The Walkmen, Dum Dum Girls at Terminal 5, New York, NY, October 18th, 2012

The Whole Package

One of the things that's often missing from a mindie rock show is theatricality.  Many times, I think there's either a conscious decision just to get up there and play or a genuine shyness by some of the performers that prevents them from doing anything but reproducing their songs live.  There isn't anything wrong with that.  In a way, it's part of the whole indie aesthetic; and, honestly, if I were a performer that's probably what I would do.

Sometimes, though, a band is the whole package of image and sound.  I got to see two bands last night that wrap their songs in the carefully cultivated images that they bring to their live shows.

There were actually three acts on the bill at last night's Terminal 5 show, and I don't want to leave Daughter out of the discussion.  The London-based trio definitely falls into the just play the music category.  Lead singer and guitarist / bassist Elena Tonra is shy and self-deprecating on stage, but she has a beautiful voice that swirls around her own as well as Igor Haefeli's (sometimes bowed) guitar.  Their songs included lots of slow builds and interesting noise.

Dum Dum Girls took the stage at around 8:45.  Each member was dressed in black.  Lead guitarist Jules and frontwoman / rhythm guitarist Dee Dee twisted in unison on many of the songs, their bangs bouncing back and forth with them.  Speaking of Dee Dee Penny, she is one of the most mesmerizing frontpeople in music.  Each movement appears carefully calculated:  the way she tilts her head, the way she strums a chord.  This, contrasted with the rest of the band's relative stoicism, gives the whole performance the theatrical feel I mentioned before.

And then there are the songs.  The reverb-y garage pop of songs like "Bhang, Bhang, I'm a Burnout" or "Bedroom Eyes" and selections from the band's excellent End of Daze EP like "Lord Knows" and "Season in Hell" sounded and looked great.  Unfortunately, since they were opening, their set ended too soon for me.

I've mentioned before that acts at Terminal 5 are prompt, and The Walkmen came out at just about the stroke of 10.  Lead singer Hamilton Leithauser was dressed in his usual dark suit and tie.  Leithauser is, himself, a distinctive frontperson.  At points in many of the songs, he rears back and lets loose with his high-pitched yell at a level that makes you wonder how he can do it night after night.  He points at the crowd to underline particular lines in the songs.  The band relies on vintage guitars, organ, and upright piano for their sound.  That sound is a jangling, kind of neo-surf coupled with Leithauser's distinctive vocal style.

During their ninety minute set, the band ran through all of the songs that have become mindie classics like "In the New Year," "Angela Surf City," "The Rat," and "We've Been Had" as well as some of the standout cuts from this year's Heaven like "Heaven," "Heartbreaker," and "We Can't Be Beat."  A full horn section joined the band for several songs including "Stranded" from 2010's Lisbon.  With the horns blaring, the drums pounding, the piano tinkling, the guitar jangling, and Leithauser giving it everything he had, you could imagine this music being played in the 40's or 50's; while, at the same time, you realized that the people of that time would have fallen over if they ever heard anything like it.

In all, it was a really great bill that contrasted the simple substance of an up and coming indie band like Daughter with the style of Dum Dum Girls and The Walkmen.  Both of those more established bands brim with the substance necessary to pull off their stylistic choices.

Music geek bonus:  I was able to snag one of the final two free 7" singles that The Walkmen gave out to 100 attendees, and I finally bought the clear-vinyl "Loser Edition" of End of Daze.