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CONCERT REVIEW: Athens PopFest 2011
Unlike AthFest, which sends us scurrying from place to place - indoors and outdoors - in the June heat, most of PopFest is concentrated in two venues, the 40 Watt Club and Caledonia Lounge, less than a minute's walk away. We're in Athens just long enough to catch the tastiest parts of the festival, but 15 bands in two days isn't bad for a midweek getaway - and not one of the sets is a stinker. (We leave town on Friday, before Olivia Tremor Control and The Dead Milkmen go on.) Here are some highlights:
CONCERT REVIEW: Athens PopFest 2011
Words by M.J. Fine | Photos by Chris Sikich
Unlike AthFest, which sends us scurrying from place to place — indoors and outdoors — in the June heat, most of PopFest is concentrated in two venues, the 40 Watt Club and Caledonia Lounge, less than a minute’s walk away. We’re in Athens just long enough to catch the tastiest parts of the festival, but 15 bands in two days isn’t bad for a midweek getaway — and not one of the sets is a stinker. (We leave town on Friday, before Olivia Tremor Control and The Dead Milkmen go on.) Here are some highlights:
Sweater Girls: You couldn’t ask for a better introduction to PopFest than L.A.’s Sweater Girls, who look and sound exactly like their name suggests. Like most of their Happy Happy Birthday to Me labelmates, they make sweet songs about breakups and makeups that stop just short of sending you into sugar shock.
Witches: Not everything’s so poppy, though. Athens’ own Witches tread spikier emotional and melodic territory with “Count to Ten” and “Roy.” Naturally, they’re as catchy as anything else we hear all night.
Throwing Muses: If all Kristin Hersh had wanted to do was recount stories from her year-in-the-life memoir, Rat Girl, the crowd would have been enthralled. And if she just wanted to bring Throwing Muses’ new Anthology to life with no-nonsense drummer David Narcizo and Zen bassist Bernard Georges, that would’ve been fine, too. Instead, the trio rips into songs like “Shimmer” and “Shark” with power and precision. Hersh doesn’t talk much between songs, but her guitar says it all. An unflinching take on “Pearl” is the perfect encore, and even those who are smart enough to wear earplugs feel a faint ringing for the rest of Wednesday night.
Catnaps: We feel a touch of hometown pride during Catnaps’ set on Thursday afternoon; the Philly quartet totally charms the Caledonia with “Vanilla Vodka” and “I Sat on the Edge of My Bed and I Sang You Velvet Underground Songs.” They sheepishly admit they didn’t bring copies of their clever and adorable album, Why Don’t You Whisper?, but — even better for the collectors in the room — they offer discs with a mix of previously released material and fuzzy rarities.
Jane Jane Pollock: At first, it seems weird that Jane Jane Pollock is using the same visual effects as the mighty Supercluster, who played right before them. Then they break out the trumpet, melodica and rigged toy hamburger to make some of the heaviest tunes we’ve heard in ages, and it doesn’t seem weird at all. And when all five band members play drums and percussion on “Gloomy,” it sounds oh so right.
Sourpatch: San Jose foursome Sourpatch has a soft spot for textbook tweepop, as their originals make plain, but it’s a pair of harder-edged covers — PJ Harvey’s “Dry” and Fleetwood Mac’s “The Chain” — that stand out.
Oh-OK: Reason No. 1 for making the 750-mile trip to PopFest: A rare performance by Oh-OK, Linda Hopper and Lynda Stipe’s playful yet mystic partnership. They’ve done just a handful of shows since their two early-‘80s EPs, but I don’t think I’ve gone more than a month or so since I was 16 without one of their songs going through my head. Their show is everything a fan could hope for: Stipe’s bouncy bass and ethereal vocals, Hopper’s sassy singing, and the chemistry between the two propel the set from the ridiculously upbeat opener “Lilting” to the chaotic “Courage, Courage,” and Stipe’s Flash to Bang Time bandmates flesh out the songs without undermining their simplicity. Sure, you could catch Oh-OK in New York on Saturday during CMJ, but it’s a pleasure to see them in their element.
Bob Mould: Word is, ex-Hüsker Dü/Sugar frontman Bob Mould planned to sprinkle in songs from throughout his career while reading from his memoir, See a Little Light: The Trail of Rage and Melody. But just a few songs into his 90-minute set, he tells the 40 Watt crowd they can buy the book at the merch table and read it for themselves. Mould talks a bit, noting where he stood for Sugar’s first show and plugging an upcoming DJ stint with the Foo Fighters that he mentions will hit East Coast arenas including the, um, Spectrum. But mostly he reels off one midtempo tune after another, pleasing himself and the faithful until well after 2 a.m.
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