| Klaxons @ Bowery Ballroom |
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| Written by Nicole Steinberg | |
| Wednesday, 11 April 2007 | |
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Oh, to be young again. Or rather, oh, to be young and never have experienced the first wave of rave. Not that rave was a bad thing. Way back in the '90s, it was exciting to cram into a warehouse with thousands of strangers, flip candy and spread the PLUR. Nu Rave (or whatever it's called) isn't exactly like that, and even though Klaxons say they want nothing to do with the "nu" genre, it didn't stop a bunch of 16 and 17-year olds from getting to the Bowery before doors and then parking in front of the stage, waving glowsticks around without the slightest air of irony. Oh, to be a musician from Brazil in 2007. No better time, considering that the Brazilian music scene is exploding, one of the frontrunners being Bonde Do Role. I feel like I heard a ton about them in 2006 and then they were quickly dethroned by CSS as the number one Brazilian group, thanks to a certain Lovefoxxx and her spandex-wearing, water-spitting, booty-shaking ways. I was excited to see how BDR would differ from CSS. Two outstanding differences: one laptop instead of multiple instruments, and complete and utter exuberance from all three members instead of one excitable frontwoman. Marina, Pedro and Gorky slamdanced their way through a really exhilarating set, and though it took a while for the crowd to warm up to them (one of the security guys could be seen laughing at the side of the stage when they started rapping in Portuguese), everyone embraced them after a few kickass songs. They brought people on stage to dance, played keepaway with Gorky's sneaker, sampled oddball tracks like "Summer Lovin'" from Grease and carried each other on their backs while singing. It had me thinking that when indie rock became popular after rave died, it was universally cool for bands to stand like statues on stage. It's nice to see bands having fun with their music and their audience. Very genuine, like. After they were done, the area around me was filled out by music blogger types (I think Stereogum was behind me, actually), so I felt a little less old and decrepit. And oh, to be NME's favorite band! This wasn't Klaxons' first NYC show, but it was arguably the first one where everyone knew who they were and wanted to witness the spectacle for themselves. Much like the way I had expected Myths of the Near Future to be a lot better than it turned out to be (though it's a very good album, don't get me wrong), I'd expected their live show to be a lot crazier than it was. The teens by the front of the stage definitely kept a dance party vibe going for the entire show, but I think I was expecting beer spitting and stage-diving. None of that, though Jamie did get especially sweaty and Simon seemed especially out of it, the latter fellow stumbling around the stage and constantly kicking plugs out of their sockets (eventually, their roadie had to secure one plug with electrical tape). James seemed fine and wee, and their drummer, Steffan, bears a strong resemblance to Martin Gore. The set was good, though there was no encore, and they seemed to hit a great climax somewhere between the middle and end of the set before sort of fizzling out. "The Bouncer" was an amazing opener ("YOU'RE NOT ON THE LIST, YOU'RE NOT COMING IN!" *cue guitar rippage*). I felt really great after "Magick," which was definitely the showstopper of the evening, and the song they do best live. Then by the time they finished "Four Horsemen of 2012," everyone seemed to be less excited. Songs like "Atlantis to Interzone" and "Golden Skans" didn't exactly meet my expectations, whereas "Totem on the Timeline" exceeded them. Maybe I was blue because I knew by looking at the setlist that there wouldn't be an encore; they basically played all of their material. EXCEPT "Forgotten Worlds," which is one of the best songs on their album! What's up with that, Klaxons? The setlist, as I remember it: The Bouncer / Atlantis to Interzone / Hall of Records / Totem on the Timeline / Golden Skans / As Above, So Below / Two Receivers / Magick / Gravity's Rainbow / It's Not Over Yet / Isle of Her / Four Horsemen of 2012 I resisted buying one of the "Klaxons Are Kunts" t-shirts, mainly because they looked like they'd been drawn with magic marker and yet cost $20 a pop. I let the glowstick girls handle the consumerism this time. My one mistake? Thinking I wouldn't be at the front and therefore, not bringing a camera. Maybe next time. |
