The Cribs / Adam Green / The Dead Trees @ The Phoenix

I'm not much of a celebrity stalker type of guy and I'm definitely not the type of person who dishes out cash to see someone just because I think he's cool. But there are always exceptions to the rule and Johnny Marr is one of those exceptions. The dude gets around and when I heard that his latest band of entry was U.K.'s The Cribs, and that said band would be at The Phoenix this month, I have to admit that I turned into a bit of a fangirl and scooped me up some tickets right away. The opportunity to see the epitome of cool at such a (relatively) intimate venue was just too tempting to pass up.

Before I could gaze longingly at Marr however, there were a couple of openers to get through and the first one wasn't half bad. The Dead Trees are a rock 'n roll band from Portland, Oregon who released their first EP independently before signing to Milan Records for the release of their upcoming full length that will be entitled King Of Rosa. Their simple yet hooky mixture of jangle pop and alt-country is sure to call to mind any one of a slew of early 90's references, from Teenage Fanclub to The Lemonheads and although the sound is far from innovative, it's still rather enjoyable. It was refreshing to see a band that seems completely devoid of gimmicks and flash and still, some very tight musicianship made their sound rather exciting.

Photos: My pics of The Dead Trees @ The Phoenix are on flickr
Myspace: The Dead Trees
Download: Shelter mp3

From the gimmick-less to a man that oozes gimmickry, former Moldy Peach Adam Green is a guy who has managed to create a name for himself based on his spasmodic live persona. Is he crazy? Yes. Energetic? Definitely. Hilarious? For sure. Particularly good? erm....

For a brief moment when The Dead Trees took to the stage again, I wondered if perhaps Green was held up at the border and we were going to be treated to a second set. It became apparent rather quickly though that they were simply acting as his backup band for the night when suddenly out of nowhere Green bounded onto that stage with unbridled energy looking like a poorly drawn caricature of Julian Casablancas whilst ripping off every embarrassing dance move that Adam Ant had unfortunately subjected the world to during 1985's Live Aid. As he strutted across the stage decked out in tight jeans and a leather jacket that revealed just a little more midriff than I was personally comfortable with, it was hard not to laugh at his shtick, and perhaps that was what he was going for. The crowd seemed to be eating it up, and he was likewise feeding off of it also, as he jumped into the crowd for a couple of songs, attempting a good old fashioned surf and sing. The songs were the basic nonsensical slices of novelty that he has become known for, and if you are a fan, than you no doubt had a good time. Me? Not so much.

Photos: My pics of Adam Green @ The Phoenix are on flickr
Myspace: Adam Green
Download: Morning After Midnight mp3

And then came The Cribs. When the three piece version of the band emerged onto the scene with their self-titled debut back in 2004, they instantly fell into the "like" but not "love" category for me. There was just such a massive invasion of like minded bands emerging from the U.K. at the time that they all sort of ran into each other for me, musically speaking. Also, they all seemed to follow a pattern of releasing a pretty solid debut, and then following it up with a slew of copycat albums that failed to rejuvenate any initial interest that I may have had, to the point that I would just generally grow indifferent by the third or fourth album. Now that having been said, The Cribs did seem to have a greater sense of melody than some of the others, and Hey Scenesters! from their second album The New Fellas is a rock anthem if I've ever heard one. And although I haven't listened to all of their current release yet, entitled Ignore The Ignorant, what I've heard is pretty solid. Still, I'm not too cool to admit that if not for the aforementioned Johnny Marr factor, I probably wouldn't have dished out the $19.50 to go and see them. Thankfully, it ended up being worth every penny.

When the band took to the stage, there was a definite aire of confidence that I have a feeling was there even before Marr joined the group. While it's true that his guitar work adds a certain level of atmosphere to their sound, I wouldn't say that he was the group's star by any means. What made their show so impressive was the fact that they really did work well together as one cohesive unit, with Gary and Ryan Jarmin taking turns as lead vocalists, and drummer Ross Jarmin busting out all of the usual rock drummer moves that we've come to expect from high energy rock bands such as theirs. Although it was those high energy numbers such as the newer We Were Aborted and Emasculate Me and of course the classic Hey Scenesters! that really got the crowd going, I was more taken by some of the artsier performances. One of those, for example, was Be Safe, a song from their 3rd album Men's Needs, Women's Needs, Whatever, which is basically a spoken word piece featuring Lee Ranaldo from Sonic Youth, who could be seen on a large projection screen behind the band, while they played the musical accompaniment. I also really enjoyed set closer City Of Bugs, which was an opportunity to showcase Marr's ringing guitar work, which really added a layer of depth that sounded hypnotic live. I also appreciate that the band went to the effort of making the last song count, so that there was no need to go through the cheesy ritual of soliciting cheers for an encore, which is something that I've grown admittedly weary of, and of which the band didn't bother doing.

The show really helped me to appreciate why the band is considered to be the U.K.'s biggest cult band as they displayed all of the energetic stage presence that has become synonymous with the music from that area, while maintaining a sense of melodious adventure that seems to be lacking amongst many of their contemporaries.

Photos: My pics of The Cribs @ The Phoenix are up on flickr
Myspace: The Cribs
Download: We Were Aborted mp3

The fact that the whole show was over by 11:45 would usually mean that I could graciously hit the hay at a relatively early hour, and enjoy the events of the following day completely free of the typical day-after-concert, non-alcoholic hangover. But I had made a promise to one of the most intriguing up and coming bands in the Toronto area that I wouldn't be missing their show if it was at all possible. So, this early end time meant that I had one more stop to make before turning in for the night.

...to be continued...

Modest Mouse - We Were Dead Before The Ship Even Sank

There has been an awful lot of anticipation over Modest Mouse’s new CD “We Were Dead Before The Ship Even Sank.” The reason of course is that indie rock legend and former Smiths guitarist Johnny Marr is now an official member of the band. When I first heard that, my feelings were mixed to say the least. The Smiths, of course, are one of my favourite bands of all time. Modest Mouse, on the other hand, I’ve never really understood. It’s not that I dislike them, it’s just that while many of my peers feel that they’re the saviors of indie rock, my feelings have always been more, well, modest. I do like a lot of their music, but they are flawed in many ways as far as I’m concerned. Still, I am mildly fond of the “The Moon And Antarctica”, and songs like “Space Travel Is Boring” are fantastic. But I never ever ever have to hear “Float On” again for as long as I live. So how do I feel about the new one?

It’s pretty good. The first song “March Into The Sea” is very energetic, and while Isaac Brock’s voice usually gives me a migraine, I actually found his maniacal cackle to be somewhat amusing on this one. Many people are referring to “Dashboard” as this album’s “Float On”, but I think “Dashboard” is a significantly stronger single. The tracks that appeal to me the most are “Spitting Venom” and “Parting Of The Sensory.” “Parting…” has James Mercer of The Shins lending his vocal talents, and “Spitting…” is classic epic MM, 8 minutes of fevered intensity. To be honest, I can’t say that I really hear Johnny Marr’s influence all that much on this album. In the past, I always thought that he had a very unique style to his playing, but this CD doesn’t sound all that different than MM’s past releases. I suppose it’s a little bit more upbeat than fans of the Mouse are accustomed to, and that may be a result of Marr’s influence. But overall, the things that I enjoy about MM are still there and the usual complaints are still there too. The CD’s way too long as usual and Brock’s voice does grate on me after awhile. However, the “it’s not you, it’s me” adage can certainly be applied to my relationship with this band. Regardless of my personal views, the talent they possess cannot be denied, and I think we’ll be seeing this album on many a “best of 2007” list come year-end.

Modest Mouse will be at the Hummingbird Centre on April 24^th.

Downloads:
March Into The Sea mp3
Dashboard mp3

Visit Modest Mouse on myspace.
Purchase “We Were Dead Before The Ship Even Sank” on Amazon.ca