful lead guitar riff winding through it. He has six albums released since 2002, the most recent one (as far as I can tell) was Smokey Rolls Down Thunder Canyon (2007).

Late of the Pier (Sahara Tent, 7:25-8:15 pm)

Latin / Glam / Thrash – Castle Donington – Nottingham, United Kingdom | MySpace | official site

“Latin, glam, and thrash” sounded pretty interesting… and it is. Listening to “The Bears Are Coming”, as crazy as it sounds, I’d have to agree with that assessment. Very unusual and unique, off-kilter pop. It’s tough to come up with something completely new, but I think they might have done it. Their debut album Fantasy Black Channel was released in 2008. I see their style has been compared to Gary Numan and Brian Eno. Gary Numan, yes, I do hear that. But Brian Eno?? They’re also compared to Metronomy and Klaxons, who I’m not familiar with, but I’m sure someone out there is.

The Horrors (Mohave Tent, 7:45-8:35 pm)

Tropical / Surf / Punk – London, United Kingdom | MySpace | official site

Apparently quite (over)hyped in the U.K. after their debut single “Sheena Is A Parasite” in 2005, they were described then as punkish, but their new single “Sea Within a Sea” is somber, moody, and gothic, and I quite like it. If you like band such as The Psychedelic Furs, The Cure, and The Jesus & Mary Chain, definitely check them out. The new album, Primary Colours, will be out May 4. U.S., Canada, and European tour after Coachella.

Christopher Lawrence (Sahara Tent, 8:25-9:25 pm)

Trance / Progressive House / Psychedelic – Los Angeles, California | MySpace | official site

Highly regarded for his “progressive trance” mixes. Not really my thing, but I’ll include him, as he seems to have a large international audience (though I’d never heard of him, but that means nothing).

The Kills (Mohave Tent, 9:00-9:50 pm)

Rock / Electronica / Indie – London, United Kingdom | MySpace | official site

American vocalist and guitarist Alison Mosshart (“VV”) and British guitarist Jamie Hince (“Hotel”). They’ve released three albums: Keep On Your Mean Side, No Wow and Midnight Boom. U.S. and Canadian tour after Coachella.

Etienne De Crecy (Sahara Tent, 10:50 pm)

France | MySpace | official site

“Etienne de CrÃ©cy (also known as Superdiscount, EDC, Minos Pour Main Basse and Mooloodjee) is a French DJ and producer who composes house music.” – Wikipedia. European tour after Coachella, but they will be at the All Points West Festival in New York on August 2.