Friday night was spent entirely at the Delancey: the Flameshovel/Polyvinyl showcase was in full swing, and longtime compatriots Bling Kong were opening up. I got there and learned that Bound Stems — slated to close out the night with an acoustic set — had had their flight to NYC cancelled due to the shite weather blanketing the city that day; that was the lone misstep of the night, and if that’s your lone misstep…
So. Bling Kong started the night off; this was the third time I’ve seen their “choose your own adventure” set and, strangely enough, NYC audiences have made the exact same choices each time. The noisy bass sound heard took me back to the early, Big-Black-meets-a-pep-rally days of the band; also, jazz hands were visible. Up next: Picastro, who I had neither heard nor seen before. Cello, acoustic guitar, and violin all made appearances in the band’s lineup; the overall mood was a somber one. Definitely interested me enough to seek out some of their music, though.
Mannequin Men took the stage next. I’d seen them once before in Chicago, and while I thought that they were solid then, their Friday set was amazing: stripped down, noisy rock music played with abundant energy. Throw in dueling stage banter — the drummer graciously thanking the crowd, the singer shouting him down for a more confrontational approach — and members of The Narrator jumping onstage at various points, and you’ve got something amazing. One of the best single sets I saw all week.
Cale Parks from Aloha was next: think minimal, minimalist electronic rock. Quite good from where I was standing; also in the “artists I’d like to hear more from” camp. The Narrator were the last to take the stage. Their All That To the Wall is one of the best albums I’ve heard this year, and some of the sets I’ve heard from them in recent months have been dynamically precise and, well, ragin’ full-on. That night’s show was more of a blur: members of Oxford Collapse and Mannequin Men joining them for songs, crowd singalongs, guitars on the floor, bass playing atop the drum kit, etc. (Stereogum has some photos; the first one gives you an idea of the general feel of the set). For my part: it’s three days later, and my neck is still sore.