I'll admit that I'm a big fan of the free booze at The Job especially before I head to a music venue with over-priced drinks. And Nob Hill is much closer to North Beach than The Mission, so it seemed perfectly logical to sit in the bar for an hour between work and the New Pornographers show. Fortunately, my level of sobriety allowed me to deal with the security guard who started hassling me while I was playing games on my iPod in a calm manner. (Background info: I was also confronted by security at the Stars show also at Bimbo's. I was not so accommodating during the encounter.) Note to Bimbo's Security: If I was adjusting a recording device, I would (1) not be obvious about it and (2) not stand at the stage. I've never recorded a show before and even I know better than to stand at the stage where the sound is not optimal for recording. (This is true. The sound in my little corner of the stage was not great that night.) He had me check my bag but he let me keep my cell phone, which unlike my iPod, I can actually record images and video.
The New Pornographers and Friends night at Bimbo's 365! Part One.
The night began with Immaculate Machine who are another one of the many Canadian bands produced by John Collins & Dave Carswell. (The New Pornographers and Tegan & Sara are also best friends with JC/DC.) Three part harmonies? The combination of electric guitar, keyboards, and drums? I wasn't blown away by their set. Their Mint Records debut, Ones and Zeros, is fun, Canadian pop, but no one does Canadian pop better than The New Pornographers. Expectations are set too high for anyone else to match. The set ended with "So Cynical" a song I not only remembered but really enjoyed. As this young band matures, I predict they'll release one or two brilliant tracks but never have a solid album.
Dan Bejar is Destroyer. He played with John Collins and the New Pornographers' drummer. Destroyer is definitely an acquired taste. He has a unique vocal style, which is a nice accent to The New Pornographers' songs but can be overwhelming with other sounds. He released an ep of songs which he recorded with Frog Eyes,
Notorious Lightning And Other Works, which I really like so I was interested in hearing more from him but was disappointed Tuesday night.
Author's note one: I will post about the rest of the night later today. I even found a setlist.
Author's note two: I did not make it to the Thee More Shallows show last Saturday.
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