Psych Rock @ The Cake Shop, 10-2-2008

I came to the Cake Shop taking Free Williamsburg's suggesstion to see Evangelicals, but first I had to to see two surprisingly fun bands.

The first was Mysteries of Modern Science which uses string instrumentation to realize pop chords and themes classically. Altogether they are a bassist, mandolinist, violinist, two cellists, and a drummer. Minus the mandolin, every instrument plays a single line so there is much more of an emphasis on counterpoint rather than simple chords. It's as if each plays it's own melody. MoMS claims post rock as an influence which doesn't shock, but unlike most groups of the genre, they add lyrics. Still, though the vocals don't drown out the instruments, they are a bit of a weak point.

Second was Parenthetical Girls. The vocalist, Zac Pennington, liked banter and theatrics. He spent a bit of the time walking through the crowd and laying down beats on the floor, bar, and wall. The others stayed put and chimed in with percussion (was it a xylophone?). The major melodies lent themselves to goofy rock akin to Evangelicals but came out sounding more dreamy.

Evangelicals on the other hand were much noisier in concert than in their recordings. The overall sound was much less pure, and it came off more destructive than anything. Still, they put on a good show even if it wasn't what I expected.