I just got back from a rather excellent night watching Deerhoof down at the Scala. This was something of a new experience for me - though I know of the band, I honestly hadn't listened to much of their stuff - the little I'd listened to seemed cool, but I couldn't name more than a handful on songs. Anywho, I was searching for something to cheer myself up, and it seemed like a fun way to pass and evening - turns out I was totally correct! So, I'm gonna try and say some stuff about what I just heard - though it's gonna be a trifle light on details, given my general unfamiliarity with the band...
Fronted by the truly miniscule vocalist/bassist Satomi Matsuzaki, Deerhoof are rather an odd mashup of various different generes. Listening to them tonight, I heard pop, heavy rock, a touch of metal, free improv jazz, and even blues rock a la the Rolling Stones. So yeah, pretty much everything you can think of rolled into one. And you know what, it works! It admittedly took a little while to get into the swing of things - they have an extremely choppy style of playing, with very little structure to the songs - tunes can go from quiet and melodic one moment to completely over the top blasting rock the next with nary a warning. It makes listening to them highly disconcerting - you're never entirely sure where songs are going to go next - whether they are going to bring in some sort of chorus, or wander off into a bass-led jam for a few minutes.
But after a few songs I just switched the analytical bit of my brain off, and just went with the flow, and it was awesome! There is a real disarming charm about the whole band - though the lead singer seems rather sombre and serious, it's hard to take anyone seriously when they're singing about sunflowers or pandas, or pretending her bass (using a Hofner Violin "Beatle" bass - always a bonus!) is an aeroplane! The whole band had a rather fantastic stage presence - whether they were going mental with instruments, climbing the scaffolding or just raising guitar feedback to an artform!
It would be terribly remiss of me not to mention the drummer. Simply put, he is one of the most orgasmic drummers I've even seen play. Seriously - he has a love for the drums that's probably illegal in most US states! Dude spent the entire time laying into his kit with a massive half-crazed grin on his face, coordinating the time and key changes with dramatic flourishes that required one arse-load of a lot of skill. He was great fun to watch, and seemed to be the driving force behind the band - he did most of the talking between songs, and you got the feeling that even though Matsuzaki was up front, he was the real power behind the band.
If it seems like I've been hazy on the actual songs themselves, it's cause they seemed less seperate songs, and more segments for the band to jam through. Even the singing was not really distinct in any way - apart from the occasional moment of clarity, Matsuzaki uses her voice mainly as another instrument to the noise, making high-pitched beeps or single-phrase repetition to add texture to the rest of the band. Generally though, they were a fantasic band to see live, and one I'd recommend if you get the chance. Just turn your brain off, kick back and enjoy the noise!
J
p.s - if you were wondering where in the world the title comes from, it's taken from one of their songs - I'll throw a linkie-type thing up here...
Panda!
it's actually a pretty good example of their songs - disjointed segments, silly lyrics and awesome spazz-out drumming!
p.p.s - special props to the support act, a french band called 'Anabel's Poppy Day', who had some rather fun wierdo pop, which I had a blast with, despite the lead singer sounding like Betty Boop with a very bad headcold!
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