Gotta to make this quick, my internets be down. The slightest hint of moisture in the air and Comcast goes nuts. It's friggin Comcastic!
Last night, U.K. scenesters Late of the Pier returned to New York after their must buzzed-about shows during CMJ. Truth be told, they had flown under my radar because on record, they sound way too programmed and over-produced. More of the same, 80s retread. After seeing them live, and the great deal of live instruments and keyboards they incorporate into their show, they really impressed me. Again, you really can't judge a band until you see them live.
Now, I'm thinking they take most of their inspiration from the punky side of Devo. Some of their tunes have a playful poppy edge that makes them a little more distinct for the massively influencial Klaxons, who have seem to spawn a big crop of U.K. sound alikes. For L.O.T.P., they just rangle in all those synths and guitars and make for one hell of performances -- it's controled chaos.
By comparison, the opening act The Whip, felt like they dragged on for about 50 minutes of their repetitiveness. Late of the Pier's set barely clocked in at 40 minutes. Their rousing finale where Samuel Eastgate crowds surfs while the rest of the members get wicked on stage was intense. Sam gets back on stage and announces, "That's it. Good night." They all run off the stage and he meant it. It didn't even feel that they were on that long, but they have great energy on stage without acting like maniacs. The crowd was heavy into them, plenty of kids smashing into each other.
I'm about 15 years too old to be into The Whip. Maybe if I was a 19-year with a fake ID and skipping my studies to go to the show, then maybe I would like them. It's formulaic dance music which wants to recreate the late 80s Manchester / Factory / 24-Hour Party People vibe. Most of it left me unresponsive. They have a few decent tracks that have a good, hard beat, but it's something that I can live without.
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