Japandroids and DIIV at Black Cat, Dec 7, 2012

Japandroids at Black Cat 12-7-2013

Trish, Alex and I went to the Japandroids show at Black Cat last night. Here's what I'm sworn to say about it, under penalty of eternal harassment: "That show was SOOO awesome! They rocked - amazing! Best show of the year!" -Paraphrased from Alex and Trish

Trish and Alex both loved, loved, LOVED this show. They were giddy, dancing, and singing, having a great time. It was great to see them both so excited about the show.

I thought it was really VERY good, honest, but it wasn't my favorite show of the year. The opener DIIV (pronounced "dive") was a jammy, guitar-driven, mostly instrumental band that performed very well, but their music is not my thing. They are so not my thing that even though I've heard a song or two of theirs many dozens of times on XMU, right now, sitting here, I can't recall anything about their music. Alex and Trish loved them, but they didn't appeal to me.

Japandriods were powerhouse performers. Their set was at least an hour and a half long, with fast songs almost the entire time. It's two guys, if you don't know, but they sound a hell of a lot bigger than two guys. The singer engaged the audience well, they had tons of energy, and they were very fun. Their current album "Celebration Rock" is super high energy, and the crowd sang along to most of the songs. There was a lot of dancing, some moshing, even a little crowd surfing. We had a great view from the riser on the house right side, near the bar. It was a really fun atmosphere. I absolutely recommend this band for a really good rock show. They deliver.

The only thing I found un-amazing about the show was the singer's voice. I am a vocal slut - if you've been paying attention, you already know that about me. Vocals are what sell it for me. This singer has been touring non-stop for months, belting it out hard every night for a couple hours. His voice has taken a beating. I had trouble understanding him sometimes, and he wasn't singing his best. He made up for it in other ways, but the vocals would have had to have been stronger for me to declare this my show of the year.

Totally random thing: NPR recorded the concert from right in front of us, so if you go watch part of the show on NPR Music, that's our visual perspective.

Verdicts:
Japandroids: Yes you should have been at this show. So worth it! So fun!
DIIV: Good enough to see live, if you are into their music. I'm not.