Pitchfork

Photos by William Kirk; Above: Shearwater

Marc Hogan's coverage: Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday
Amy Phillips' coverage: Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday
Jessica Suarez's coverage: Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday

Emmy the Great [Music Hall of Williamsburg; 7 p.m.]


It takes balls to call yourself Emmy the Great, and Emma-Lee Moss has got 'em. I just wish she'd take 'em out and swing 'em around more often. The London singer-songwriter's debut single, "We Almost Had a Baby", is a deceptively sweet tune about abortion, while another song steals Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah" wholesale and gets away with it. (Side note: this is not the first time that this has been done well.) She also has a pretty good cover of the Pixies' "Where Is My Mind" on her MySpace, which she didn't play at this show.

On stage at the Music Hall of Williamsburg, opening the BrooklynVegan CMJ showcase, Emmy's Great-ness did not shine through. She lead her band through a calm, demure set, made a few jokes, and that was that. Just another girl with a guitar, when she could be so much more.





(Apologies to the Sammies, who played in between Emmy the Great and Shearwater. I missed their set due to a severe wave of jet lag, thanks to coming back from Iceland Airwaves a little over 24 hours previous.)

Shearwater [Music Hall of Williamsburg; 8:30 p.m.]


Shearwater are a stately, formal band. Their magisterial music is built for churches and antique theaters, mansion ballrooms and town halls. The Music Hall of Williamsburg isn't an ideal setting, but it ain't a dingy dive either. Jonathan Meiburg's voice has that dramatic tear that gets me every time, like a less debonair (and way, way more nerdy) Bryan Ferry. Last night his shouts were chill-inducing.



There was just one problem with Shearwater's live show: drummer Thor Harris. Dude just doesn't fit the aesthetic. While the rest of the band was clean-cut and wore clothes fit for church, a night on the town, or a council meeting, Harris looked like your typical rock'n'roll roadie, complete with hair down his back. Yes, he's a good drummer, and clarinet/hammered dulcimer/whatever player, and he seems like the kind of guy who would be fun to hang out with. He was clearly a crowd favorite; shouts of "Thor, I love you!" peppered the evening. But his presence was distracting, and it detracted from the beauty of the moment. At one point, during a particularly serene stretch of music, Harris tripped over something, causing a loud thud. That pretty much sums it up.

Ponytail [Music Hall of Williamsburg; 9:30 p.m.]


My first reaction to Ponytail's 2006 debut album Kamehameha was TURN THAT SHIT OFF IMMEDIATELY. Frontwoman Molly Siegel screeches like my cat when he's hungry, and I already get more than enough of that at home. On this year's Ice Cream Spiritual, the band's frantic noise-punk had gotten more streamlined, but still, that voice. Sheesh. (Keep in mind that I also loathe Deerhoof for much the same reason.)



However, I kept hearing about how great the Ponytail live experience is. And you know what? It's kind of true. Much like my cat when he's hungry, Siegel is just so damn adorable, I can't be mad at her. She's so tiny and happy and bouncy, and she's got this goshdarned smile on her face at all times like she's on ecstasy. I bet when Ponytail is playing somebody's basement, rather than a proper venue like the Music Hall of Williamsburg, she gets even giddier.



Passion Pit [Music Hall of Williamsburg; 10:30 p.m.]


Boston baby band Passion Pit proved to be the surprise of the BrooklynVegan showcase. I'm a fan of their debut EP Chunk of Change, which features some of the catchiest spazz kandy pop this side of Dan Deacon, yet I was wary of it coming across as unbearably annoying in a live setting. But man oh man, was I not prepared for just how HIGH Michael Angelakos can actually sing. His falsetto is mighty, and durable! Color me impressed. As photographer William Kirk said, "If this guy was in a metal band, he'd have a million dollar contract!" (Then we got sidetracked talking about how great the first Darkness album was.)



Jens Lekman [Music Hall of Williamsburg; 11:30 p.m.]


"Singing DJ Jens Lekman" was how the Swedish troubadour was listed at the top of the BrooklynVegan bill; rumors as to what exactly that would involve ranged from a full-band set to Jens not showing up at all. It turned out it meant just what it said: Jens Lekman DJing some tunes and occasionally singing over them, karaoke-style.

His crooning was minimal at first, as he spun diva-friendly tracks like Baby's Gang's "America", Janet Jackson's "Someone to Call My Lover", Billy Crawford's "That's the Way Love Is", and Lykke Li's "Dance, Dance, Dance". The crowd danced a bit, but mostly looked bored. When he segued Mariah Carey's "Fantasy" into the Tough Alliance's "Silly Crimes", things picked up a bit. Some dude emerged from a backstage door and started dancing lasciviously and comically (perhaps the latter was unintentional). Soon enough, the guy had his shirt off.



Then Jens started singing Scout Niblett's "Your Kick Beats Back Like Death" (originally recorded for Secretly Canadian's SC100 compilation), which lead to "Into Eternity" and "Sipping on the Sweet Nectar" from Night Falls Over Kortedala. Ah yes, this is what we came for. Jens Lekman spreading his arms like an airplane and running around the stage, singing his own songs.

But that was all we got. Soon enough, Lekman was back behind the decks, spinning Kid Sister's "Family Reunion" (yes!) and the R. Kelly/Ludacris/Kid Rock jam "Rock Star" (no!).

The Phenomenal Handclap Band [Music Hall of Williamsburg; 12:30 a.m.]


Ugh. Nine people in all-white outfits playing terrible hippie funk. The guys behind the Phenomenal Handclap Band, Daniel Collás and Sean Marquand, have a pedigree in the NYC Latin funk scene, but man, I was just not feeling this. Members of TV on the Radio, Calla, and Mooney Suzuki, not to mention Jon Spencer and the Lady Tigra, all appear on their forthcoming debut album, but I didn't stick around long enough to find out who might pop up at this show.