What a strangely fun and eclectic night!
The concert started off with Jen Gelineau/O. Goodazri, an experimental guitar-violin duo. Their performance was more jam/improv-oriented than composition-based, with one piece spanning their entire performance. The haunting wails of the violin combined with the sad, minor-key strumming of the guitar created an ethereal atmosphere. The piece seemed endless and eternal, and when it finally ended I felt as if I had awoken from a trance.
The mood changed completely when performer Sam Gas Can came onstage, clad in a gray suit, gray wig, and sunglasses. With distorted, deadpan, canny vocals and plasticky electronic backing tracks, Sam felt very much like an ’80s new-wave performance artist, perhaps one whose career had faded into obscurity and experimentation in the ensuing decades. Sam’s character was certainly distinct: He waltzed with the mic stand with a sort of awkward coolness and danced jerkily along to his catchy rhythms. It’s not an image easily pictured or described, but that was the nature of Sam Gas Can and his quirky, endearing music.
The pace changed once more as the energetic (or, better yet, manic) Jimmy Whispers arrived onstage, dousing himself in beer before throwing the can into the audience. Other antics included doing push-ups, kneeling in the middle of the audience, getting up on furniture, crowdsurfing (multiple times), wearing a skimpy red dress, leaving the venue and singing to the pedestrians outside mid-performance, and ending his set with a slow dance to “What a Wonderful World.” All of this was accompanied by Jimmy’s earnest, humorous, hyper, and somehow sweet lyrics of unrequited love, summer fun, and partying at the end of the world. Jimmy Whispers was the very antithesis of pretension; honest, open, and fun-loving. This infectious energy spread across the audience, creating an unforgettable bonding experience between audience members and performer alike.
Earthquake Party ended the show with noise and angst. Imagine a younger, slightly more jaded Sonic Youth. Most songs were less than two minutes long but packed with energetic yelling and distortion. It was messy and riotous and thoroughly enjoyable.
CREDIT (text and video): Cody Kenner
CREDIT (photos): Sarah Silbiger
