Girlbandgeek Blog

Skating Polly at the Independent

I have decided that May is going to be blog every day month!!! I am not going to post every day, but I am going to write for 30-45 minutes daily and see how that goes. So tonight I have to attend to my concert review backlog. I saw The Go! Team, supported by my faves and yours, Skating Polly back at the end of March. My impressions will be colored somewhat by the passage of time, but I do have my scribbled notes to jog my memory.

I’ve seen quite a few excellent shows at the Independent in recent months, most notably Mary Timony plays Helium which was definitely one for the ages, but that’s another blog. I was able to roust my buddy Alex to join me in SF on a week night to see some music, which was good. We went to 4505 Burgers and BBQ for dinner at my urging – the memory of that sublime pulled pork sandwich was calling me back for another taste. My selection was not quite as stellar as the last time, but still good. We still had some time to kill, so we grabbed a coffee at Bean Bag cafe, then headed to the venue.

We sat in the raised seating on the right side of club, same general location as our last visit to the Independent. We had plenty of time to chat and sip our beverages, as more people filtered in to the venue, and show time approached. Finally the lights went down and Skating Polly took the stage. Skating Polly consists of stepsisters Kelli Mayo on bass and vocals and Peyton Bighorse on guitar and vocals. Kelli’s brother Kurtis now seems to be a permanent member of the band, on drums and sometimes guitar. Kelli was on the left of the stage, farthest from us, wearing a fuchsia print dress. Peyton wore jeans and a dark knit top. Kurtis on drums, partially obscured by Go! Team’s equipment, was wearing a button down shirt with a bold print pattern.

This was my third Skating Polly show, and possibly the best yet. I feel like there must be a certain freedom in being the supporting act. Half the audience may not have even heard of you, so you don’t have to worry so much about what people’s expectations might be. You don’t have to do a lot of small talk, or play an encore. You can just play the set you want, and whatever applause you get is truly earned. So they just tore into a 10 song set-list that was larded with their best numbers (which is kind of ridiculous cuz all their songs are the best). It seemed to me the older songs had been tweaked just a little – I don’t have a musical education, but my guess is they added some swing for a slightly different feeling. Mind you, it wasn’t some weirdo versions of the songs, which I would have hated, but just a little twist, which probably made it a little more fun for the band as well. They played many of my favorites, though no Hail Mary which was a little sad. They played three songs off their upcoming album The Make It All Show: Free Will at Ease, Queen for a Day and They’re Cheap. Here is the set list:

Stop Digging
Louder in Outer Space
Perfume for Now
Free Will at Ease
Queen for a Day
Oddie Moore
Pretective Boy
Nothing More than a Body
[Kurtis on Guitar/Pey Drums]
Alabama Movies
They’re Cheap

Incredibly, Peyton and Kelli have been playing together for 9 years, and it shows. They are confident and relaxed, yet they’re still gritty as fuck. Peyton really brought it vocally, and unleashed herself on Louder in Outer Space and other faves like Oddie Moore and Nothing More Than a Body. For the last two numbers, Peyton and Kurtis switched places, and Kurtis treated us to his blazing guitar work.

Skating Polly are touring on the South and East Coast with Charly Bliss or Pottymouth, two more killer bands. So what are you waiting for?

The Go! Team at the Independent

I knew next to nothing about headliners Go! Team. I looked at a couple of YouTube videos and was not all that moved, but many bands are more compelling in person. That proved to be case with Go! Team. The Go! Team are Ian Parton (guitar, vocals), Ninja (vocals), Sam Dook (guitars, drums), Simone Odaranile (drum), Angela Won-Yin Mak (vocals, keyboard, guitars), and Adam Hutchison (bass). They hail from Brighton, England.

They put on a great show. There was a lot going on, with a big funky sound that had hints of Sly and the Family Stone and CSS. It was like putting R&B, world beat and punk in a blender. Singer Ninja took command visually, and vocally, on most of the songs. She had a very positive vibe, and an infectious warmth as she sang, rapped and danced on the stage. Angela Won-Yin Mak, who I nicknamed beret girl, also sang lead on a number of songs. Angela had more of a bubblegum pop voice, which was fun and was a counterpoint to Ninja’s bigger sound. The rest of the band totally rocked, too. Simone Odaranile on drums was a force of nature, and she was sometimes joined on drums by Sam Dook who traded off between guitar and drums. Guitarist Ian Parton and bassist Adam Hutchison were also pumped up, and helped propel the songs. All in all it was a high energy show that was tight, but really rocked. I picked up their new CD Semi Circle which is quite good – though perhaps not as compelling as the live show. But their set had me swaying and whooping until the last song. Would recommend!

Palehound Rocking Out at the Catalyst

I arrived at the Club, and locals openers Gal Pal were in full swing. Their Bandcamp page describes them as “queer femme garage friends”. They were young punk rockers and I warmed up to them quickly. Gal Pal were loud, and rocked hard, but many of the songs were also musically audacious, with interesting transitions, changes and a sense of drama. Gal Pal was having a good time, feeding off each other’s energy and powering some intense jams. Several of the members contributed vocally and they were not afraid to go for it, delve into the darkness, and bare their souls. All in all a very strong set, and I picked up a cassette of their album Girlish for the archives.

Next up were the Weaves. Fronted by vocalist Jasmyn Burke, the Weaves hail from Toronto, Canada according to Wikipedia. But before they actually played, there was an embarrassingly long period while the members of the Weaves worked with the sound guy. Apparently they were not happy with their monitors, because they kept check-one-two-ing, and banging, and strumming, and signalling ‘more (whatver) in the monitor’ for a long time. And yet when they performed they were still visibly unsatisfied with the acoustics. I will say that I did not connect with the Weaves. They were cute, and having a good time, which counts for a lot. I mean, they were good musicians, and Burke can really sing, despite having kind of a funny voice (kinda like Betty Boop, but not that funny). They were at their best when they went kind of raw and punk. Other moments just seemed indulgent – guitarist playing with his face, Burke moaning, goes on and on, whatever. But they rocked, and gave it all they had, and I certainly appreciated them for that. But they were not my cup of tea.

And then Palehound came on and they were awesome. Palehound are a Boston, MA band consisting of Ellen Kempner on guitar and vocals, Larz Brogan on bass and Jesse Weiss on drums. I’m pretty sure Sadie Dupuis of Speedy Ortiz put Palehound on my radar. I learned from my pre-show research that Sadie and Ellen met at music camp, where Sadie was a counselor. I got the impression that Kempner, despite being a powerful performer, has mixed feelings about being the center of attention, with the added scrutiny that a young, queer woman fronting a band attracts. But the intimate crowd at the Atrium was heavily queer and young, and Kempner expressed her appreciation, and gave a shout out to Gal Pal.

Palehound put on a performance that satisfied me in every respect. They played most of the songs from 2017’s A Place I’ll Always Go as well as selections from 2015’s Dry Food and 2013’s Pet Carrot. Kempner is a fiery guitar player, effortlessly jumping from delicate finger-picking, to power chords, to tasteful leads. Brogan and Weiss provided a punchy rhythm section to Kempner’s compositions. Kempner’s songs talk about love and loss, but also dissect the everyday moments that bind us together as humans – grocery stores, pet food, donuts – with a wistful and even aching feeling. Friday’s set was beautifully paced between pretty, wistful songs and punk-edged rockers. And when Palehound rocked, they really rocked, and lord knows, that’s what brings this geezer out to the clubs at my advanced age.

Definitely check Palehound out if they’re coming to your town!

Mary Timony at the Independent

I confess that I was entirely unaware of Helium when they were a band. I think I first saw Mary Timony performing her solo work as a supporting act at a Sleater-Kinney show around 2000. I have seen her a few times since then, as a member of the incendiary Wild Flag, as well as her latest band Ex Hex, both of which rocked. So when I saw that Timony was going to perform the songs of Helium I wasted no time picking up tickets.

I roped my amigo Alex into seeing the show. Take a look at my review of Dream Syndicate for my reminiscences about the Alamo square area, and my history with the Independent, formerly the Kennel Club. It was a fairly frigid San Francisco night. I had picked 4505 Burgers and BBQ off of Yelp as our meeting place. There was a 20 minute line to order kinda pricey BBQ and dine on outside benches under heat lamps. The food, however, was top notch, and well worth the price.

Bellies full, we wandered across the street to the Independent. We got there shortly after the doors opened, and decided to park in the raised seating along the right wall of the club. We ended up staying there the whole evening, as the view was good, and the sound was excellent as well. In general, kudos to whoever’s responsible for the sound at the Independent, because the audio was punchy, rich, and clear for the entire night, which really enhanced the experience.

Allison Crutchfield opened. This would be my second time seeing her perform. Tonight it was just her and a drummer, but the sound was full and satisfying. Crutchfield traded off playing guitar and keyboard, and seemed equally comfortable with both. Crutchfield is good songwriter with pithy, thought-provoking lyrics. Her musicianship and vocals are assured, and overall it was a very satisfying opening set.

Before long set-up for Mary Timony was underway, and Mary herself could be seen on stage checking her guitars and equipment. She was playing an unusual guitar, possibly a Saul Koll custom model. I noticed that everyone was using an Orange amp for the Helium set.

The venue was pretty full, and everyone was in a state of anticipation to see these amazing songs performed. The band took the stage, the crowd whooped and clapped. Mary greeted us, and with no further ado announced “this one is called Pat’s Trick”. I was able to identify the following songs from Saturday’s show – there were several others that I wasn’t able to recognize:

Pat’s Trick
XXX
Trixie’s Star
All The X’s Have Wings
Leon’s Space Song
The Revolution of Hearts Parts I and II
Vibrations
Walk Away (James Gang cover)

[encore]
Honeycomb
Superball
Baby’s Going Underground

So, I’ll just say the show satisfied in every way. Mary was in good form, and she seemed happy to be there. Timony’s voice ranges from sultry lows to ethereal highs, and her guitar playing was incendiary as always. The accompanying band members, Nicole Lawrence on guitars and keyboards, Brian Betancourt on bass and David Christian on drums were all excellent, and played Mary’s intricate compositions with confidence and fluidity. Nicole Lawrence is a fiery guitarist herself, and on several instrumental breaks Mary and Nicole stood facing each other and trading riffs like old-school guitar gods.

Several of the longer compositions allowed the musicians to revel in all sorts of prog rock goodness. Timony’s finger tapping proficiency in The Revolution of Hearts Parts I and II was so good. And encore finale Baby’s Going Underground featured all kinds of joyous cacophony, including Nicole Lawrence using a drumstick to play her guitar, alternately like a violin bow and a hammer.

Needless to day, if you get a chance to see Mary Timony Plays Helium, run don’t walk to get your tickets. You’ll be glad you did.

Mary Timony at the Independent