Hot Shit!

Last night's Pond/Quasi show was easily one of the highlights of the year. It's always a treat to see Quasi -- one of the rare bands that never disappoints live -- and a Pond reunion added to that, all to help say good-bye to Portland venue Satyricon, made for a truly wonderful night.

The night started in a line about 50 people deep, outside, in the pouring rain.
Once inside, M99 kicked the night off with an OK, if a tad over-long, set of typical 90s post-feminist white-trash grunge.

After that was Pond, pulling off one of the most under-the-radar rock band reunions I think I've ever been a part of. They brought in the largest crowd of the night, with people packing the club from wall to wall -- old fans, new fans, scenesters of yore, folks out for the nostalgia trip, and people like myself who never got a chance to see them perform during their initial reign.
The songs have aged quite well (the "grunge" sound was very much of its time, but there have been a few bands whose output can stand on its own), even if the guys in the band were struggling a bit. With a band that hadn't been on stage in nearly a decade, who was performing with only three practices recently under their belt, perfection isn't expected. And with all of the excitement and energy of the crowd, the warts and flubs were easily overlooked in exchange for the rare opportunity of seeing these guys on stage together once again.





After Pond, Quasi took the stage to close the evening.
Going into it, I had kinda hoped that, in honor of their early days playing 2-3 nights weekly at the Satyricon of legend, it would be a throwback show of sorts -- Sam and Janet reverting back to the keys-and-drums duo they once were and playing a ton of old shit. I got about half of that one.
Quasi is officially now a trio, and that's how they played their set. A few newer tracks, but mostly material pulled from far back in the past. Lots of fun, and even a few surprises. I was sad that they didn't play "It's Raining" (especially given the night's weather, but more appropriately my own mood these past few weeks), however they certainly made up for it by closing the night with a cover of Black Sabbath's "War Pigs," complete with the electric piano filling in for the guitar.

current aural fixations

Quasi ~~ When the Going Gets Dark
It's taken me nearly three years, but I've finally warmed up to this one. I think part of me was so incredibly blown away by Hot Shit!, that I was disappointed that this wasn't 'pt. 2'; and I think part of me was a bit turned off by the heavier reliance the band's been placing on guitars, pulling back from the keys-and-drums dynamic that makes them so wonderful. But recently something clicked, and I've been loving the shit out of this album. All of last week, it was almost the only thing I listened to on the bus (alternating with the new eels album).
They're supposedly working on a new album right now, which will hopefully mean that they'll be playing out some more. And soon.

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X ~~ More Fun in the New World
About 6 years ago, I quickly burned through a heavy X phase, picking up their first four albums in quick succession. I don't know why I stopped at four, I just did. And, over the following years, that final (for me, at least) fourth album has become a solid favorite of mine. It's been in my car for the past few weeks and has hardly left the CD player. It's a fantastic piece of music wrapped up as an overproduced punk album. But given the clarity and the production quality, it never sounds shallow or fake. It's completely gritty and balls-out once you wipe away the sheen.