Personal Information Waltz

"Whenever something good happens to me, I wait two weeks before I tell anybody, because I like to use the word 'fortnight'"
-Demetri Martin

Jokes are funny and sometimes can be used as an excuse, but if you want the truth I was just too lazy to write this post right away. I wanted to, but time gets away from you... And then it was too late to write about it so many days after the fact (is it weird that I'm embarrassed at the thought of tardy postings?), and I wasn't sure what to do, but then I remembered this joke. "Aha!" I thought to myself, "I don't have to admit to laziness! I can claim that I was just waiting." Demetri Martin saves the day. It's kind of like having a time machine.

Two weeks ago I went to check out a show at the Firebird. Indie rock and ice cream? Yeah, I'll take some of that. There were four bands on the bill, two I'd never heard of, one I knew in name and online listening only, and lastly one I'd seen a while back and remembered enjoying. In no particular order...

~Opening the show we're The Dive Poets. I have a friend who is married to one of these guys and she'd invited me to one of their previous shows, but upon first listen it didn't sound like my cup of tea. It came across as a little more country, and while I will listen to it in small doses it's not exactly something that gets me excited. Boy was I wrong. They were surprisingly upbeat and danceable and far less country than I thought. Wouldn't know how to describe their style as all I have are two week old memories (they don't have an album out for me to buy... jerks), but it was good. Still kicking myself for skipping the last one. Most def gonna have to check them out again.
~The Tight White Pants Band. Oops, I mean Via Dove. Can't say I enjoyed them much. They were fairly decent musicians... I think. I was a little distracted, cause their pants were so tight, and so white. Hard to focus on anything else. I found myself wondering if they knew they were at an indie rock show. Or if they knew what indie rock actually is. I might have liked them say ten or so years ago, but now something this heavy and angry just makes me feel old. And that's all I've got to say about that.
~Elsinore was the band I've seen before, and they did not disappoint. I didn't know if I should be more entertained by their music, or the witty comebacks the lead singer had for every random thing yelled at the stage by someone in the audience.
~Finally, the band of the evening has to be Lost in the Trees. I wish I could put them in my pocket and carry them around with me. Unfortunately that would never, ever work, cause this was the biggest damn indie band I've ever seen. A guy on the drums? No surprise there. A guy with a guitar? Typical. But that's where any resemblance to your usual group stopped, and what started was almost like high school band just kept on going. There were xylophones, and horns, and a string section. There were instruments I didn't even recognize and had to look up when I got home. There were so many of them that they have to travel in a school bus. I didn't know where to look or what to listen to. I'd be watching the lead singer, when suddenly the brass would hit like a Chuck Norris roundhouse kick to the stomach. (I'm being overly dramatic, but seriously, you could feel it.) I'd notice the cellos and violins were still there, and then they'd just go nuts, bows were flying over the strings like mad. And just who writes music like that these days, anyway? It's nothing so simple as a melody and a bass line with some lyrics sprinkled on top. With this many things going on the music has to be arranged; as it turns out, the lead singer just so happens to be a composer. Apparently he decided an unusual indie band was the way to go. Needless to say I was impressed. I'd go see them again, if only they weren't from North Carolina... le sigh. Bought their album and have been listening to it the last couple weeks; it's good, and it's growing on me, but it just can't do them justice.

Lost in the Trees @ last.fm
The Dive Poets @ myspace
Elsinore @ last.fm