White Mystery @ Beat Kitchen 2/6/10

 White Mystery is like the White Stripes. A semi-ironic brother-sister duo with one talented musician and a penchant for gussied-up garage rock. Unlike White Stripes, it is the drummer with talent in this band. Also unlike White Stripes, this band sucks. There's a certain home town aw-shucks quality to WM, especially at this show where parents, friends, and grade-school teachers of theirs were in attendance. But the music, at least on this night, was a total mess with ear-piercing off-key squealing vocals paired with off-tempo, mundane guitar plodding. Some creative songwriting occasionally was presented, but overall, I just don't understand the hype. It'll take a great deal more polish if this is to be anything beyond garage punk, or if garage punk is the preferred aesthetic, a great deal more originality and talent. D

Elsinore @ Schuba's 1/22/10

I've seen Elsinore a couple dozen times now, and it's always encouraging to witness the organic evolution of this band's sound from alt-folk Americana to Andrew Bird-inspired indie rock to the current amalgamation of all of the above plus front man Ryan Groff's solo material.  This show was the record release performance for the forthcoming Chemicals EP. Record release shows are always a balancing act between showcasing a band's new music and showcasing the true worth of the band. And this show was no exception. Playing before the largest crowd I've seen at an Elsinore show, the band would have been better served with a longer set or substituting a few of the slower, more melodic EP songs for some of the more rev-happy up tempo material that I've seen crowds a fraction of the size go frantic for. Which says nothing about the quality of the music, as it was top-notch and, as always, expertly and humbly performed. It was simply something of a missed opportunity to expose this shooting star to a wider audience perhaps not accustomed to the material. Then again, Elsinore is not a band to fade quietly from the scene, and even larger crowds are soon to clamor for more appearances. It's inspiring to see such great guys and truly talented performers climbing the hill to wide-spread adoration. I look forward to the upcoming full length this summer, and especially the supporting tour. I know many more are, as well. A-