Apropos of nothing, please check out Soulja Boy’s first wikipedia entry, as told by Soulja Boy. Inspired, right?
Tuesday: A Sunny Day In Glasgow at Hemlock Tavern
There’s something post-apocalyptic, eerie, dreamy, nightmarish, unfamiliar and altogether intriguing about A Sunny Day in Glasgow. What year it is, what planet it is, what genre it is, we don’t know for sure. They’ve mastered the art of subtle attraction, that intoxicating need to clarify why something feels so right yet so foreign. The band’s last two albums are absolutely gripping, front to back. 2014’s Sea When Absent, in particular, has earned universal rave reviews.
Wednesday: The Polyphonic Spree at Slim's
Tim Delaughter’s going to pull a muscle if he’s not careful. The uber-prolific frontman of The Polyphonic Spree has recorded eight full-length albums (many with the also-formidable Dallas band Tripping Daisy), and shows no signs of slowing down at the age of 48. You probably know the Polyphonic Spree as the cult-ish-looking collective you saw at that one festival way back when, but there’s much more than meets the eye. Delaughter doesn’t align with any religion but frequently cites the natural splendor of the world as his spiritual muse. Sing along without fear of spiked kool-aid!
Wednesday: OK Go at The Independent
The name says it all. OK Go is simple, active-verb pop. Come for the fun alt-rock, stay for the extras, share every aspect of the experience with your friends. The LA-based band has a very specific strategy catering to modern audiences, one that emphasizes visual art accentuations above all else. The band might just be the unofficial champion of YouTube, which has become a pivotal battleground for musicians attempting to win over masses. Their videos often resemble Rube Goldberg projects. Just watch:
I think it’s fair to build up expectations for the band’s live set with this kind of imaginative résumé.
Friday: Josh Wink at Public Works
Elder house junkies know the genius of Josh Wink, one of the scene’s trail blazers in the early ‘90s. With sizable followings in the US and abroad, Wink has earned status as a forefather of the techno explosion. This is the raw, percussion-is-everything house that requires careful attention to production subtleties and flits of inspiration. Leave your mouse-shaped hats at home — this isn’t your kids’ sugary EDM.
Saturday: The Aquabats at The Regency Ballroom
Part ska, part Peewee Herman’s Play House, the Aquabats are 20 years into what started as a tongue-in-cheek experiment, and now is still very much a tongue-in-cheek experiment. To give an idea, the band features figures such as MC Bat Commander, Crash McLarson, Jimmy the Robot, Eagle “Bones” Falconhawk, and Ricky Fitness, so it’s tough to get too serious analyzing the band with metrics other than “How Fun?” Really, words do this band little justice (and I hate admitting that).
Follow @ChrisTrenchard for more words like this.
