Summer Music Report, Pt. 2

It's been awhile since part one. I recall thinking that it was pretty fantastic to hear Television play "Marquee Moon" at their last show, for whatever that's worth. Also, there was some guy in attendance, a promoter or at least a very enthusiastic booster, who claimed responsibility for the rise of the jam band scene. He also lamented the fact that Richard Hell had failed to turn up for a last-minute reunion. You have to be a pretty old-school scenester to even make that remark, as Hell left Television in 1975, two years before they released their debut LP.

Panda Bear at the Bowery Ballroom was pretty good. It was more of a live PA than a rock show, but that wasn't unexpected. "Bros" was probably the highlight. He may have had some amazing encore, but I wouldn't know as I left a bit early, it being a Monday night and all. Animal Collective is definitely preferable in a live setting.

Tonight was Black Moth Super Rainbow and Fujiya & Miyagi. I'd read a bit about the first band, but I'm definitely going to investigate further now. Boards of Canada-style synths with a live bass player and large dose of hippie. Fujiya & Miyagi sounded good, but don't seem to have much of a stage presence. It's a shame, because with their sound (lots of 4/4 bass thump, not heavily melodic or verse/chorus driven) they could really loosen up on stage and play forever. They probably played about 45 minutes, but it seemed like most any of their songs could stretch out to 20-30 minutes with a bit of creative improvisation. They could also stand to mix the material together rather than taking between-song breaks, as they use a synthesizer for rhythm rather than a drummer. But it was free and it was outside, so really it was pretty great anyway.