The Pains of Being Pure at Heart, Neko Case, Destroyer, etc.

(Rip and Kip)

The D Man and Mrs. D Man enjoyed a solid show on Friday night.  Familiar faces dotted the crowd*: Rip, Stark the Vinyl Shark, Hans, and Sjoblom found ways to stay hip and classy among the disposable-income throng.  Hearts were light; heads were clear.  The music was uplifting in that strange communal way that only pop music can deliver, sending your soul slightly aflutter.

• The Pains of Being Pure at Heart.  The D Man has been a big fan from the beginning, relishing the band's warm and fuzzy hooks, which drip with clever songwriting and saccharine melodies.  The Brooklyn-based band's first two albums, the self-titled debut and Belong, scored coveted spots in my year-end Top Ten.  The band's third album, this year's Days of Abandon, is another fine record, releasing some of the Flood-produced fuzz of their last album and settling into sparkling jangle pop circa 1987 (think a softer version of The Smiths, The Cure, and The Pastels).
• The band played a fun 45-minute set and mixed in songs from all three records.  We missed Peggy Wang on the keyboards, so their touring sound was noticeably leaner without the synth lines to undergird the buzzy guitars.  Highlights included new cuts "Simple and Sure," "Kelly," "Until the Sun Explodes," and "Eurydice," in addition to Belong's "Heart in Your Heartbreak" and the debut's "Young Adult Fiction."  Don't check me out, don't check me out, don't check me out ah-out out out!
• After the set, we said hello to Kip Berman, the band's lead singer and songwriter.  He has a distinctive voice--high and scattered--and an eagerly sincere presence that is unsurprising given the earnest music he creates.  Rip had him sign a record for Bones, and Kip flipped out when he learned that he was signing an autograph for a favorite baller.  "No way!  I love Brent Barry!"  I told Kip he is a great songwriter (he seemed genuinely appreciative) and that I already owned everything at the merch table.  He scrambled around and hooked me up with a free tote bag that will be perfect for taking to church:  The Pains of Being Pure at Heart is scrawled in big cursive letters.
• The New Pornographers.  The band name is still terrible.  But The D Man is a big fan of Dan Bejar aka Destroyer and his evocative, literate take on Big Questions and anything and everything.  Mrs. D Man loves Neko Case and her knockout vocal confidence.  With the Canadian super-collective (including the power-pop glue of A.C. Newman), there is something for everyone: melodic folk and country giving way to a jaunty sort of pop that is galvanized with a harmonic indie sheen.  Though the band is unlikely to be anyone's favorite group, and it likely hasn't equalled the individual output of some of its members, the seasoned musicianship offers plenty of excitement with their considerable talents.
• The vocal interplay was hands down the most enjoyable part of the set.  With such distinctive voices at work--Newman's clear tenor, Case's soaring magpie strength, and Bejar's slinky backstreet croon--it was amazing how tight their harmonies were, and almost every song was designed to showcase their vocal togetherness.
• Bejar moved on and off the stage in between songs, only performing when he was needed to provide vocals.  He couldn't be troubled with picking up a rhythm guitar or tambourine on other songs, and we wondered what he might be doing backstage in between special appearances.  The best track of the night was "Spidyr," which sounded like it could have been an outtake from Kaputt, especially when the band broke things down into an extended, groovy late-night synth jam.
• Other highlights included songs from this year's Brill Bruisers: "Champions of Red Wine" (Case's crystal vocals over the cascading laptop synths!), "Dancehall Domine," and "War on the East Coast"; "Moves" and "Crash Years" from Together and closer "Sing Me Spanish Techno" from Twin Cinema.

*The next day we learned via a series of texts (and underlying miscommunications) that Rizzo was, in fact, back from Vegas and game for a show.  We missed you, Robert!