Dirty Beaches, Live @ FUC

Tags

Alex Zhang Hungtai, Canadian Bands, concert video, Dirty Beaches, Dirty Beaches Band, first unitarian church, fuc, live music, live philly concerts, R5 Productions

Dirty Beaches is Alex Zhang Hungtai and Alex is Dirty Beaches.  The boutique label holy-grail maker engineers tracks of dirty croon-filled depths.  His stage presence has an amalgam of personifications peering through it; although, their intention is rightfully mysterious. We saw glimpses of Chuck Berry and Elvis through the dimly lit stage and sludgy tracks.  Based out of Canada, Dirty Beaches comes through Philadelphia several times a year and we are damn lucky for it.

A Dirty Beaches show touches on auditory sensibilities difficult to define but easy to appreciate.  Blazing new trails in sonic bliss, the band graced the FUC stage on May 3rd, 2012 and delivered a reverent performance  to his musical influences and the lucky crowd.  Grinding through numerous tracks and ferociously brandishing his guitar Alex, with his Dirty Beaches bandmate, provided us with yet another exhibit behind the crime of missing his live performance.  You can beat the case by catching his July 23rd performance at Johnny Brenda’s after his Spanish tour.  In the meantime, we have some dark and dirty videos:

Xiu Xiu, Live @ FUC

Tags

concert video, first unitarian church, first unitarian church concerts, fuc, indie music, polyvinyl, R5 Productions, xiu xiu, xiu xiu band

The decade old project of Jamie Stewart, Xiu Xiu, played a fresh set at FUC in Philly on the third of May 2012.  This avant-garde experimental indie group has existed as a solar system of artists with one star.  The current orbiter (since 2009) is Angela Seo.  The history around Xiu Xiu is deep and saving a regurgitation of this, we simply point you to wikipedia for many paragraphs on the subject.

We can state unequivocally that the performance was moving and energetic.  Coasting in between soft and hard sounds, Xiu Xiu created an atmosphere that held gravity in a state of influx allowing those in attendance to ebb and flow with the metaphorical currents;  quiet interludes pulled at the feet while  soaring guitar solos and haunting vocals pulled the listener up off the ground.  Percussion sounds added to the visceral feel that was manifested and we were happy to be in attendance for yet another stunning performance at FUC for Xiu Xiu.  We have a few videos for you below and apologize in advance for the partially obscured shots:

Starfucker, Live @ FUC

Tags

concert video, electronic music, fuc, indie music, live music, live philly concerts, polyvinyl, starfucker

Starfucker is Joshua Hodges (vocals, keyboards, guitar, drums), Shawn Glassford (bass, keyboards, drums), and Keil Corcoran (drums, keyboards, vocals) and hail from the great city of Portland.   Having released 2 LP’s, 2 EP’s and singles, Starfucker has created a phenomenal catalog of music so far.  Having been featured in national commercial music, Starfucker has kept it’s name and not given into the pressures of corporate rank and file.  Using audio samples from Alan Watts in several of their songs is just another clue into the genius that is Starfucker.

We were very stoked to see them perform at FUC on September 13th and even more excited to hear them run through most of their eponymous album which they did.  Their energy was palpable and the audience hung on every synth line, guitar cord, drum beat, and vocal.  Add to their sound a dazzling light display and the experience was a trippy joy ride through their musical repertoire.  This band is one not to miss and should certainly be experienced before they move to large scale arenas or your little cousin is playing it on their iPod – something we greedily hope doesn’t happen.

Check out some video from the show and enjoy the ride:

More Starfucker video at LPC on YouTube

Alexico, Live @ FUC

Tags

alexico, concert video, electronic music, fuc, indie music, live music, live philly concerts, unsigned artist, world music

“Hi.  I’m Alexico from Mexico.”   With that we knew we were in for something special.

Alexico, hailing from Monterrey, Mexico, began his set as a one man wonder-show playing the keyboard, guitar, singing, and working the pedals.  His enthusiasm was contagious and won the sluggish crowd over quickly.  Singing in Spanish, Alexico’s sound was multi-lingual and easily interpretable even to those who don’t know the language.  As his act progressed, members of Starfucker (for whom he was opening) came on stage to lend backing guitar and drums.  The sound coming from Alexico at this point was contagious and everyone in the audience had caught it.  Culminating with a final member, Chance on bass, Alexico closed out to great applause and recognition of the diversity his act brought.  Keys, guitars, vocals all combined to bring home a solid performance on September 14th at the First Unitarian Church in Philly.  I could not more strongly encourage you to catch Alexico while he is still on tour in the states.

Alexico made one final appearance during the Starfucker encore in which he came on stage, picked up a drum near his size and crowd surfed with it tucked tight against his body.  Truly a sight to behold!  We have included a video of this stunt below so that you can.  We wouldn’t tell you about it and not show it, would we?  

 

 

 

Toro y Moi, Live @ FUC

Tags

carpark records, Chazwick Bundick, chill wave, concert video, electronic music, firstunitarianchurch, fuc, indie music, still sound, toro y moi, toroymoi

Toro y Moi came to Philly September 12th and played a jam packed show at the First Unitarian Church. Their set touched on all those Chazwick Bundick staples and took place in front of a lava lamp projected backdrop – a second, perhaps, for me in this church. Toro y Moi’s immersive electronic sound enveloped the audience as the crowd came to life hearing such songs as Still Sound, New Beat and Low Shoulder. On the heals of his critically acclaimed 2010 release, Causers of This, T&M eradicated any thought of a sophomore slump with Underneath the Pine from which most all the set list was derived. The show did not disappoint and T&M’s return is anxiously awaited. Here are some videos from that show:

Unknown Mortal Orchestra, Live @ FUC

Tags

concert video, fat possum records, fuc, indie music, live music, live philly concerts, psychedelic, umo, unknown mortal orchestra

Conceived and birthed in New Zealand, Unknown Mortal Orchestra combines multiple genres of music to arrive at a most excellent sound. Now on Fat Possum records, UMO led by Ruban Neilson, is garnering attention from many blogs and critics. Now based in Portland, OR UMO is on tour with Toro y Moi and is a great addition to it. Their self-described break-beats, 60’s pop sounds and kraut rock rhythm combine to form an upbeat sound that is simply fun to dance to. Check out their closing song from September 12th at FUC in Philadelphia, “How Can U Luv Me”