I could tell that Memory Tapes was the Noise Pop show of choice this Saturday night from several blocks away while I was walking to the venue. The line outside of Bottom of the Hill was longer than I had ever seen it, almost wrapping around the block, and they were already sold out and rejecting badges. While I thankfully already had my ticket, the wait took a good twenty minutes and I unfortunately missed the opener. I’m sorry Letting Up Despite Great Faults, I’ll try to catch you at a later date! From what I could make of the muffled sound flowing through the entryway, you sounded great.

The second band, Birds and Batteries, were an interesting four-piece.  With a plethora of synthesizers in addition to the traditional guitar/bass/drums set-up, they ended up straddling the rock and electronica genres in a way that failed to appease me. They were competent musicians and executed their tracks perfectly, however I felt that their sound needed some adjustment to truly move to the next level. The best parts of their set were long and drawn out instrumental jam sessions that were heavily keyboard based which got the crowd, including myself, dancing all over the floor. I feel that if they moved more in this direction they could be pretty successful, and they have some potential to become a better group in the future.

I noticed the frontgirl for Loquat amicably wandering through the crowd wearing a striking green dress before her set, calmly socializing as if she was just another audience member, not a performer. When they took the stage I could see why she was so confident, Loquat really knew what they were doing. With a traditional line up plus keyboards, they placed their focus on the rock aspects of their music. I have to admit, it sounded a little commercial and almost too accessible, but that’s what made them my guilty pleasure for the night. Kylee has an amazing voice and she knows how to use it, and the rest of the band seemed to envelope it while thrusting it forwards as the centerpiece of their sound. I would not be surprised if they signed to a major record label tomorrow, and from the conversations overheard in the crowd probably immediately lose their street credibility.

Finally Memory Tapes came on, the band I had been waiting for all night. If you have listened to their records, it becomes rapidly clear that their band revolves around a wide variety of soothing electronic melodies. Considering this, I was exceedingly surprised to see them come out as a two-piece with just drums and a guitar/vocalist. For their entire set all of the electronics were pre-recorded and played as if they were on an iPod, although admittedly they had a harsher and starker tone then their chillwave roots. If I were them, the first thing I would do is to add at least one electronic musician to their touring lineup to flesh out their sound. That being said, they had without a doubt the best set of the night and I was quite impressed. Their live tracks are remarkably dance oriented compared to their album, which I found a pleasant surprise in a large venue environment. My favorite part of their track “Bicycle” is the guitar solo, and due to their line up restrictions this aspect of their music was pushed to the forefront that I found incredibly satisfying. They ended with a 10 minute long rendition of “Bicycle” that was absolutely stunning and had my ears swimming in a sea of ecstasy. It was incredibly upsetting however when they failed to perform an encore despite the cheers and pleas of the crowd. Even though the end of their set was less than gracious I would recommend seeing them, just be prepared to dance, not chill.

Filed Under:
Genre, San Francisco, San Francisco Event Reviews