I headed downtown from work and got there a little early. So I had a burger at that little hole in the wall joint down the block from Pianos and then had a $3 Newcastle at Iggy's before heading to the show. As I walked up to Pianos Fareed was standing outside. We shot the shit for a minute and he told me I should catch Sunny Ali & The Kid, which has an ex-Popo dude in it, so I headed in.
They were already playing when I walked through the door and I was into them immediately. They play country influenced punk and/or garage. Whatever you want to call it they were really fucking good. I spoke to the drummer after and they'll be playing more NYC shows soon.
After Sunny Ali & The Kid, and a couple beers, Android Lust took the stage. The band was a bunch of nerdy looking white dudes who look like they're way into World Of Warcraft and the singer was a petite Indian check. They got started and within the first 30 seconds I could tell I wasn't going to like the remaining 20 minutes of their set. I hung in there for about two songs but that's all I could take. Remember when Jada Pinkett-Smith started up that metal band? It was kinda like that but with some Flyleaf thrown in for good measure. Needless to say, I went back to Iggy's as it was still happy hour.
I headed back to Pianos just in time to catch PoPo. Like I said, I've seen PoPo a few times over the years and
they're always fucking awesome. They used to be a 3-piece but as I mentioned one of the guys has his own band now. PoPo did their thing, playing psych-garage rock and getting the crowd whipped up a bit. They were awesome, they're always awesome. That's just what they do.
After PoPo it was time for Headless Horseman. The band hasn't been around very long at all and they're already getting write-ups on every blog and playing a residency at Pianos. The crowd was jam packed at this point. I had to hit the john but it was so dense I basically had to fight my way out. When I came back upstairs it was even worse but after a struggle I made it back up front.
Headless Horseman took the stage with both members standing in front of floor toms and facing each other. They hit a few buttons and some prerecorded music started to play while they both jammed on their drums and sang in a high pitch falsetto. The result was a dreamy and melodic and....shit, I really don't know. It's not easy to describe this band. They broke out guitars and other instruments as well at various points. It was much more uptempo and energized then I expected it to be based on the recordings I've heard.
The crowd looked enchanted throughout the set. I'm generally into high energy bands but I was pretty mesmerized. They're damn good and I can see why all the blogs are gushing over them.
The last band up was Shilpa Ray and Her Happy Hookers. I've heard a few songs before but not nearly enough to form an opinion but I've heard nothing but good things about her. As soon as I heard that voice I was hooked. Someone who can actually sing! Unfortunately I had to be somewhere so I split after three or four songs. I sure as hell didn't want to though.
Shilpa Ray
Headless Horseman
PoPo
Android Lust
Sunny Ali & The Kid
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