Yellow Ostrich stole the freaking show last night opening for Say Hi, but they were pretty awesome too.
Eric Elbogen of Say Hi kept asking for questions, but I guess we could have just consulted his FAQ. Don’t ask about the name change, dude.
Remember last week when that Park the Van showcase was at Grey Eagle. That was fun. Floating Action, the Spinto Band, and Generationals.
The Dodos last migration to AVL was a year ago March where they played a pretty full Harvest in-store. This year they got upgraded to The Grey Eagle and the show was packed. It’s nice to see great bands gain a local audience that quickly. Yeah, we <3 our town like that.
First up was the Durham band of brothers, Megafaun. Brothers Brad and Phil Cook and Joe Westerlund used to be in a band with Justin Vernon (you know, that Bon Iver dude). Now that Bon Iver has gone on hiatus, we hope that Megafaun gets the spotlight. They’ve got awesome harmonies reminiscent of Fleet Foxes and a dynamic live presence often jumping into the crowd to finish their songs. I preferred the live show to the record and even then preferred when they left the electronics out of it.
Indie pop New Zealanders, The Ruby Suns, were up second and they gave me a good opportunity to get another PBR and some delicious bread pudding from Twin Cousins.
The crowd swelled and welcomed The Dodos. It was hard to get anywhere near the front, but standing on our toes on a chair in the back, we could see that they expanded from a minimalist two-piece to a stage busting three-piece with that addition of a second percussionist, Keaton Snyder. There is a complete lack of pretension with these guys who were just rocking the t-shirts and hoodies and I mean rocking. High energy, killer show. See them next time when I’m sure they’ll be headlining at The Orange Peel.
Still don’t have plans for New Year’s Eve? Here are some ideas:
What’s worse than being stuck on a booze cruise in the freezing cold? Being stuck on a train. The Great Smoky Mountains Railroad is having a gala full of dining, dancing, live entertainment, and nauseating motion.
If you haven’t been paying attention there is a new venue in the area called White Horse Black Mountain. You can rock it americana style tonight with Barrel House Mamas and Dehlia Low. BHM are one of those bands that plays around a lot and we always say we’ll catch them next time. Well, we’ll catch them next time.
If you don’t feel like driving all the way to Black Mountain to see some roots music, Donna the Buffalo hits The Orange Peel for a second night with The Believers. Or you could join the Mountain Music Family Circus at The Grey Eagle with Larry Keel, Steve “Big Daddy” McMurry, Mad Tea Party and David Via.
The Asheville Chamber of Commerce has some other suggestions including lindy hopping and sophisticatedness. Mountain Express has some shoestring suggestions if you are a recently unemployed ACT staffer.
Our pick? If we had a magical transporter device, we’d be in Philly to see Gogol Bordello at The Electric Factory. Alas, we’ll be walking to The Admiral for a 4 course prix fixe dinner and drinking until they run out of liquor. There are two seatings and reservations are suggested.
We’ll see you on the flip side.
Sorry, I’ve been in Texas. There was this little event called South by Southwest. Sadly In my travels I missed some great local shows: These United States with semi-locals Arizona and Man Man with The Felice Brothers. Fortunately, I saw all but Arizona in Austin.
WHY? asks more questions at The Grey Eagle on March 19. I’m not sure how to describe their sound except to say that they bring the abstract hip hop stylings that we’ve come to expect from every anticon artist.
