After writing the show preview and interviewing Victoria Legrand for the Riverfront Times, I’m a little worn out on typing about Beach House. But I will say that their live show was honestly much better than I anticipated it to be. While the tinny drum machines they use on record sound as if their sole function is to keep time, the addition of a live drummer really brought the pulsating rhythm to the forefront, which allowed the band to make some unexpected and gorgeous alterations to their arrangements. “Wedding Bells,” for instance, became a total jam.
Unfortunately, the only video uploaded so far is of “Gila,” the opening track, which stayed fairly faithful to the original. Czech it below; the sound’s decent.
Also, if you’ve got a minute, take a peek at this clip of Victoria joining Grizzly Bear on stage at SXSW to sing “Two Weeks,” which she references in the interview. What’s interesting is that if you take out the floppy bass part, it starts to sound similar to some of the new material Beach House previewed last night — lighter, comparatively carefree vocals; high-end quarter notes shining on the Casio that make for a sprightly, old-fashioned tune before a deep fuzz comes in to anchor the melody. They played three new songs last night, and the sheer dynamics of the sounds and rhythms they were experimenting with really impressed me. I know they haven’t even started to record album number three yet, but I’m already sold.
UPDATE: New song after the jump…
One of the new songs performed at the Billiken Club in St. Louis, April 3, 2009
Also:
“Wedding Bells,” for good measure. Thanks, “snivelttam,” for uploading.
3 Comments
The show was a lot better than I thought it would be too. The Devotion album has been in heavy rotation on my turntable lately, but I wondered how it would translate live. I just wish the Billiken Club didn’t make me feel sick/faint every time I go there. Why is the heat cranked up to like 120 degrees? Anyway, thanks for the You Tube posts.
I didn’t really have any problems with the heat, but then I mostly hung out in back for this show. I was actually pleasantly surprised in the Billiken Club – it had been a while since I was last there, and it was better than I remembered. I think the crowd makes a huge difference. Compared to the Gargoyle it’s like you’re stepping into the Pageant!
Ha–well, that’s certainly true about it being the Pageant compared to the Gargoyle. You’re right in that the heat isn’t quite as bad in the back. I’ve decided that no show is worth braving the Gargoyle. It’s just a horrible venue in every way and the crowds there are the worst. The last time I was there, for Ted Leo, there were 20-year-olds doing ring-around-the-rosy and just acting like idiots. I was like, I paid how much for this show?