Hooves on the Turf

Au was super at Monkeytown; photos

Download “We Are Animals” | There isn’t really any standing room at Monkeytown; the performance space is like someone’s spacious living room. It’s a nice square, at least, with video projections on all four walls, all along which guests seat themselves either on low canvas couches or spare chairs, and dinner and drinks can be had on the slim, low tables that you’ll share with few other guests if you’re a party of less than 4. The performance takes place at the center of this room, sans stage, and coupled with the proximity to the artist and a very low capacity, it makes for a unique “concert-going” experience.

Being a collective, Portland’s Au is mostly a big band that should be expected to vary in tour-size. Last night they played as a duo, consisting of the amazing Dana Vlatka on drums and founder Luke Wyland on everything else (keyboards plus gadgetry). At first I worried, as I worry with every Broken Social Scene show, “Where are the girl singers?”. But within the first song, I made two notes: (1) go see Au again at Spiegeltent on September 29th, opening for the Dodos (2) recommend everyone else to do so.

All photos and review continued after the jump.

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Au, Taken by Trees, Pwrfl Power and more tonight

Taken by Trees: Julia
The Gang: Sea So
Bears: Wait and See
Ghosty: Big Surrender
Au: We Are Animals
Pwrfl Power: Alma Song
Conor Oberst & the Mystic Valley Band: Danny Callahan
Pistola: Chugs And Squeals (At The Amusement Park)
Evangelicals: Skeleton Man
Made Out of Babies: Cooker
Red Wire Black Wire: Compass Matter

Portland’s Au is playing two sets at Monkeytown with Mofongo, but seating is very limited and reservation is required // Stockholm’s Taken By Trees creates a luscious world within a sparse landscape, and these tender tunes, given their modesty, should sound pretty good at Union Hall’s tiny basement.

Pwrfl Power is classically-trained Japanese guitarist Kazutaka Nomura, who opts for idiosyncratic lyrics and an elemental framework of popular music these days–he goes so far as to sing, “Your boobs aren’t that gigantic / But that’s okay, I don’t like big girls anyway”. Though he usually does this over a rich fabric of a lone acoustic guitar, he goes electric sometimes. For the Cake Shop show tonight, let’s hope it’s acoustic. He will be joined by Bears, Ghosty, and be warned of estrogen overload, Fruit Machine and Heavy Flow (if this name isn’t clear enough, the logo consists of two tampons with bloody tips).

A house party at Santos’ Party House with: Machine Drum feat. Theophilus London (live PA), Stay High (live PA), Tanlines DJ Set (Eric of the Brothers + Jesse of, Professor Murder) +  Bulldozier DJs: Hearts of Darknesses, Stephen of Stars as Eyes.

Conor Oberst & The Mystic Valley Band with Evangelicals at Bowery Ballroom // There’s some confusion about who’s playing at Grasslands tonight; Soren Well, The Gang, Black Swan Green and Linfinity are but My Teenage Stride is not. // Red Wire Black Wire, The Mumbles at McCarren Pool // Made Out Of Babies, PIGS, Pistola at Southpaw // Butch Walker, Jesse Malin at Webster Hall.

Au says, Summer Is Here!

Download “RR vs. D” | There is a fresh pop collective on the horizon, from Portland no less, for warmer days that await us. The preview track from Au’s summer record, Verbs, is so tinged with the colors of sand, grass, the sun, parades, and crisp rolling waves, that it can only mean one thing: Behold! Summer Marches Towards Us. The group has announced some tour dates, but these don’t include the east coast yet. However, the album comes out June 26th, so I’m sure we’ll be getting our share of the feast: Verbs was recorded over three days with Luke Wyland pulling in nearly thirty collaborators from the area. Listen to “RR vs. D” — it’s an absolute blast.