Axons/Fauvely/Born Days

 
 
 
 
  I saw Axons with Born Days and Fauvely. I believe I walked in on Born Days. This was at Quenchers Sunday 20 November. So I saw everything. This was the show I did not want to miss for a lot of reasons. Alright....alright....I don't want to miss any that I want to see. Pre-existing conditions of this show have elements that will not repeat for me. Fauvely and Born Days are still debuting themselves all over Chicago and Axons....this was the first time seeing them since the changes Adele has made.  You see, when I first became aware of Axons it was heavily electronic. The two releases I got are warm and electronic. For me it was firmly part of its signature. So I was curious as to how Adele manifests her band currently. I walk in and its Melissa's solo project Born Days. Hey y'all!! In the audience Adele, and Elaine from Spaces Of Disappearance. Danielle from Impulsive Hearts, Andrew from Solemn Meant Walks and Sophie! She was next with Fauvely. It was noteworthy for me seeing all the other musicians. Its support. For me it colors the night. Quenchers stage room is small, well bigger than say Whistler and smaller than say Empty Bottle. Its easy to see who is in your audience. Its not really dark.  I noticed Scott from Astrobrite when Fauvely was on. Sophie mentioned if anyone saw Scott. I said me and there are his footprints. He was right in front of her almost, I saw. I assume since they were asking around for him, I saw him.
  Fauvely has the other-worldly sad charm of early Angel Olsen. Awh fucking hell.  Go look up Angel Olsen.....I'll wait......see? So now we are all versed in Angel Olsen. We do this so that we can better appreciate Sophie's new band. This is a rip in time-space away from her work with her old band Videotape. In Fauvely she is stripped down minimal, and still opaque and mysterious. Dreamy....not dream pop. It almost romanticizes loneliness. How do I say it better.....It gives all these otherwise seemingly negative images an angle that makes them something worth surpassing surviving. Its deep, thoughtful and therefore thought provoking. Another artist I would liken this to is Cross Record only Fauvely is even more strip down.  But that is getting ahead. This performance had her play with another guitarist. I noticed Scott Cortez, her bandmate from Astrobrite. I don't believe she noticed him, so when she asked I told her that he was indeed there to see her play. Scott was quiet as he stood right in the front of the stage. The noisy bastards were actually behind me, loudly having this conversation through the music. Sophie called them out on it. Told them it was distracting. I don't blame her, the music is not the kind to drown out voices in the crowd.
  Born Days had us spontaneously nod and kinda lightly bounce in place...no...right. It was just nodding to the rhythm, as if wanting to dance. A set of thoughts kind of emerged from me seeing Born Days right there. I started thinking of architecture, Melissa's old band with Rebecca from Panda Riot. It was at this moment where I saw an obvious rift between architecture and Panda Riot. And now seeing Born Days I started to see how it belongs to Melissa. Until now, I can see if not explain how architecture sounds in relation to Panda Riot, and how it...belonged to Rebecca. Now I can see how much that band belonged to Melissa. Now architecture is sounding like Melissa's band. And yes I have always believed that they were equal creative partners. And it took seeing her newest project Born Days for this angle that perhaps plain and obvious to them to be plain to me. All this was indeed swirling in my head, especially after talking to Andrew. I guess this is all me just trying to map out the greater picture, and seeing a new constellation emerge. And to briefly continue that constellation metaphor. They are always there even before your awareness of them. It was this one song and its natural rhythm had us nodding our heads. Don't know the name of that one song. Born Days can sound like Linea Aspera. Leans a little dark, cold wave.
  And now I finally arrive on Axons. Adele's band. I knew not to expect to hear any of the music from Axon's I was already familiar with. I arrived with the belief that I will still like this new work, and different sound.  I was really curious and confident that I will just support the band. Andrew, the drummer from Solemn Meant Walks came here for Axons as well. He did not know that Adele changed everything. It did not occur to ask if he liked the changes. I feel like I put people on the spot with that question. I loved it. And its nothing like what is on Youtube. There are a lot of videos of Axons on there. You just have to filter all the videos about science and.....things that have nothing to do with the band. So you have to specify Chicago when looking up Axons...anyway. Its all different now, its still awesome. She played guitar instead of a synth and she had a drummer.  What else, my memory keeps conjuring up her old work. The new music reminded me of Placebo in how catchy they are and still awesome. All that new work is yet to be recorded and it is something to anticipate. Damn this post is fucking long.
Zig

Mercury Girls

  9 November, Wednesday I saw Mercury Girls at Sub T's downstairs. I was close to deciding not to go, and so when I did, it was half-assed. It was a lazy ass post-election devastation Wednesday. But Mercury Girls are an energy drink at just the right time. I walked into the downstairs, or the first floor of Subt's not thinking anything would lift me up. Now, I'm glad I went on time. Mercury Girls are a fucking power plant. They are urgent, bouncy, aggressive and blissfully sweet. I mean this has to be what is playing in my nieces head as she chases the cat around the house. They immediately reminded me of Asobi Seksu in how they combine sweetness with muscle car aggression. Its not just that. Its the clarity of the voice over the music. For me its shoegazy without the blur or the fog. Clear sounding instruments and a clear sounding voice. And the energy..morning energy! Its urgent but..its happy, not dark and you know doomy. Its not all sweetness Its daytime, morning shoegaze...its bouncy, blunt, and  sharp and abrasive. That was just me hearing it, and I was into it. I was right in front of it. And for moments I could not believe it. After the show is when I go back on Youtube to see all the videos. But I was in the moment in front of it. Not knowing the names of the songs I liked. It was the fucking best. I always go on about what would sound nice at Scary Lady Sarah's Nocturna goth night.....because it gives me this context to see a song and what place the mood reminds me of. This band is totally for Philly and Sarah's Shimmer. It sounds perfect for a dance-floor of a certain kind. Goths can fucking dance to this in their double quick time. With....This is how You make an old goth's blood pulse fast....you now without going obvious with VNV. But yeah, I picture...where I can best frame this music, what is that ideal place but a fucking dance-floor. And Sarah and Philly have it for you, a whole night for fucking shoegaze. And yes I go to it. Slippery Slope....Hhhhhhhhhhh. Oh but now for ever I principally will recall the visual of seeing them after hearing them in all the ways that we got like bandcamp.

  Sarah, the lead singer. She likes Bjork....she said in an interview on Youtube. Its that same interview where I source the word blissful from them. I think it was Sarah who said it. The CD I bought from her is a compilation that includes two songs of theirs, Holly and Beverly. But the moment, you know. I didn't know what I heard. It was all awesome and I was in front of it.
  Mercury Girls are from Philadelphia. And actually only one is a girl. The rest are all guys. I think its the same with Asobi Seksu. I don't have a point to all this. I was just real impressed with Mercury Girls. I believe this was their first tour. I don't even recall how I got the two downloaded songs that put them on my radar, that got me into Subt's to begin with. I think it had to be recommended from a friend in the shoegaze scene. July 22nd always has me stop to check the ipod and see who it is. I would look at the name and think them so distant from me. What are the chances of me seeing them on tour? My reluctance to liking bands is hard to explain. When you got the resources to freely spend on music, you want to at least try and hear as much as possible, because then you can get it, all of it....the vinyl, shirt, CD....yeah some still do CD's. They are putting out music on cassettes. I am collecting cassettes unintentionally. The point being is that you can support the bands and not let the experience run like sand through your fingers. When you is kinda broke you don't wanna like nuthin', 'cause ya' can't afford nuthin'. So as many times as my ipod played them. The name stuck to the margins of my mind. Didn't learn anything more from them. And still somehow I learned on FB Mercury Girls are playing. I could not just keep my head in the sand, you can't breathe down there. Hmmm. Fuck it, I went, because that is me breathing. I arrived early enough for me to see the other bands but I was too focused on who I came to see. I was like, damn it am I that early? I looked towards the merch table. Damn, the shirts look good. The Mercury Girls logo, with the name and everything. Immediately I can see myself wearing one, but its a thought that I cannot indulge in for too long. I think this was their first time in Chicago and I'm glad I saw it. When I see them next I shall buy the shirt this time.
Zig

Ayria at Emporium

  Here is something I did not know happened until Ayria mentioned it on stage in between songs. The Abbey Pub had a fire. I was like ......what?! So I had to look it up later and indeed it happened in 2015. I've gone to shows there regularly, but not in a long time. And in that long time, shit happened. I lost track of the place as I have lost track of Ayria. So when I saw her name on Emporium's calendar I jumped at it. It was years accumulated in between this time and the last time I saw her at Reggies. And I don't know when or if she ever played Abbey Pub but I know I missed a few Chicago performances. There are so many tracks from Flicker and Hearts For Bullets that I listen to now. Those are the two CD's I have. And there is so much more work than that I know. There was this one time I was at Evil Clown, a record store long long gone. I had an Epsilon Minus CD in my hand. Its one of them CDs I regret not buying. The frugal part of me decided to not spend on it, and I regret that, and one day Evil Clown was no more. As Dr Smith said...."oh the pain".....its twice as painful when y'all don't get my Lost In Space reference.  I keep saying her band name. Her name is Jennifer Parkin and she is from Canada.
  She is touring for Paper Dolls now. And its really great! The awesome thing is that she still played a lot of what I was familiar, a lot of what I got hooked on.  Not all artists do that. Some will always only play their latest and almost detest their old work. I can understand that. That favorite track you just heard live once, she played so many times.  I am mindful of that.  I notice too that the fans are intimately familiar with her music. They hear the music on their own time on repeat. The fans around me seem to know her lyrics. And there is a lot of struggle to identify with inside those lyrics. And so her crowd reacted to hearing Girl On The Floor. The audience at Emporium was enthusiastic for Ayria. This is industrial music. The fans are going to dance, they will recite the words right with the performer. This reactive energy from the crowd is in full strength when the chemistry involves not just the dance floor worthy music but also an awareness, mindfulness of the words. And people really connected to that song I mentioned as just one example of that resonant spark that bounces from the performer to the audience and back again. I shall one day buy Paper Dolls. For now, I'm happy that she still tours with an open veins love for her crowd....that loves her back. I am happy to see her endure and continue to thrive and produce music.

Zig

Coins/Moritat at Township

  I went to this show way, way on time......I know, right? Weird. Anyway. It was going to be the one show of Moritat's for this year that I can make and after that they have to record their new album which they played one song from and it was fabulous. And they played with Coins, Angela's other active project besides Touched By Ghoul.
  I was first introduced to her music with her first band Sybris. I think she really gathered a following with Sybris. The crowds were always relatively big when under that name. She recently played under Touched By Ghoul at Slippery Slope. I gotta write a post on that soon but here's something. When I saw that show Touched By Ghoul I did not know if Angela was still active with Coins. So this show at Township was a nice surprise.
  It feels kinda nice to be on time to a show. I drove more relaxed. I know where to park. Walking to the place and still relaxed. When you are on time, you are relaxed. You fucking stroll. I know Kon and I know Venus. They are married. I feel stupid lucky to have them as friends and be this at ease around them before they go on. Kon speaks spanish very well. He dj's rare vintage music. I really like that he does that because music deserves to have an audience even beyond the lifetime of the musicians. I like that he plays all kinds of vintage music. Township in the front is a restaurant. I sat with them.  For them, it was a rip in time-space impossible for me to be that early.  I recall The Runnies opened. Its coming back to me. I walk in and the restaurant does not have the usual bassy vibrations. I was that early, before Runnies. And they were awesome as well. It was my first time seeing them. But I have always come across their name. I've known of them for a long time. A friend once told me that I would like The Runnies. They have a raw energy. Its a muscle car, its a live wire writhing on the highway. And let's finish the metaphor by having the wire and muscle car meet. They're already on the fucking highway. And now I have seen them. And I will make efforts to see them again.
   It feels good to arrive on time and to call Moritat friends and sit down. Oh look there's Donna from Beat Drun Juel who just walked in. I fucking feel like Amelie in seeing this. All this shit spinning in my head on the one side of my eyes. On the outside I'm chill and catch up with them. In researching for this post I download and listened to Coins and also listen to my friends, Moritat. And its hitting me like a ton, how much I like the music I have of them both.
   Mysterious sounds are thought provoking. They can force an in inward glance. Without drums Coins shadow is distorted and out-sized. Psychic Orchid takes its time. Its tense, haunted memory imprinted where you can't erase it, only distort it. Minimal voices and instruments. Its other-world is tenderly constructed. Intimate like from a campfire. Balancing that and mystery in multi-layers. After a while they begin to slowly show their imprints. They begin to be....catchy in a minimal Twin Peaks style mysterious. As I said that The Dark gets sweeter.  I sometimes pause and marvel at how far and away different Coins is from Angela's other projects. Here she separates loud urgency, with seething quiet tension. Scuba is a ghostly tour of a childhood memory. Lightning Song has some fucking balls. That one seethes. Blood is butchy as hell too. Noteworthy for me is their cover of Watching The Wheels. That takes me back. The song disarms me all over again.
  I let my itunes loose and I was hit with the classics. Their whole catalogue over the years has really grown on me. I really like  High Plus Tight .We'd has Kon mostly on vocals. Actually I hear him on most of the CD. He makes me like the male voice all over again. The Lips They Move!  Clill Blanzin still slow burning them all over again. They are very elusive to describe. If you like Portishead... Moritat is an easy sell. That's one fleeting angle. The way Venus keyboard work with Cory's drums sometimes makes me think trip hop, and that's another fleeting angle. I think I know a possible source of the Portishead trip hop comparison. The back end of is that the music is clear and not shoegaze fuzzy. Borders are sharper....Keep that fucking crayon in the box. That's when you're hit with Money from Blanzin. The first time I heard this I thought it was PJ Harvey. This for me was unexpected from Moritat. From them I've learned to expect keyboards and not guitar. On Money I don't hear keyboards so much, but heavy wielding, swerving guitar. I took fewer pictures of Moritat this time. So the picture I have of Venus here is one from before. 
Zig

Fielded/Heavy Dreams

 
  On Wednesday I saw Fielded and Heavy Dreams. Fielded once lived in Chicago. Some shows stick out.   I recall once seeing her in this really cool DIY venue on Chicago's southside. This venue just seemed to leave curious relics that speak through its decay the story of what was. In its brief rebirth it hosted Fielded. The venue is no more, the building itself I think still stands. The place was this hazardous playground with a roof with a view of the ass of Chicago's skyline, a truer and a more familiar sight. I believe it was the Pink Line was right there. Fielded made this place a wonder to behold. She was the flashlight that made it worth another look. From there I've made it a point to see Fielded live every fucking time that I could and I made it in time to see Heavy Dreams. And I was into them as well. They got two songs up on their bandcamp, and they are great. I will make an effort to see them at Hideout this 30 November. They are a local Chicago band and I am happy to see they got future gigs to go see.
  Fielded is Lindsey Powell a solo electronic artist.  Its noteworthy to say that she has been in a lot of projects that I have grown fond of. I saw her in Ga'an. And she's been in another band named Festival. And its all brilliant work. I'm actually fortunate to even have all that work collected, stupid accident. I bought the Festival CD a long time ago at Free Monday at Empty Bottle. And I really did not listen to it for months. When I did.....Pow! I can't even remember about Ga'an....but I end up with a download and a T-shirt. Even as she does not live in Chicago now. She once did and I'm happy that she did. I got to stick with Fielded. I'm flying out on tangents. There is some weirdness that leans dark with a dancer's pulse. At first, her earlier work leaning more weird couldn't help but make you move. For this show at the Bottle, I could feel the bass vibrate my organs. Its modern, German Expressionist in outer space- dance music. Dark and with vibrant color in exaggerated, artificial looking sets. Lindsey's voice is beautiful and powerful. It aims to hypnotize. As time passes Nine Thirty Thirty endears further beyond Arms Of Heaven and Chapel Of Lies.  I gave it time and Gabrielle showed me a hidden room and so forth.  For this Bottle gig it was new work.
  She was brilliant. Every song had me mentally note until fuck it. I was into all of it. They are a band I want to keep seeing. I keep saying they when its just the one person, the amazing Lindsey Powell. Gone sounds so relaxed and at ease.  I Choose You uplifts like gospel music without the need to invoke The Almighty.....and damn it do I need some uplifting right now. That specific track reminds me of  White Hinterland. That is someone else I saw at Empty Bottle. Alright so....Lindsey's voice is clear smooth and powerful. You feel that dance pulse just with her voice. She repeats "I choose you" and it feels like she chose you to  "rise and walk". Reign is the most dance-floor friendly. It amazes me how different all tracks are from each other. Often after a long period of familiarity with a performer's music, you start to see patterns, intangible signatures. You start to learn how a person puts a song together. That is not the case with Fielded. None of the kids look alike, at least for me.
 Seeing Fielded was a high point for me.
Zig

Lightfoils/Tender Age

  

     
  The Double Door is the perfect venue for a band to aim their ambition...the soon to be closed down Double Door. You really are more mindful of this place for every minute you spend in there. Its the perfect size for a medium/big venue. It can still be small, and it can still have small. I saw Beat Drun Juel here. That happy place where bands aspire to play has Double Door as the fantasy venue. Its medium big, not impossibly massive.
 
  This here is a vaguely recorded memory of seeing Lightfoils and Tender Age. I missed most of their set.....Tender Age that is. But what little I saw got me to buy their last record. It urges me to finish this post because Lightfoils are playing Empty Bottle 10 November Thursday. I am already familiar with Lightfoils, and I am happy to see them continue on. Sarah and Philly Peroxide were there. They were to later have a Shoegaze/Dream Pop night at Slippery Slope where I saw Zee Shan. He plays guitar. For this performance I noticed his Nocturna shirt.  That is goth. That makes them ours!  That was so damn cool of him. Its one thing for a goth regular to wear that shirt. All the guys from the band I have seen around in related events, including Sarah and Philly's night at Slippery Slope. It takes place once a month on the second Tuesday. Damn....that's election day this time around. What will I be dancing to that night?
 
  I forgot what day I saw this. I wanted to make it on time to see Tender Age as well. I made it to the last part of their set. It left an impression, it was enough for that. Cory, the bassist for Lightfoils and Panda Riot was on stage as well. His enthusiasm is always infectious. Tender Age played Chicago before, with Panda Riot and it was a show I missed for lack of money. From Tender Age I bought the record that I will hear when I have a functioning record player. Meanwhile, they have a great deal posted on Youtube, fleeting performances captured. Fleeting performances....they carve a lasting imprint. I note the friends from other bands in the audience for Lightfoils.
 
  It takes a fucking bottle-neck of effort to keep music going. Everything that I see is because I think its disappearing. To the id, everything is disappearing and so you best go catch it.  I feel fortunate to get to know them through their music, an important part of them, their creative side. The end part of that, even. I share with them a sliver of time that is golden.  And from that lens glance inside. I just....I just glance.  I like to acknowledge that the music has a human pulse. There is a lot behind the gig.
  How do I separate them from lets say, Panda Riot. Lightfoils to me leans toward Asobi Seksu, and Panda Riot more Broadcast and Cranes. Now I will take a moment to pull my hair out as you all say "well who's Cranes, and Broadcast".
  Lightfoils are bassy and urgent as Panda Riot is patient and cool. Lightfoils don't wander as much. Between the Panda's and Lightfoils is Cory, the bass player. I guess that is why I think of them together. He lights the fire in both them asses.
Zig

Impulsive Hearts/Born Days/Fauvely

 
  It has been so long since I was able to write this from my own computer. Finally, at long last. And perhaps that is why this is so long winded. DC Torium is this new DIY venue I went to see interesting bands debut. People that once belonged to other bands performing new work.  Impulsive Hearts headlined. Part of the urgency to finish this post was in anticipation of their show at Quenchers on Fullerton and Western on Sunday 20 November.
  Fauvely is the wondrous new project from Sophie Leigh from Astrobrite and Videotape.  I missed her set entirely so I'm listening to her Bandcamp. I remember Melissa Harris from architecture. I arrived on time to catch her new solo project as Born Days. And I was blown away by that.
  Chill and haunting, a Twin Peaks vibe in every track with just her voice and guitar...or keyboard. So with minimal elements each song still has its own signature sound. Actually everyone was minimal that night and it was all good. It was how signatures seem to get revealed, when its just you and one instrument.  
  Having missed Sophie's Fauvely set, I really listened to her work on Bandcamp. And so the pictures I have of her will be of her Videotape days. And while I was looking for those, I also found some of Melissa's from her time with architecture. Get Mine hits you in its own way from Muted. So you hear depth that intrigues immediately. You want to hear them over again. Fauvely is dark, minimal, and yeah dreamy....as she describes on Facebook. But seriously she is awesome. More from her Facebook....Under genre, is dark, dreamy sad songs. And well, yeah. And that makes them deep and interesting to explore. You catch the fossil of sadness, a distance from the moment. Its interesting to see the music self described as sad because it makes Fauvely deep and mysterious. Some tragedy is too much, and you stay away. Some of it intrigues and the best shit is written off it.  Elton John is right. Sad songs say so much. For Sophie's new project, if the songs are sad, they are also interesting to explore like watching Ghost Adventures for the urban exploration, and not for their fucking ghosts. The thing about calling something haunting.....your implying that something has an element relating to a period, vaguely....the past. And there is some modernity that Fauvely haunts. Shoegaze was not even a color I wanted to use when describing any of the music. It just did not occur.

.
  Born Days is actually who I walked into. Minimal as it is, a natural dance pulse still remains to warm the cold electronics. You just want to do Audrey's Dance........from Twin Peaks to this. Its kinda that style of coolness and I just can't let a Twin Peaks reference escape the mind like that without expressing it. It just feels unnatural.....plus, they are bringing the show back. There is a whole festival dedicated to it.....

Anyway....I saw Brian and Jose from Panda Riot in the audience. In the front was Adele from Axons. Melissa Harris is Born Days. I remember her from architecture, the project she shared with Rebecca Scott from Panda Riot. Architecture was a great band. I only capitalize here because it's in the beginning of a sentence. Normally I go by how they do it. And for some reason they did not capitalize the name. Never asked....some mysteries remain. Their sound was dream pop/shoegaze. Its not even a thought when listening to Born Days.  This for me is slower, thought-provoking cold wave....naturally cool.
  The headliner....Impulsive Hearts....I can't seem to get that image of surfing, or anything care-free, beach related .......beach volley ball, pretending to drive with a blue screen in the background when I listen to Impulsive Hearts. Its Annette Funicello's beach party movie with Impulsive Hearts in the soundtrack. Its the weirdest thing for the mind to wander into when considering Impulsive Hearts. Its more her music than her lyrics that invoke these images in my head. Its the signature that I notice on her and keeps me wanting to listen. It reminds me of summer in the warmth of the day. So its naturally caffeinated.  I was already a fan since hearing the EP. Adele from Axons, once casually praised her moments before she went onstage at Frontwoman Fest. The Jedi spoke, and The Force is basically her intern.  And that was it. Sorry In The Summer is an absolutely brilliant LP. Its printed on bright nuclear pink vinyl. Danielle Sines played her music alone that night at DC Torium. Normally I see her with a full band. Playing alone reveals, especially without the other instruments or musicians. I noticed myself listening more. Your mind fills in the gaps. "Here is where I would hear drums"....and so on. I was already a fan, so I'm sold.
Zig