Videotape

So lets try and collect our thoughts about Videotape. Whats different now? You don't anticipate the same things once you become familiar. You've collected a bunch of pictures from various places. Familiar songs can still surprise you when you here them in different venues. There was one track of theirs that I cannot identify that reminded me of  Placebo....I think The Creeps! It has a similar forward drive, that same theater. And when you think Placebo, you don't think shoegaze, like ever. And yes this is a near purely subjective opinion but this fragment of the haze and fog is how it is remembered at Empty Bottle,Free Monday. They don't remind me of other .....hmm ..shoegaze bands. These passing thoughts make perfect sense at the moment and perhaps reveal more of my baggage as I observe. This post was originally for their appearance at Empty Bottle ....with Walking Bicycles and Pamphleteers and that feels so long ago, and now on top of that their gig at Quenchers, and that's still so damn long ago.  I gotta get this post out, finish the process of documenting what I saw. Hmmmmmm, their music plays in my head regularly. I don't tire of Pulling Teeth. It kind of snaps you out of it, and wakes you in a wonder filled hopeful state. A few songs from Panda Riot do just that put you in a happy...ish mood. This impression I get, indeed presents itself before the lyrics reach me. The songs are memorable before you begin to understand them. Between Me + You immediately brings me in the back couch of Cafe Mustache on Milwaukee Ave. It was an acoustic performance then and it brought this unexpected level of intimacy that filled the room. They did a whole set but that's the song I remember. Sofi sat down in front of the mic. I guess I'm just happy to be able to have seen three gigs. Those are just the ones I caught. They play a lot locally. The good thing about being called shoegaze is the exposure you get within the loosely woven network. Whatever gets you to them does not matter. Quickly you see how wide their appeal can be. Walking In Circles sounds perfect for that Cafe Mustache gig. I don't recall but I'm sure they played it. Its so well put together. It begins so intimately, takes you to a peak and as you slowly descend encounter traffic that makes the ride so much better. Look at me I just went on about selling This Is Disconnect all over again. Her voice deepens in fragments in Digest. I reserve that one for a car drive, an introspective moment while driving. The easy sells can speak for themselves but only when you listen. Once you are sold on that. I think it is worth the effort to explore the previous self-titled EP. Monsters is dreamy and a perfect campfire acoustic song. In this 2011 release they are indeed more dreamy, not forward and aggressive. The Ship Is Sinking but you are chill, like something Suzanne Vega can talk and stroll through. Fourth Of July does have a horse driven forward drive fit for a Clint Eastwood western. There is this urgent pace, and I'm totally taken to a certain scene in the Sam Shepard play True West. At first you will not see the differences coming. It opens a whole other side to Videotape and one that is worth buying. 1994 is feel-good sweet, minimal and quirky. Its one that one can find singing along.This is a band that I'm happy to have found. I'm glad they are local. Even if they don't play from the EP anymore, its very worth knowing this in their background. You treasure the band for a completely different set of reasons. Anyway, this post needs to be out.
Zig