Sub Pop showcase, Friday night. Ruby Suns had the task of translating catchy, energetic home recordings into a live setting. I’m a fan of their latest album, and was curious to see how this would work out. Ultimately: it was good, though a few times the charm factor was turned on high. Pissed Jeans were up next: berserk, ominous punk rock that made me feel vaguely dirty for listening to it. Hell of a set, I thought.
From there, I walked to the Hydra Head showcase at Red 7. Caught the last few songs from Clouds — solid, metal — before dälek took the stage. They opened with one from deep into their discography — “Spiritual Healing”, from From Filthy Tongues of Gods and Griots — and followed that up with an unrelentingly intense set. While there, I picked up their split 12″ with My Education, in which the two work on variations on an Arvo Pärt composition.
My Brightest Diamond at Asthmatic Kitty’s showcase would be my next stop. I liked their set just fine, but I was impressed with it more than I was moved — which is, I suspect, simply a matter of personal preference. Castanets — the main draw for me — were next, and played a short, wrenching set abounding with covers. Particular standouts were an unsettling version of Tom Petty’s “You Got Lucky”, and Ian McCullough’s “Lover Lover Lover”, which takes on an entirely new set of implications when sung next to an altar.