PHOTOS AND REVIEW BY ABBIE STUTZER
I have always thought The Bottleneck is a great place to go for shows. There's plenty of dance floor for the skinny-pant-wearing dance crowd, enough seating for the slightly anti-social crowd, and enough extra space for everyone else.
The venue was pretty empty early in the night. One club kid in leopard spandex and another in a gold leotard bounded from the bathroom to the bar about - hmm - eight times before they decided on a place to stand for the show.
People began trickling into the Bottleneck as evening became night, however. When Hey Champ took the stage, the bar was only a little less than half full.
Chicago's Hey Champ has a sound that blends indie-pop and electronic rock. Saam Hagshenas (main vocals, guitar, keys), Jon Marks (drummer, keys, backing vocals), and Pete Dougherty (keys and synths) had a relatively strong stage presence. While they seemed a bit uneasy during their first two songs, they began to interact with the crowd as their performance progressed. The song that grabbed the crowd's attention (and turned a few anti-socials into dancers) was the calm, summery single that got Hey Champ signed to Lupe Fiasco's label, 1st & 15th, "Cold Dust Girl."
Hey Champ finished their set in about 25 minutes and thanked the crowd (no, no -- thank you guys!), reminded us their first album will come out this summer (Sweet.), and asked if we were ready for the Sounds.
Oh, you can bet your indie asses that we're ready, thought the crowd. (I'm just guessing.)
So, have you ever heard the sound sugar makes? Yep. Sugar makes a sound. It's super, super sweet, a bit grating, but when you hear it in high doses, it's addicting.
The Sounds replicate the sound of sugar. Not the sweet, cutesy, pop sugar you see on grocery store shelves, but the dirty, sassy, New Wave sugar you see in sexy little packets on diner table tops.
The fellas, Jesper Anderberg (synthesizers and piano), Felix Rodriguez (guitar), Johan Bengtsson (bass), and Fredrik Nilsson (drums), took the stage first and feisty, Debbie Harrylike singer Maja Ivarsson sauntered on stage last.
The Sounds opened their set with "Ego," followed by "Queen of Apology," two songs from the group's previous album, Dying to Say this to You. Many in the crowd were dying to say, Maja! Take me!
And I can't blame them, because Maja (and the rest of the band) looked good. The groups' tight, tattered, 80s dance-rock appearance made it clear that we were all supposed to dance (people forget, you know?)
The Sounds continued synthpopapalloza with a song from their soon to be released (June 2) album, Crossing the Rubicon. In fact, they played a lot of new tracks. The crowd responded to the new songs well, learning each song's lyrics by the time its chorus was repeated.
The Sounds always followed a new song with a crowd favorite. After playing the new "4 Songs and a Fight," they played the punky, "Hit Me," and after rocking "Dorchester Hotel," they belted the Cars-evoking"Hurt You."
The only time The Sounds slowed down their show was to play their ballad, "Night After Night." They brought the pace back up in a snap with "Painted by Numbers."
The Sounds put on a high-energy show that didn't lag. The band didn't seem to mess up once, and Maja was able to sing, strut, lower her arse to the floor in a sexy manner multiple times, and do an acrobatic leap in the air without falling or breaking her black stilettos.
During the end of their act (somewhere around "Fire") a lady who had attended every show on The Sounds tour got a bit too handsy with Maja's thigh. While Maja took this well, the security did not. The young ruffian lady got reprimanded, but was allowed to stay (later, she decided to crowd surf into a crowd that wasn't receptive). To add to the sexy, fierce atmosphere, another fan decided to shove someone who got to close. A semi-girl fight began to form, but quickly fell a part.
The Sounds chose the perfect song, "Tony the Beat," as an encore. During this song, Maja was comparable to a somewhat less pornographic Peaches. She got the crowd to join in and sing the sex-laden lyrics, and continue to scream for more as she and her mates excited the stage.
While The Sounds' sound may have been a bit too sweet for my ears, I must admit that I enjoyed watching their performance. The Sounds have a dirty, fun presence that's hard not to like.
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ps: does anyone else find it a bit ridiculous that the band had to wear bracelets? i mean, come on. it's the bottleneck. and maja hardly looks under 21. wtf?
@ Eva -- haha! your forehead is so lucky! so, were you part of the group that, according to maja, had been following them since the beginning of the tour?
Thanks for the nice comments guys! Sorry I got a bit of that wrong. Couldn't see too well from where I was.
Hey guys! If you missed The Sounds at The Bamboozle Festival this year check out this exclusive interview with the group at http://www.ie8-thebamboozlefes... !!!
That was my head she grabbed. I was just stopping the fight! And that girl who jumped in the crowd wasn't at all the shows. Just two.
sweet review . . . i was at that show. . . and standing right next to you (or the photographer anyway)! for the record there were two semi-cat fights. the second one being the most memorable as the band actually noticed. and maja grabbed some girl's forehead to try and get their attention. nothing like 17-year-old groupie fights.
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