Fun.'s Some Nights

This article also appears on Ground Control.

If there’s any song that feels poised for “Pumped Up Kicks”-style ubiquity, that song would be Fun.’s “We Are Young.” The first single from the band’s new Some Nights album has already topped the Billboard charts, as a Glee cover, months before the album’s release, and has been inescapable thanks to its commercial use (in a Chevy Sonic ad). And, just like that aforementioned Foster The People track, it is impossibly, and somewhat maddeningly, catchy.

Some Nights as a whole is a bit difficult to categorize – the collection of songs includes upbeat harpsichord-backed tracks about loneliness and encouraging chants that have been excessively autotuned. However, the album may be a less diverse collection of songs than Fun.’s previous 2010 effort Aim and Ignite. Where that album felt like it might belong to the canon of emo bands like Panic! At The Disco (with whom Fun. toured in 2011), Some Nights seems like something that could more aptly be described as post-emo.

Of course Fun. doesn’t shed its emo aesthetic completely. The song “All Alright,” with its prominent drums and hyperbolic lamentation “I’ve got nothing left inside of my chest,” could belong in the My Chemical Romance catalogue. But most notably, the release of Some Nights has brought on Queen comparisons, largely due to Fun.’s operatic “Bohemian Rhapsody”-inspired intro track, and the chanted opening on track two, “Some Nights.” At the top of the titular song singer Nate Ruess adopts a vocal style reminiscent of Freddy Mercury on “Fat Bottomed Girls”—but if Ruess begins with deep, commanding vocals, he neglects to sustain them throughout the song and he finishes in autotune territory.

In general throughout the album, the heavy autotuning and vocoder-ed falsetto feel like unnecessary constructs, especially on songs like “It Gets Better,” where Ruess might as well be T-Pain. Autotuning can eliminate all of a singer’s personality, and in this case it seems to shortchange Ruess, who, as Fun.’s appearance on Conan can prove, does have a powerful voice. If anything, the autotuning only succeeds on the album’s final track, where there’s a Wallpaper-esque R&B vibe and the computerized vocals seem to be pushed into outer space.

Ruess (who bears a passing resemblance to the comedian John Mulaney), along with Andrew Dost and Jack Antonoff make up the New York band, and Fun. certainly seems to be on the verge of… something. In an age where Glee can make your song a hit before you have the chance to, who knows exactly what that something will be.

SXSW 2012 Dispatches: Sleigh Bells And Sunburns

Before noon on the streets surrounding West Sixth, eager St. Patrick’s Day partiers, in green and white knee socks, leprechaun hats, and green tutus paraded in and out of bars, fresh faced and full of the sort of enthusiasm for drinking that can never lead to anything bad, right? The crowd in the parking lot outside Waterloo was wearing about 50% less green and 100% less gold coin necklaces. We were waiting for Nada Surf, who, joined on guitar by Doug Gillard, played punchy new songs from their latest album, The Stars Are Indifferent To Astronomy. They played “Jules and Jim” and “Waiting For Something,” and the drummer was clearly having a great time, making faces and ultimately launching his drumsticks into the crowd.

Nada Surf - Waiting For Something by cityslang

A few blocks from Waterloo, in another parking lot, free margaritas were being handed out and hula hoops were passed around. And who can say no to a parking lot hula hoop party with a soundtrack provided by a band playing electronica covers of The Smiths? (Rhetorical device usage.)

Two miles away, on the other side of I-35, J. Roddy Walston was demolishing a piano, leaving the crowd worked up for Lucero. The combination of Ben Nichols’s beautifully gravelly voice, along with trumpet and piano made songs like “On My Way Downtown” and the melodic “Darken My Door” especially pop – even if Nichols claimed to have just woken up. For the record, it’s quite possible to get caught up watching a band and neglect to realize when one is getting terribly sunburned.

Lucero - On My Way Downtown by MMMusic

When the last night of South By happens to coincide with St. Patrick’s Day, it only makes sense to try to go to a place removed from the heart of Sixth Street where you have the best chance of sitting down. At ACL Live Brooklyn’s Sleigh Bells was backed by a wall of amps, sending the sound of their blaring guitars into the upper balconies and issuing pounding electronic pulses. It seemed that singer Alexis Krauss, clad in shorts, tennis shoes, and a ripped t-shirt, wanted nothing more than to get both in the crowd’s face and in the crowd. She prowled around the stage, issuing screams, reaching out for audience members, standing on the guardrails, and ultimately crowd-surfing atop the first couple of rows.

While her sojourns didn’t stop her from singing, including “Riot Rhythm,” “Infinity Guitars,” “Born To Lose,” and “Tell ‘Em,” the microphone cord constantly threatened to get hung up on something and nearly caught guitarist Derek Miller. The combination of intense lights, violent guitar, and aggressive vocals made the Sleigh Bells show feel like a full sensory assault – it seemed a bit like South By itself – engulfing and exhausting.

Now to treat this sunburn.

Born To Lose by Sleigh Bells

SXSW 2012 Dispatches: Kimbra, Magnetic Fields, And When To Go Home

When the breeze passed through the outdoor covered stage at the W Hotel yesterday afternoon it felt pretty idyllic. Despite the fact that there hadn’t been any set times announced for Nylon Magazine’s party, it was rumored that Kimbra would be playing at 2:30. The New Zealand pixie, who guests on Gotye’s “Somebody That I Used To Know,” quickly confirmed the rumor, taking the stage in a puffy pink and lace Disney princess-style dress. More than once during the set the dress threatened to fall off, as Kimbra shook her tambourine and danced enthusiastically. The drummer, with his awesome Kid ‘N Play-style flattop, pounded away and Kimbra smiled widely through “Cameo Lover” and “Two Way Street.” She was such an emotive and inventive singer, it was a shame it had to end.
Cameo Lover by Kimbra

Hours later, inside the W, at ACL Live, Philadelphia’s The War On Drugs unleashed their noisy guitars. While the vocals seemed muffled by choice, there’s something in the lead singer’s style that seems to want to echo Bob Dylan. Or perhaps it was the harmonica he pulled out during the closing number. Throughout the show I did not notice anyone using drugs, so I can only assume their message must be working.

It was far too comfortable in the padded seats at ACL Live to want to leave, and besides, who would want to miss The Magnetic Fields’ deadpan stage banter? With a piano, two guitars, a violin, and Stephin Merritt’s distinctive voice, the Magnetic Fields played a mix of old (“Come Back From San Francisco,” “The Book Of Love”) and brand new (“Your Girlfriend’s Face,” “Andrew In Drag”) songs, Merritt occasionally offering an insight like, “This is a song about a very famous hole in the ground,” before playing “Grand Canyon.” Like the Decembrists and Broken Social Scene, The Magnetic Fields have the great ability to tell whimsical stories through their songs, and having just released their 10th album, their stories are in no short supply.
The Magnetic Fields - Andrew in Drag by MergeRecords

Torn between setting up a permanent residence at ACL Live or venturing out, I chose to head to Easy Tiger. Here’s where I made a mistake – when I got to Easy Tiger, they were largely selling tickets for entry. The patio beneath their glorious bake shop was packed with folks who’d paid to get in, meaning they wouldn’t likely be leaving and weren’t here because they were fans of a particular band. The patio was packed with middle-aged women and flamboyant men bent on dancing now that they’d been filled with drinks and baked goods.

While Mexico’s Ximena Sarinana cranked out some great jazzy pop occasionally backed by computerized sounds, multiple women’s oversized purses locked me in place. When I finally got free, I made a break for it; the want to see Alabama Shakes eclipsed by the want to breathe freely. On the way out I passed the throng of badge-holders waiting to get in, including the comedians the Sklar brothers. Yep, I gave up my spot at a hot ticket show – you’re welcome Sklar brothers.

SXSW 2012 Dispatches: Worlds Of Synth

If there’s a secret place to enjoy day parties, it may be Red Eyed Fly. Two covered stages mean you don’t have to be out in the sun, and alternating set times let the music flow nearly continuously. Plus, it’s cool inside and not impossible to sit down. It’s the little things that count.

Yesterday on the back patio at Red Eyed Fly Brooklyn’s Savoir Adore moved from a cool dreampop opening to a snap-happy rhythm, topped with guy/girl vocals. They sounded a bit reminiscent of the San Francisco band Minipop, especially on “Loveliest Creature,” which found the crowd waving their arms from side to side and singing along.

Inside, the buzz-garnering Charli XCX was waiting for her keyboardist’s board to be fixed. If it’s easy to forget that the British singer is only 19, the two huge black Xs on her hands were a big reminder. That and the fact that it looked like she’d been styled by Ke$ha – wearing ripped black stockings and a mauve nylon and velour dress. She worked through a super-short set, including “Stay Away,” and “Nuclear Seasons,” ‘80s-inspired pop tracks with vocals that sometimes drifted into Shakira-sounding territory. It felt like a rare instance where the space was too intimate – there has to be some distance between the performer and the audience to really sell a sexy pop song.

CharliXCX - Nuclear Seasons by charlixcx

There’s nothing better to see than a band that’s enjoying getting to play together, and St. Lucia looked like they were having a great time. Playing synth-heavy tunes filled with themes of nostalgia and missed opportunities, St. Lucia sound something like the Naked and Famous by way of Yeasayer. They played “Closer Than This” and “Before The Dive,” but when they got around to closing with “The Old House Is Gone,” I couldn’t help but think they might switch it up half-way through and play Frankie Goes To Hollywood’s “Relax.” All that synth-y orchestration.

Closer Than This by St. Lucia

Not only are the four Canadian girls that make up Chic Gamine adorable, it’s hard to imagine an instrument that one of them doesn’t play. Throughout their set they punctuated four-part harmonies with drums, triangles, tambourines, cowbells, cabasas, and cymbals. A little gospel, a little soul, a little French, and a lot of percussion.

If the backyard at Beauty Bar had filled up for Com Truise, it filtered out a bit for Teengirl Fantasy, the remaining patrons likely staying to see Dan Deacon. Teengirl’s electronic stylings left something to be desired – I’d never seen someone actually yawn at an electronica show before. Of course that attitude did a 180 after Dan Deacon arrived, planting his characteristic green glowing skull in front of the stage and projecting flashing colors and images onto the side of the venue. The backyard became a jumping dance party, with Deacon clearing space for a rotating dance-off to occur, which happened nicely until someone mooned the crowd and it went back to being a jumbled mass of dancers. There’s one in every crowd.

SXSW 2012 Dispatches: Unexpected Soul

It sort of felt like kicking off the day by going back in time.

The lead singer, clad in a leather jacket, despite the near-80 degree heat, deepened his voice as he took the mic, almost like he was intentionally trying to sound like Dave Gahan of Depeche Mode. This was the Chain Gang Of 1974, who neither employs the musical styles of 1974 nor (to my knowledge) is a chain gang. At 2:30 on the Stage On Sixth, the band repeated the lyric, "can you feel it?" and the bass pounded in my chest. Yeah, I could feel it. Ripping through "Tell Me" and the '80s industrial-sounding "Undercover," the Chain Gang also took time out to dedicate a song to Molly Ringwald, saying, "if you're out there Molly Ringwald, this one's for you." The lead singer finally ditched his jacket and came out into the audience, working up the crowd on the Hot Chip-tinged electrodance track "Hold On."

Inside Hospitality was playing that sort of happy female-led rock reminiscent of Tennis, who'd be taking the stage just after them.

An hour and a half later, the inside of Mellow Johnny's bike shop was all set up for KEXP's radio broadcast of Allen Stone. By the looks of Stone -- shoulder-length blondish hair, big glasses, and earthy style of dress -- you'd almost expect him to play a set of folk-inspired indie rock. But don't judge a book by its cover, friends. Kicking off the set with "Sleep," the singer harnessed his soulful voice, launching into a terrific falsetto on "Contact High." If Stone's brand of soul belongs somewhere in the mix with Jamie Lidell and Aloe Blacc, he reserved the real funk (and a bit of whistling) for the closer, "Satisfaction."

Unaware by allenstone

The thing I actually was not expecting to see at the Last Call with Carson Daly-sponsored showcase at Red 7 Patio was Carson Daly. But after a schedule mishap, SF rockers Thee Oh Sees took the stage, and in their final song Daly joined them on drums. Well, he joined them as an additional drummer, trying to match the exhaustive energy of the band's regular drummer. Thee Oh Sees' energy throughout the set was powerful, eclipsing the fact that you couldn't understand the lyrics to any of their songs.

Some time after 11PM a trumpet and a saxophone were brought out, followed by backing band The Expressions, and finally Lee Fields. The Brooklyn soul singer, with his occasionally deep and guttural vocal phrasing can sound like James Brown, though he didn't fully demonstrate this until the closer "Faithful Man." What Fields has in vocal strength unfortunately isn't matched by songwriting. Songs like "I Still Got It" and "Ladies" just don't seem sophisticated enough for such a soulful voice. In the song "Ladies," Fields takes time to call out all the types of ladies he loves, "Short ones! Tall ones! Big ones! Small ones!" Lyrically, "Ladies" might as well be "Mambo Number 5."

Lee Fields & The Expressions - Ladies by sylvanscott

It was well after midnight and Colombia's Bomba Estereo was shaking up the place. Singer Liliana Saumet, in a shiny gold jacket, paced rapidly across the stage, repeating lyrics with a speed normally reserved for details at the end of cell phone service commercials. Once the band started a song it seemed impossible for them to stop, getting so caught up in their cumbia rhythms topped with CSS-style intensity. They only made it through three songs.

Sometimes you just can't stop.