All Photos: Dylan Johnston
For more pics, check out our Instagram
Gerard Marcus
DRINKS' latest release Hermits on Holiday has easily become one of my favorite releases this year. This amazingly tripped-out alt-rock gem sounds close to what I want all my dreams to sound like. When I heard they were coming to grace the stage at local favorite Baby's All Right, I didn't hesitate getting tickets so I could see Tim Presley and Cate Le Bon in all their ingeniously weird glory. Great show. We have pictures.
Big Search
Starting off the night, we had the amazing Matt Popieluch's ongoing project Big Search. It was an all-around great performance that set a nice, relaxed atmosphere for the rest of the concert—plus, he played some new material that I, at least, hadn't heard before. Not that I'm an expert on his very extensive catalog (seriously, the guy's been in way too many bands to list).
The set was comprised mainly of solo work with 12-string guitar, but every now and again he would sweeten the sonic deal with some wonderfully twangy telecaster and simple, tight drums. It was a nice blend of sonic landscapes, made even richer at the very end with the addition of Tim Presley on bass. I believe he has a new album coming out soon, though the date is TBA.
Droor
I knew nothing about Droor going into this show, but they nailed it. Their musicianship, their guitar work, their generally laid-back vibe... it all had me intrigued. When I got home I started the search, but all I could find was the three-track EP posted above. Who are these guys!? I'm not kidding. If you know, please tell me.
DRINKS
It's almost too good to be true. If someone came up to me a year ago and said Cate Le Bon and Tim Presley of White Fence were starting a band together, I might have slapped them with excitement. Luckily for all my friends and loved ones, I discovered DRINKS while alone at the ThrdCoast office.
Tim Presley and Cate Le Bon manage to be every flavor of cool at once, and it was great standing in Baby's watching them work their magic. With the help of two members of the mysterious Droor, they wowed the audience with their wonderfully weird psych rock.
One of the truly great things about the show was the crowd. It's sometimes easy to get distracted in Baby's, especially if you're further away from the stage, because of the sound bleed from the front bar DJ. But it was clear from my vantage point, flat up against the wall near the stage entrance, that everyone from the front of the stage to the bar were under DRINKS' spell. They're playing a couple more shows in the area for this year's CMJ, so if you're in New York I'd highly recommend checking them out.
