I had a choice tonight to either see Clipse or Camera Obscura , two bands who had stellar releases in 2006, with lots of buzz surrounding them. I fully expected Clipse to sell out, but the days went by and it didn’t. Camera Obscura, however, did. And of course, being the contrary girl that I am, I suddenly really wanted to go. I managed to seek out an extra ticket and made my way to Williamsburg’s Warsaw, clad in jeans and my sweater with the strawberries on, at one with all the hipsters who were ready to be swathed in happy, twee pop sunshine.

Warsaw’s an interesting venue, if you’ve never been. It’s decorated for a prom moreso than a concert, with sparkly pink lights strung along the walls, and there’s no coat check but there is a stand in the side room where you can purchase pierogi and other Polish treats. My friends and I found a pretty good spot in the center of the room, and I stood with my Corona and bulky coat and scarf in my arms. This became somewhat of a problem later on, when the sold out crowd filtered in for the headliner and all extra breathing space was lost.

My decision to see The Fiery Furnaces at Northsix this past Friday evening was last-minute. I’d been waiting to see if any of my friends were going to show interest in attending with me and then suddenly it was sold out! And then I desperately wanted to go. Pam drove all the way up from Delaware to “ride the Blueberry Boat” with me and thanks to a lawyer-type Brooklynite with an extra pair of tickets, we were in the door and among the likes of famous indie rock types to see Eleanor and her brother Matt kick out the jams to a psyched and supportive hometown crowd.

We missed the opening bands for the chance to mix with the hipsters on Bedford Avenue in Williamsburg and check out a Polish-American diner. Good chicken soup. At Northsix, the front entrance was jammed with people trying to fight their way onto the guestlist, but we eventually found our way through the crowd and even managed to snag a pair of beers on our way to the front. We got fairly close, though we ended up right in front of the speakers. I’d seen a sign by the bar advertising earplugs with an illustration of a bleeding ear, and eventually came to understand the deeper meaning of said message. Ouch. But it wasn’t loud beyond belief, which was a welcome change from most shows these days; just pretty loud. And noisy and raucous and fun and schizophrenic, as The Fiery Furnaces always are.