Concert diary

Great show last night at the Balcony.

Thoughtstreams kicked off the show around 10:00. I’d heard of them before (mostly from them playing shows with Dysrhythmia), but this was the first time I’d seen them. Impressive. Very technical, jazzy avant-metal, kind of reminiscent of Cynic, but less focused. I have to appreciate the genre parody of such song titles as “To Devour Ovaries.”

Up next was Technician, who I’ve been digging on for several months now,… See more →

There were five bands on the bill Sunday night, including Lightning Bolt, Deerhoof, Wolf Eyes, Thurston Moore with Carlos Giffoni, and 5ive (not the British boy band). The incomparable Lightning Bolt was the highlight of the show, opting to do their set on the floor on the right side of the club instead of the stage, actually cutting off the final song of Deerhoof’s set. Rock. Deerhoof was the only other band that really grabbed… See more →

Saturday night was The Fucking Champs, Rye Coalition, and Drunk Horse, the denser of the two shows in terms of quality. The Fucking Champs were excellent as usual, Rye Coalition was significantly more entertaining than the last time I saw them (insane energy, plus the singer put on some weight and has a kind of John Belushi thing going on that really works for him), and Drunk Horse, who I hadn’t heard of before, rocked… See more →

The evening was occupied by a show at a little DIY gallery/showspace called Detroit Contemporary. I don’t get into so much hardcore stuff these days, so I don’t have any glowing reviews to share, but the overall friendliness of the scene is always appealing, so I met lots of nice people wearing t-shirts adorned with band names that sound like Steven Seagal movie titles.