Re-viewing the DIY scene

silian rail kickoff tour in sf

well, its been a while since i updated here, so im sorry for that. things have been a bit crazy these last couple weeks, ever since a tree fell on my car while driving home, & then last week was spring break for me. but i was able to attend a show last week, so today’s post will be about that.

last wednesday i went to see silian rail, with shuteye unison & i was totally destroying it, at the el rio on mission st, in sf. the night began on the wrong foot, & continued that way until i finally made it to the venue, just before headliners silian rail took the stage. i was late getting out & on my way to the show, & then there was a fire on mission, (which turned out to be about a block away from el rio), causing traffic to divert to the side streets, & then that just screwed things up so much more. after a lot of walking, more driving, & then even more walking, i finally found the venue with the help of some very kind locals on there way to sing karaoke at the bar in el rio. this caught me off guard, but once i was inside the venue, it all became clear. see el rio turns out to be two separate buildings with a joint patio out back, that is enormous &  very very awesome.

so i arrived as the second band, (unfortunately i had missed shuteye unison’s set) i was totally destroying it, were playing their last two songs. i didnt get to hear/see much but they had a catchy, indie pop-punk kind of sound, & some pretty good instrumentation. they were on tour, from north carolina, so i picked up a cd to help support them on the road. the cd, preludes, featured their varied & eclectic sound, complimented with catchy hooks, and some beautiful harmonies between male & female vocalists. all around an indie pop record, there are some sharp punk tangents here & there, & snarky lyrics like “i know i hate myself, but i hate you all so much more”. a good record for someone looking for the next up & coming alternative.

after a short intermission, silian rail came on stage. now a few weeks ago i made some snide remarks concerning the new fad of guitar & drum duos flooding the indie scene lately, but i assure you, the female guitarist & male drummer/bass synth/guitar/toe bell duo that is silian rail, is a far cry from some passing fad. the things these two could do on stage was nothing short of remarkable, especially in the case of eric, the multi-talented foot musician. its crazy what this was doing, simultaneously playing the drums, a foot bass synth, a guitar, & even at one point he climbed out from behind his drum set, & proceeded manipulating the effects pedals, while guitarist robin continued to play. i find myself hard pressed to categorize them into a simple genre, their music takes on the shape of entire sonic landscapes, full of mountains & valleys, oceans & deserts, skies, both clear & beautiful & dark & storming. the two were very passionate, but also humble & playful, offering a friend of mine to come with them on tour because he made a “thats what she said” joke.  the set seemed rather short, but lovely, with a few new songs never played live before, & they indulged the crowd with an extra long single song encore. & then it was over. i cant say that i was completely satisfied with the set, but it was also so much more than i could have wished for, & definitely worth the adventure of getting there. they are currently on tour all around the western states; 4/14 santa cruz @ cafe pergolesi, 4/15 los angeles @ pehaspace (?), 4/16 san diego @ soda bar, 4/17 tucson, az @ house show, 4/18 santa fe, nm @ corazon, 4/19 tempe, az @ the lost leaf, 4/20 los angeles @ origami vinyl, & 4/21 fresno @ tokyo garden. i highly recommend  going to one of these shows, if you are in any of these cities over the next week or so. & buy their merch.

over the next few weeks of april, i will be mostly attending shows @ the opl in princeton/half moon bay. some of the acts appearing there are; battlehooch w/thanks for leaving this friday 4/15, flintheart w/commissure & unsettle the sky sat 4/23, & the legendary TSOL (holy shit right?!?!!?) fri 4/29. so, stay good, & ill see ya when i see ya.