Shana Falana/Panda Riot

  It was a long drive from near Joliet to East Chicago then a pit stop to Burbank on my way to Coles on Milwaukee Ave to see Shana Falana and Panda Riot. And its different when you are now familiar with the music, as I am with the Pandas. Why do I go see them so many times? This was their first gig since I think December. Ehhh,... that's no reason. They were mentioned in the Tribune I think. Its nice to see them in traditional print. The need to see them is rekindled. It seemed to be normal to have them mentioned in shoegaze blogs or specialized websites of that kind. Print or just the Tribune is like getting recognition through a rip in space/time from a parallel universe. Its unexpected and so when its there....wow! Rekindled. What took you so long, you feel like asking. Their performance was very well received, and they seemed to have fun. Cory's bandmates from Lightfoils were there and they are always so cool with me, I feel at ease around them. Philly Peroxide was there. I was glad to see him. He actually made it to Covenant at Abby Pub and Shana Falana! He left early during the Panda's gig.
  At some point, you've had your fill of it, and you want to bask in the afterglow. And you can walk confidently assured of its continued existence without having to see it.  It's perhaps the reason I chose not to go to see Covenant (which is a great fucking band) and instead rushed to see Shana and Panda Riot. They played a new song that does not have a name yet.  Goodnight Rich Kids you can easily call Buenas Noches Mirreyes. Mexico's rich and tacky elite drifting into my stream of thoughts. Most of what I recall Panda Riot playing is from their newest Northern Automatic Music. That I don't get enough of. And it has me anticipating whatever comes next. Its not just from hearing their newest. Its also from talking to Brian and saying what direction they are going. Cory I can tell was into his bass playing. Brian after their gig was up was having a cigarette outside with everyone. If I would have arrived late for this it would be apparent to me on his face that they are done, and he is happy. This was not the show at Emporium after all where he was waiting for his gig to start when I arrived.

There was no time delay. This was not something that needed time to build. This was a stick of dynamite with a very short wick. Shana was absolutely impacting since I first heard Anything. I'm still listening to the two CD's Velvet Pop and In The Light. Them two kids look about as related as Four Brothers. So many tracks dropping on top like stacks of library books all at once. The songs are so different from one another. You can't tell the kids are related. With a lot of artists, and its not a bad thing, you notice faint intangible signatures that bind their music together. It can be in how they phrase things, how the keyboard sounds....how they play the guitar, something. Within Velvet Pop, Brainy Fox does not telegraph I Don't Want It. And that whole album does not telegraph In The Light. Shana is a walking compilation of a bunch of different artists. So this is what I thought I was missing as I was driving people home across county lines....hell, across state lines. As far back as East Chicago I was anticipating.....hmmm, and that's the difference from the first time around. Her music was now something familiar in my head. It plays in there often. Awareness is the gravitational pull.
   I have not seen Shana since that one time at Empty Bottle. Her show then was absolutely impacting, and I believe it was also with the Pandas. The crowd at Cole's I recall was into her. A phalanx of people in front, close enough to see her sweat. Some were taking pictures. There was a real mutual energy between audience and performer. And she called us beautiful. She is touring for her latest release Set Your Lightning Fire Free. In some ways for me it is the middle sibling between her two previous releases. Some like Go display that raw, dark energy that can be seen through the fog. For me it leans more Velvet than Light. It reminds me of what sparked my interest when I first saw her. Hell she even has refined versions of tracks I have been into. Know UR Mine, Anything are reworked to sound like they could have come from In The Light. Even as I write this, the impression is still evolving and leaving marks. Stray lines of her lyrics emerge like a hand writing on the wall. I give up on explaining the impact of stars, now I just enjoy them.
Zig