REVIEW: Nada Surf @ The 9:30 Club, Washington D.C., 4/10/12

When I headed to D.C. on Tuesday evening to catch Nada Surf at the 9:30 Club, I knew what I was in for. The show marked my fourth time seeing the New York band -- and the third time seeing them at this particular venue. The last time they performed in the area (at the 9:30 Club), they had Calexico's Martin Wenk and Guided by Voices' Doug Gillard supporting them onstage, but Tuesday night's show was the first time Nada Surf were truly performing as a full five-piece band. And while the core trio of Matthew Caws, Daniel Lorca, and Ira Elliot have always sounded bigger than three guys, Nada Surf sounded even more muscular and sonically rich Tuesday night thanks to the increased presence of Wenk and Gillard. I might have gone in knowing what I was in for, but I came out with more than I expected.

Giving Respect Where it's Due

Dan Deacon has come a long long way.

People definitely still live and perform in the Copy Cat, and while there have been Deacon sitings in and around Wham City performances, those of you waiting in line for him to start picking up regular gigs at Floristree (hopefully there aren't many of you) can probably find a better hobby.

Since the release of Spiderman of the Rings, Dan Deacon and that Green Skull of his have tornado-ed around the country, touring at first with Gregg Gillis and Girl talk and then headlining his own shows for nearly the past two years. It was on the road that Deacon really snowballed into something bigger than anyone ever expected. It was his approach to a show: playing on the floor, making it a necessity that everyone in attendence was having a good time and dancing, playing through sickness night after night, always bringing his energy....who could resist such a dance party? It happened in basements, it happened in dirty little venues in Baltimore and Brooklyn.

Now, with the release of Bromst to critical acclaim, its happening in some of the country's most recognized and legendary venues. Case and point, Washington D.C.'s 930 club. NPR was there to drop this crazy time-lapse video on you. The guy who writes the blog post for NPR was probably slobbering all over his keyboard when he wrote it, but I'd like to take a few words to voice some criticms.

First of all, and Dan, I know you're out there and this is no shot to you, we should all think about what has changed in his touring syle and what made him. Deacon has to play on stage now, the venues are too big and he might even be made to do so. I'd call that a negative. Also, Bromst, while compositionally beautiful, lacks that homeade quality that drew so many indie-underworld-scraping music/art/hipster freaks to Spiderman. He's got a 15-piece band, and that's cool, but to me, the Crystal Cat just isn't the same that way.

Again, this is not to discredit what seems like a much-needed and natural progression for Deacon with all this fame being thrown out at him. I would just be the lone critic here voicing a little apprehension as Deacon embraces his degree in musical composition by taking on a band which will make the creation of his ideas a bit more human and subject to mistakes. I'm not usually one to advocate for the computer, but in this case, it was working for me.

Pick Your Battles

When I started reviewing shows on my own (and eventually for Boosh), I found that I'd always look for the dig, but here, we'll try something a bit greener: the stab and fix.

Stab: Cut Copy's songs sound very fucking similar.

Fix: Despite the similarilities in melody, tonality, and arrangement from song to song during Cut Copy's set at the 930 last night, the band deserves a hefty amount of praise. First of all, they sold out the venue. Second of all, they sold out last time they visted the legendary DC venue. The truth about Cut Copy's show is that this band is about entertainment, mostly in the form of pleasing sounds, stunning visuals, and a unique sense of modesty.

Songs from the critically gossipped and famed In Ghost Colours stuck out from the Aussie band's set, highlighted by colorfully astounding renditions of dance hits "Out There on the Ice" and "Lights and Music." 

Onstage, the band proved that a year or more of touring has given them exact and complete control over their songs. They performed at ease with each phrase and cadence, occaisionally breaking into dancing/thrashing and executed their transitions without flaws. 

Props should also go out to whoever at Modular hooked the band up with newest Brooklyn-breakout duo Matt and Kim. Playing to a sold out 930 club is a new thing for this light-hearted band, which had the benefit of an hour-long DJ set to warm up the crowd as everyone filtered in. Matt informed us that Monday night wasn't just special because of the crowd, or the tour, but because Kim had had herself some hard alcohol, and we were supposedly subject to her first two "stages of drunk." First was extremely happy Kim, closely followed by crazy dancing Kim, and then we were told that the 3rd stage was neither one we would witness or want to if we could. Despite some tactical flaws in tempo, Matt and Kim are a great fit for the current (sold-out) tour with Cut Copy. They are ready and willing to share their minimalist brand of fun-punk/pop with whoever will listen.

Baltimore locals should also note that Matt and Kim are slated to play at Goucher College in Towson, Md, along with hometown heroes the DeathSet on April 18 pending some contractual issues. More to come on that later.

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