Ra Ra Riot
February 27th at the Independent

Ra Ra Riot was one of the first shows to sell out for Noise Pop this year, so while I anticipated a packed venue, I didn’t expect the Independent to reach capacity by 9pm, when I showed up to check out Telekinesis, Merge’s newest signing. Alas, I was forced to listen from the sidewalk outside while I awaited my entrance, so I pretty much missed their entire set, finally entering the venue during their last song. Bummer! Next up was Cut Off Your Hands, one of those acts I wasn’t too excited about upon listening to their album, but I figured they’d probably translate better in a live capacity. I’ll let you read up on Jocelyn’s take on their set below… if nothing else, it was pretty entertaining. Anyway, Ra Ra Riot is a band I’ve had my eyes on for a few years now, first catching them play before maybe a dozen people during a day party down at SXSW. At that early juncture, you could tell the kids had talent. And after the tragic, untimely death of drummer John Pike in June of 2007, the release of a well-received EP in July of ’07, and an even better received full-length in the summer of ’08, the six-piece has continued to surpass those inaugural expectations that were put upon them. Ra Ra Riot exudes an energy and kinship that is usually most transparent during the young and eager years of a band, as they share in an intoxicating optimism, collectively taking on all the joys and benefits wrought on that wave of possibility. They are a cohesive bunch, evident in their chemistry and how they work the stage, and after nailing their performance on Friday night, they all hugged and embraced one another, leaving behind an exuberant and impressed audience of Noise Poppers. The hype, be what it may, is fulfilled by them time and again, as they find their footing and secure a moment on the indie scene. Playing such favorites off their full-length such as “Dying is Fine” and “Can You Tell”, it’s under the vigor and leadership of vocalist/multi instrumentalist Wesley Miles that the rest of Ra Ra Riot falls. Accolades about for Ra Ra Riot, and I only hope they continue to make waves throughout the year and as they grow and further refine their sound. I do believe they have it in them. – Angela Zimmerman

Watch: Entire Ra Ra Riot set [at youtube.com]

Cut Off Your Hands
February 27th at the Independent

Aside from having a terribly emo name that is just bad advice all around, I had no other expectations of Cut Off Your Hands. Reading up on them now, I see that they were originally called Shaky Hands, but had to change their name due to the Shaky Hands of Portland, Oregon. I guess that’s a kind of punk rock name change, but not something most people are likely going to go to such lengths to figure out and appreciate, so unfortunately for them it’s just kinda stupid too. Previous to the show, I heard from one person that they were good, and I heard from another person that they were not so good. Turns out, they were somewhere in between, a band with a decent set of skills but lacking in good indie taste. This is melodic pop for the most part, and while it isn’t my cup of tea, I can see how 13-year-old girls might think they are the most. The crowded audience at this particular Noise Pop show, though, was largely comprised of folks getting there early to have a few drinks before Ra Ra Riot took to the stage, and they were a tough one. When Cut Off Your Hands’ lead vocalist Nick Johnston brashly stage dove into the crowd during the band’s second song (uh, clearly we haven’t even warmed up to them yet, what was he thinking?), a few confused showgoers either covered themselves from being hit by a flailing appendage or took one step back, just enough for Johnston to land flat on the ground, taking more than a few seconds to return to a standing position. Those surrounding him either winced or faked a lending hand. I watched this all from the balcony as I gasped with my hand up to my mouth because holy shit that was awesome, and then realized that everyone around me could’ve cared less. What will entertain these people if not that? Sheesh. But that alone did not deter this earnest band from New Zealand. No, not at all. In fact, Johnston did it a few more times, still with no one catching him, and even kept commenting that it’s okay if none of us liked them. Again, I want to say that’s all actually pretty punk rock of him, but upon further consideration, it’s also just kinda stupid. These antics probably hurt a lot (both physically and emotionally) and it didn’t win anyone over really. It must be said, however, that there was a decent rocker thrown in at the end that I found redeemable… hopefully a sign of where they are going instead of where they are leaving. – Jocelyn Hoppa

Listen: Various Tracks [at myspace.com]

St. Vincent, Cryptacize, Rafter
February 27th at Great American Music Hall

It was an evening of moody, experimental pop at the Great American Music Hall, where following a set by the two-piece Rafter, the electro-pop brainchild of San Diego producer and ad jingle-writer Rafter Roberts, Cryptacize took the stage. There was a time when Cryptacize guitarist Chris Cohen, formerly of Deerhoof and the Curtains, and singer Nedelle Torrisi, who’s released a couple of great records as “Nedelle”, would trade off and ride tandem on vocals, but now Torrisi takes care of all the singing. You can sometimes tell that Cohen played guitar in Deerhoof, but his ringing style is more measured for Cryptacize (and in the Curtains, for that matter). Compared to her rather jazzy solo records, Torrisi’s vocals have a much sunnier disposition in this band, whose set drew from both Dig That Treasure and their new, upcoming album, Mythomania, set to be released in April. Some of the songs were recognizable from their recent session for Daytrotter, including the galloping “New Spell” and “Tail and Mane”, an “upbeat dance number” boding quite well for the LP. Overall, quite a nice set from these Oakland folks.

St. Vincent’s set, though also driven by a jazzy female voice (real name: Annie Clark), was a much different affair. Comfortably alone on stage throughout the set, she mostly shifted between acoustic and electric guitar alongside pre-programmed beats, sometimes dance-y, which she triggered with a drumstick. In the case of “Jesus Saves, I Spend”, the ‘bum-bum-bum’ backup vocals were cued up electronically as a bed for her formidable voice. In her audience banter, which was frequently directed towards appeasing an obnoxious male heckler towards the front, she made mention of how taken aback she was at the audience’s enthusiasm—it was definitely a sizeable crowd, and the balcony’s banisters were filled elbow-to-elbow. She lamentably only stepped behind her silver streamer-covered piano for one song, but it was a good one! Alternating between two microphones when playing guitar, her voice took on an old-timey radio quality through the alternate mic on her right side, allowing for an occasional dialogue between two vintage-sounding singing voices. Her main set, which included her signature cover of the Beatles’ “Dig a Pony”, ended with a great cover of Nico’s “These Days”, a tune for which she more than did justice. – Michael Harkin

Listen: St. Vincent, Various Tracks [at myspace.com]

AC Newman, Dent May and His Magnificent Ukulele
February 28th at the Independent

The bespectacled and deeply charming Dent May seemed just the slightest bit green to the West Coast, greeting the audience with an earnest “Thanks, y’all!” between his tunes. No matter, however—the Mississippi-based singer, his ukulele, and his three-piece backing band undoubtedly had everyone’s attention. His music, though driven by a uke, feels inspired by the classic harmonies of Beach Boys and doo-wop, bearing a resemblance to the Magnetic Fields’ lighter moments as well as the music of the equally endearing Jens Lekman over in Sweden. With his two backup-singing bandmates, May sang truthful words in the upbeat, hilarious “You Can’t Force a Dance Party”, and did a wonderful cover of Prince’s “When You Were Mine.” He’s a terrific singer, and everyone seemed fixed to wherever they were standing—this was real enchanting!

For his first solo appearance in San Francisco in over four years, Carl “AC” Newman and band put on a terrific production as expected. Opening with “There are Maybe Ten or Twelve”, the opener on Get Guilty, Newman and band—featuring bass guitar, violin, keyboards, trumpet, melodica, and Jon Wurster of Superchunk on the drums—played a set for just over an hour that drew primarily from the newest album. The record may be a bit darker than its predecessor, 2004’s The Slow Wonder, but everything translated with a life-affirming bombast given his tight, propulsive backing band. Newman mentioned that he used to live in the Independent’s neighborhood, telling a grisly anecdote about someone who drove slowly into a telephone pole after being shot, but somehow survived the ordeal. “I guess it’s a happy story after all,” he chuckled. The set’s highlights were most definitely a “happy story”—“The Palace at 4 A.M.” and “Submarines of Stockholm” stood out as some of Newman’s best pop yet, and “Miracle Drug” and “On the Table” from his debut both made glowing appearances in the set. For the encore, the violin came especially in handy for the hook in the explosively exuberant “The Town Halo”, which had the whole band singing in chorus. They concluded the set with their guitarist, who’d been sober for the
entire month of February, enjoying a single beer at midnight—a funny and rather modest act of self-sabotage before the band took a bow together. – MH

Listen: AC Newman, Various Tracks [at myspace.com]