Words and photos by Andrew Parks
“Can everyone be quiet please?” asked Bradford Cox, as he struggled to lead Deerhunter through a quick song at Brooklyn Bowl. “This is soundcheck, not showtime.”
And so began the No Age/Deerhunter/Dan Deacon show that went from a simple, open-air Pool Party to a pair of free 600 cap performances at the area’s first-ever bowling alley/concert venue combo. A disaster waiting to happen, in other words, made all the more real by the rushed looks on everyone’s faces before the doors officially opened. Especially in Deacon’s case. While the guy’s usually a life-sized teddy bear cloaked in vintage T-shirts and chunky glasses, he didn’t look too happy when a stage manager said they needed to start letting people in and cut Deacon’s soundcheck short. Deacon’s response, in essence: “Um, what the fuck?”
In the end, it didn’t make a difference. While all odds were against such an ambitious bill, the entire night went down without a hitch, leaving enough time for hand-selected opening acts (White Rainbow‘s seamless blend of drone and dance music, the Fuck Buttons-lite jams of Infinite Body, and the demented marching band music of Ed Schrader) and the main attraction, a blinding blend of key cuts from all three artists. Some highlights in the restless rotation: the steady, tension-harnessing build of “Cryptograms,” the manic peaks of “Snookered,” and nearly everything No Age touched. The brute force of the duo’s 21st century punk fit the round robin format perfectly, driving a crowd of mostly young kids–the ones willing to wait in line for hours to get a spot in front of the stage–absolutely bonkers. It’s amazing nothing got broke between all the equipment crammed on stage (two drum kits, Deacon’s effects/samples/synths rack, and a tangled web of cords) and the night’s steady stream of stage divers and crowd riders.
All and all, everyone was in good spirits throughout, too, despite the endless line that led them into a packed room and a muddy mix that killed the momentum of some Deerhunter songs. Hooks still peeked out of songs like “Never Stops,” though, with Cox adding a nice layer of harmonies and guitar heroics to non-‘hunter tracks as well. That’s the thing about the round robin concept: beyond the head rush of seeing so many one-night-only collaborations, the simple act of a set list shifting between three wildly popular artists means you never get bored. Sick of hearing Deacon treat his voice like a Looney Tunes character? That’s all right, because No Age is up next with the cascading chords and sputtering breaks of “Eraser.” Not feeling No Age’s torrential noise? It’ll all be over soon, when Deacon resumes his role as indie rock’s leading motivational speaker. And so on…
To get a better idea of who did what with whom, we’ll be putting a ton of video clips–many of them full songs, and at least one straight-up jam–in a couple hours. For now, some photos …
