Jan
29
29
The Birthday Massacre in Washington, DC
Monday night is usually not the best night to hold a concert, especially in a city like Washington, DC. Never mind the fact that people are returning to the weekly grind of work after the weekend, but in a city wrought with young people out to have a good time, suffice to say that Monday night is, quite simply, a school night. Nonetheless, The Black Cat on 14th street in DC was the place to be as the Canadian sextet The Birthday Massacre put on a performance alongside LA's Creature Feature and Seattle's Schoolyard Heroes. With all three bands performing their own styles of rock and roll with horrific lyrical and visual undertones, the youth of DC were in for quite a treat... well, almost...
To comply with the Monday night curfew, Creature Feature took the stage rather quickly after doors opened at 7:30 pm. The duo of guitarist/vocalist Curtis Rx and keyboardist Erik X were joined by a live drummer, adding a powerful dynamic to their entertaining - if somewhat cliché - style of death rock. With hints of rockabilly and vaudeville driven by post-punk energy, and songs about zombies and ghouls befitting both the classic monster movies of old and episodes of Scooby-Doo, the trio display a wonderful sense of theatricality, humor, and musicianship, with Curtis playing his spooky solos with a precision that spoke volumes of his skills as a guitarist, while sacrificing none of the raw punk energy as he threw himself back and forth, left and right, keeping the attention and adulation of the audience. Erik's synth bass lines and accompaniment of samples added to the music, giving it the impression of the classic goth rock trio with just a few atmospheric touches to give it more depth than the average knockoff of Christian Death or The Cure circa Three Imaginary Boys. As it was still early in the evening, the full attendance had not reached the club's capacity, but those fortunate enough to see the opening band showed great enthusiasm for Creature Feature's performance.
Schoolyard Heroes followed in somewhat less intriguing fashion; not that the band doesn't possess a certain amount of talent, particularly in the way of guitarist Steve Bonnell's fret-tapping bravado, which did sometimes seem to clash with his clear-acrylic guitar and his immense afro for attention. With an overall tight-knit synergy among the band members as a whole, one gets the sense that the band tries too hard to garner a reaction. Bassist and backup vocalist Jonah Bergman's attempts to elicit a crowd reaction in his gratuitously boisterous and loud introductions of the songs at one point drove someone in the audience to shout something along the lines of "Less talk, more play!" Not that Bergman spoke excessively... although his explanation of the song "Cemetery Girls," about a future in which only women are left after the apocalypse, did slow the proceedings down a bit, but his penchant for shouting the song names in such a manner that they were nearly unintelligible proved most annoying. Vocalist Ryann Donnelly held her own, jumping around the stage and flailing about, at one point even - accidentally - hitting Bergman in the eye with the microphone. Alas, poor drummer Brian Turner was virtually invisible behind his kit and with three exuberant characters in the front. Still, like Creature Feature, Schoolyard Heroes displayed a punk rock energy that has no doubt benefited them in the past, but given their indie rock fashion style, as well as also having songs in the same zombified vein as the opening band, they somehow seemed out of place this night.
Finally, The Birthday Massacre took the stage, blasting out their powerful and unique mix of gothic atmospheres and melodic hooks to a crowd all too happy to express their joy. Playing such favorites as "Horror Show," "Video Kid," "Violet," "Blue," and "Happy Birthday," the band played a wonderfully varied set that included a great number of songs from their latest effort Walking with Strangers, including "Kill the Lights," "Red Stars," "Falling Down," and "Weekend." From Owen's twinkling keyboard lines, to the interplay between lead guitarist Michael Falcore's conservative but shimmering solos and rhythm guitarist Rainbow's crunchy yet ambient power chords, to O.E.'s thunderous bass lines and harmonious backup vocals, and Rhim's rhythmic prowess behind the drum kit, The Birthday Massacre demonstrate a clean sense of precision as unit, never missing a beat or a single note. While each band member did well to hold the audience's attention, particularly Rainbow with his running about the stage and unique hair-and-makeup looking like he would fit in perfectly in Marilyn Manson, Chibi's enthused performance invariably took center stage. The sprightly lead singer's interaction with the crowd in such an intimate venue always did well to garner a high amount of cheers, while her bright and upbeat performance, complete with a variety of quirky facial expressions, contrasted with her gothic appearance, right down to her garb of a black-and-white polka-dotted house dress. With a slight helping of live effects in certain songs, such as a bit of distortion to aid in the malevolent choruses of "Blue," Chibi's live vocals exuded as much electricity as they do on record. As The Birthday Massacre have opened for a number of higher profile bands in the past such as KMFDM and Orgy, they showed this night that they can headline with the best of them.
As it was only minutes after 11:00 pm when the performance had ended, drawing the night to so early a close was rather unfortunate, if understandable given the Monday night curfew. However, to see three energetic and dynamic bands giving their all to entertain the audience is always something to behold. While Creature Feature and Schoolyard Heroes are steadily building their fan base and honing their skills in fine form, The Birthday Massacre make good on their ever-growing status as one of today's most exciting and talented bands.
To comply with the Monday night curfew, Creature Feature took the stage rather quickly after doors opened at 7:30 pm. The duo of guitarist/vocalist Curtis Rx and keyboardist Erik X were joined by a live drummer, adding a powerful dynamic to their entertaining - if somewhat cliché - style of death rock. With hints of rockabilly and vaudeville driven by post-punk energy, and songs about zombies and ghouls befitting both the classic monster movies of old and episodes of Scooby-Doo, the trio display a wonderful sense of theatricality, humor, and musicianship, with Curtis playing his spooky solos with a precision that spoke volumes of his skills as a guitarist, while sacrificing none of the raw punk energy as he threw himself back and forth, left and right, keeping the attention and adulation of the audience. Erik's synth bass lines and accompaniment of samples added to the music, giving it the impression of the classic goth rock trio with just a few atmospheric touches to give it more depth than the average knockoff of Christian Death or The Cure circa Three Imaginary Boys. As it was still early in the evening, the full attendance had not reached the club's capacity, but those fortunate enough to see the opening band showed great enthusiasm for Creature Feature's performance.
Schoolyard Heroes followed in somewhat less intriguing fashion; not that the band doesn't possess a certain amount of talent, particularly in the way of guitarist Steve Bonnell's fret-tapping bravado, which did sometimes seem to clash with his clear-acrylic guitar and his immense afro for attention. With an overall tight-knit synergy among the band members as a whole, one gets the sense that the band tries too hard to garner a reaction. Bassist and backup vocalist Jonah Bergman's attempts to elicit a crowd reaction in his gratuitously boisterous and loud introductions of the songs at one point drove someone in the audience to shout something along the lines of "Less talk, more play!" Not that Bergman spoke excessively... although his explanation of the song "Cemetery Girls," about a future in which only women are left after the apocalypse, did slow the proceedings down a bit, but his penchant for shouting the song names in such a manner that they were nearly unintelligible proved most annoying. Vocalist Ryann Donnelly held her own, jumping around the stage and flailing about, at one point even - accidentally - hitting Bergman in the eye with the microphone. Alas, poor drummer Brian Turner was virtually invisible behind his kit and with three exuberant characters in the front. Still, like Creature Feature, Schoolyard Heroes displayed a punk rock energy that has no doubt benefited them in the past, but given their indie rock fashion style, as well as also having songs in the same zombified vein as the opening band, they somehow seemed out of place this night.
Finally, The Birthday Massacre took the stage, blasting out their powerful and unique mix of gothic atmospheres and melodic hooks to a crowd all too happy to express their joy. Playing such favorites as "Horror Show," "Video Kid," "Violet," "Blue," and "Happy Birthday," the band played a wonderfully varied set that included a great number of songs from their latest effort Walking with Strangers, including "Kill the Lights," "Red Stars," "Falling Down," and "Weekend." From Owen's twinkling keyboard lines, to the interplay between lead guitarist Michael Falcore's conservative but shimmering solos and rhythm guitarist Rainbow's crunchy yet ambient power chords, to O.E.'s thunderous bass lines and harmonious backup vocals, and Rhim's rhythmic prowess behind the drum kit, The Birthday Massacre demonstrate a clean sense of precision as unit, never missing a beat or a single note. While each band member did well to hold the audience's attention, particularly Rainbow with his running about the stage and unique hair-and-makeup looking like he would fit in perfectly in Marilyn Manson, Chibi's enthused performance invariably took center stage. The sprightly lead singer's interaction with the crowd in such an intimate venue always did well to garner a high amount of cheers, while her bright and upbeat performance, complete with a variety of quirky facial expressions, contrasted with her gothic appearance, right down to her garb of a black-and-white polka-dotted house dress. With a slight helping of live effects in certain songs, such as a bit of distortion to aid in the malevolent choruses of "Blue," Chibi's live vocals exuded as much electricity as they do on record. As The Birthday Massacre have opened for a number of higher profile bands in the past such as KMFDM and Orgy, they showed this night that they can headline with the best of them.
As it was only minutes after 11:00 pm when the performance had ended, drawing the night to so early a close was rather unfortunate, if understandable given the Monday night curfew. However, to see three energetic and dynamic bands giving their all to entertain the audience is always something to behold. While Creature Feature and Schoolyard Heroes are steadily building their fan base and honing their skills in fine form, The Birthday Massacre make good on their ever-growing status as one of today's most exciting and talented bands.
The Birthday Massacre, Washington, D.C., January 21, 2008
Schoolyard Heroes, Washington, D.C., January 21, 2008
Creature Feature, Washington, D.C., January 21, 2008
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