paper stereo :: the fish swim in the lake and do not even own clothing

Live: Dr. Dog 3/14/07

Dr. Dog is an incredible live band and anyone who was at their show last Wednesday at the Troubadour will tell you the same thing. I had a great spot relative to the stage and managed to take a bunch of great pictures, so I’ll let them speak for themselves:

Scott McMicken

Toby Leaman

Frank McElroy, who is nineteen feet tall.

Yes, Toby is completely in the air in this shot.

Scott’s multi-dimensional nature emerging for a brief moment.

Download:
Dr. Dog - My Old Ways [mp3]
Dr. Dog - Say Something [mp3]

- Dominick Duhamel -

Labels: Dr. Dog, mp3, Photos

Live: Menomena 3/10/07

Menomena’s Saturday night show at the Echo was met with a crowd that did anything but hide its adoration. The three handled their often-tricky material expertly (at one point Justin Harris was playing a bass keyboard with his feet, playing guitar, and singing at the same time) and, with an army of new and excellent songs from “Friend and Foe”, the audience left the show with their love for Menomena growing exponentially.

Damn you redeye, damn you. But check out Justin’s sweet baritone sax.

Brent Knopf looks like he’s nineteen years old. Oh yeah, and he’s a computer programming genius. His vocals on “The Monkey’s Back” during the encore were haunting and incredible—easily the highlight of the night.

Danny Seim is eight feet tall. And treats the drums accordingly.

Download:
Menomena - The Pelican [mp3]
Menomena - The Monkey’s Back [mp3]

- Dominick Duhamel -

Labels: Menomena, mp3, Photos

Live: The Parson Red Heads 3/10/07

Last Saturday at the Echo, Menomena couldn’t have asked for a better opening act. Drawing most their songs from their debut full-length, the excellent “King Giraffe” (which came out a couple weeks ago), the Parson Red Heads’ eight-song set was one of the more joyful concert experiences I’ve had in a long time. The band, whose members performed clothed in white (tinged with red), knows that there’s power in numbers: with a total of ten musicians onstage, their sunny sixties psych rock was not only being played to but shared with the audience, whose members willingly gave themselves over to the Parson Red Heads’ sense of family, community, and wonderful musicianship. It was a show that felt full of love in more ways than one, an aesthetic that, in retrospect, makes a lot of other live bands feel distant and cold. This band is something special and, along with Bodies of Water, they deserve the attention of the Los Angeles music scene more than any other group right now.

The Parson Red Heads’ frontman and chief songwriter, Evan Way. He can’t be taller than five foot nine, but you’d never know it from the quiet confidence he exudes.

Jason Wrightman, Erin Way, and Aaron Ballard. I swear that, between Jason and Erin, there has never been such whole-hearted tambourine-slapping in a live performance. Ever.

Dane Garrard and Evan Way. GUITAR SOLO.

Aaron Ballard playing harmonica (which goes nicely with his vest-bandana ensemble).

Download:
The Parson Red Heads - Punctual As Usual [mp3]
The Parson Red Heads - Full Moon [mp3]

- Dominick Duhamel -

Labels: Menomena, mp3, Parson Red Heads, Photos

Live: Sebadoh 3/9/07

It’s the last week of school before finals for me (and the other UCLA writers) so, barring the (slim) possibility of another writer turning something in, we’re going to be posting nothing but concert photos through next Monday. To kick it off, here are some photos from SEBADOH! JASON, LOU, AND ERIC! THREE GUYS WHO THINK IT’S MUCH MORE IMPORTANT IF THE MUSIC IS HEARTFELT RATHER THAN IF THE MUSIC SOUNDS LIKE SHIT OR NOT!

Ajay Saggar, the Liam Gallagher-imitating singer and bassist of The Bent Moustache, an endlessly entertaining live band from the Netherlands (they sound sorta like Art Brut with more energy but less direction) that opened for Sebadoh.

Lou Barlow’s such a badass. And he totally knows it. His best line of the night: “I like the key of D sharp. It’s low enough to be scary but high enough to be happy. Kinda like Sebadoh.”

Eric Gaffney, back with Sebadoh for the first time in fourteen years.

Jason Loewenstein (after finishing the coolest version of Tom Petty’s “Free Fallin’” I’ve ever heard, complete with Lou screaming mindlessly): “No more covers!”

Lou (to Eric): “Jason says no more covers!”

Download:
Sebadoh - The Freed Pig [mp3]
Sebadoh - As the World Dies, the Eyes of God Grow Bigger [mp3]

- Dominick Duhamel -

Labels: Bent Moustache, mp3, Photos, Sebadoh

Live: Bodies of Water 3/2/07

I’ve posted about Bodies of Water once before, when I took fancy to a song they posted on their website, but Friday night at the Echo, my fancy blossomed into obsession. There weren’t a ton of people there—I counted sixty, maybe seventy tops—but they still performed like they were in a sold out arena, bellowing every note at the top of their lungs with a passion too omnipresent to be anything but totally sincere. As fantastic as their music is on album, it is not until you hear it live that it really starts to take shape, that its dynamic, four-part vocal arrangements transcend the traditional performer-audience bounds and become a part of the mass consciousness, not only by their visible fervor but by the loving, beating heart that resides behind it. Check out their website for more info, as well as some cool pictures and designs. You can also can buy their three-song EP from Insound. No doubt you’ll hear about these guys from me again but, for now, live photos:

The Spires were, a pretty decent, if not a little boring, opening band. They sound like Clap Your Hands Say Yeah would if they were a garage-rock duo.

Bodies of Water’s Meredith Metcalf, probably the most devastatingly charming stage presence I’ve ever seen. And a hell of a good singer on top of that.

David and Meredith, husband and wife as well as Bodies of Water’s lead singers.

Awesome moment, shitty picture. David pounds the shit out of a xylophone.

Kyle Gladden: rocking both the tambourine and early signs of a mullet.

Download:
Bodies of Water - These Are The Eyes [mp3]
Bodies of Water - Doves Circle The Sky [mp3]

- Dominick Duhamel -

Labels: Bodies of Water, mp3, Photos, The Spires

Live: Grizzly Bear 2/22/07

I’m sure many of you have heard about the end of Arthur Magazine which, to me, is a very big loss for indie music. Check out my column today in the Daily Bruin to read my farewell to what, for five years, was the best magazine out there.

Also, as you can see, Paper Stereo has had somewhat of a makeover and added more space for articles and pictures. Hope you enjoy the new look! To celebrate, here’s some concert photos from Grizzly Bear, live at Kerckhoff Grand Salon in Los Angeles.