A couple of months back I went to the Vogue to see locals C’est La Mort play their own brilliant brand of trance/shoegaze. Luckily, I went early and caught the opening band which really knocked my eardrums around.  The band was Love in the Shadows.  This three piece makes me believe that local bands can actually pay homage to English bands without sound hackneyed.  I mean just look at the slew of Seattle bands (or national acts for that matter) that water down the likes of PIL or Joy Division!  But not Love in the Shadows, they have a snake-charmer’s gaze set on beautiful, dark drones that transports us back 25 years, yet looks to the future.  Listen to the damn guitars for chrissakes!  They have so much delay and so many effects on them that they sound just like an analogue synthesizer!

After their show, one of the Love in the Shadow’s member personally handed out copies of their demo.  I got my hands on one of these handmade gems.  Included on this demo are tracks called “Pop Song” and “As It Was” which remind me a bit of the bleak, early 80’s Brit band The Sound (check out The Sound’s 1980 release Jeopardy if you want some more pre-goth drone).  But I digress.

Keep an eye out for these fellas!  Their melodies are a bit monotone and droney, so if you have a short attention span may I suggest you go out and buy a Coldplay album.  But for the rest of us who truly cherish the slow dirges of a post-goth ensemble, Love in the Shadows will be your cup of strychnine. Contact the band to get a copy of their somber 4 song demo today!

go out and support a local group at bumbershoot!

What a strange and great show. Radio Birdman has a new album. How strange is that? I mean, it’s all the rage for oldies to come out a rock, but wow! This is a band that started in 1974 and was scary and cool as all get-out. Here’s hoping they sound as good in their later years as fellow oldsters Mission of Burma.

The A Frames are a good match, but the Cops seem a bit too good natured and earnest. All the same, it should make for an exciting night of rock at a club that seems to have trouble putting together much of interest these days.

It was the first day under new management over at The Comet Tavern this past weekend, officially labeled as their Grand Re-opening Party. 5 bands, one evening, for 0 cashola, can’t beat that. But I didn’t really come to see those 4 other bands or even to celebrate the whole new management deal. The Limbs were billed to open, and that was incentive enough to get my hung over booty to the show.

The Limbs are one of those bands that are few and far in between in this city. Their sound is raw, and at times, reminiscent of late 1970’s Manchester bands. The 3 piece kicked off their 9 song set with drummer Mike Peter announcing “We’re The Limbs, and we’re here to play some spaz rock”, a term they often use to describe their music. Which is in fact the best way to describe these guys, considering that spastic refers to someone who is awkward/eccentric. Matt Hanrahan, lead vocalist and guitarist, sings in a way I can only describe as a prepubescent school yard bully yelling at the kid with the stuttering problem to speak up! His screechy and shaky voice, which kind of sounds like a cross between Frank Black and Jack White, often breaks, counteracting with the solid musical foundation of The Limbs songs, and it works well together. A definite driving force within the band’s songs can be credited to the bass stylings of Tyler Jensen.

Their 4th song in, entitled “Five-Four”, which is on the bands 4 song demo, is by far one of their most pop-friendly songs, with bass nicely complimenting a catchy, melodic progression on guitar. The song ends on a fierce, lengthy drum roll by Mike Peter, putting the boo in booyah! “Fascinating Recreation” also off their demo, is a bit more lazy and sweeter than the rest of The Limbs songs, a refreshing little change up, and testament that this band can cover lots of different ground. “all day long (the doggie gone)”, their final song of the night, has Matt Hanrahan and Tyler Jensen both doing call-and-response type vocals along to a bouncy rhythm section that just plain rocks.

The Limbs demo, “Former Energy Giant”, can be purchased at their shows. Spaz-tastic!

with:
TERRENE, SEA.MINE, JIM BASNIGHT BAND, TRANQUILLA, EASTERLY, THE GLASSES, PHAMOUS PHACES, JIMM MCIVER

TRUE WEST, DON DIXON, THE WINDBREAKERS, TIM LEE, THE QUAGS, GIRLS SAY YES, JETT CITY, CRACK CITY ROCKERS

THE TRIPWIRES, SGT. MAJOR,
GARY REYNOLDS & THE BRIDES OF OBSCURITY, MY BRAVE FACE, JON AUER, TINY VOLCANO (feat. VANILLA), THE CRAZE, THE CAPILLARIES

Comet Tavern
922 E. Pike St., Seattle

THE SNAKEBITES, LUND BROS.,
TWINK THE WONDER KID, THE STERLING LOONS, YOUNG SPORTSMEN, DOLL TEST, THE CHEATS, THE SMALL CHANGE