Review: Jourdan Domenica | Photos: Jillian Storms
Solly’s Tavern is a pretty nice spot to play. The upstairs is tucked away, but fully equipped for rock and roll. Nice beer selection as well. I’d actually never been here for a show yet, and was impressed with their setup. It’s always nice to have a separate area for the music, because you are surrounded by others who are there for the same reason. Tonight was packed pretty much shoulder to shoulder with all different age groups. I had a guess that some parents were out in the crowed, especially from Mariage Blanc. They made me feel young, and it felt good. Their bubbly yet refined energy carried them through their set with little to no flaw. They were like a sweetened Superdrag. From Pittsburg, these guys made it clear who was going to be winning the Superbowl pretty much between every song. It wasn’t irritating in the slightest, in fact, turned their hometown spirit into homegrown charm. Then again I know little of football. They even had a terrible towel hanging behind them. All I know is they rocked out on the keyboards constantly which made me dance, dance, dance.
The Caribbean is AWESOME. They have this magic little machine that they mess around with. I think they may have acquired it from the planet Neptune. Their spacey-gaze sound was quite shocking considering DC doesn’t really have a scene for that genre. They had a little bit of a goofy lyrical element too, which confirms the fact that they don’t take themselves too seriously. Bonus! I need more space machine in my life. I think I’ll go see The Caribbean again. Yes, yes I will.
Mittenfields headlined and nailed it. They also pulled a healthy crowd out of the woodwork of DC. David-Craig Mann, our lovely local booking extraordinaire, has woven together a really great band. Their song “Our Hosts were Ghosts” is rad. I really feel like they have this Pavement quality to them. I know you wanna listen so I’m going to link you. Their song, “Our Hosts Were Ghosts” is raw and ambient and feels good on the lips. I call it the ‘na-na-na-oo-oo” song because of the chorus. Its phenomenal live. This song stars Mittenfields’ new Cello player, replacing the only female in the band. Although a chick is always becoming to a band, their new addition is a perfect fit. Smooth & buttery guitars, sailing down throbbing bass lines and sometimes even shaking uncontrollably best defines these guys. Good work, Best show to date.
You can catch Mittenfields next on Saturday, Feb 28 @ Velvet Lounge w/ Deleted Scenes, Batata Doce (ex-Rock*A*Teens), Doors 9pm/Show 10pm/$8/21+
