Seattle Subsonic

More Starfucker (Transmitting From the Vera Project)

November 5th, 2008

Hey kids, I know you’re probably sick of me writing about this band, but, hey, that’s what we do here: shove it down your throat until you scream, “UNCLE! UNCLE!!!”. Ok, that’s exaggeration. But we do like to tell you about music that we think is really rad. Case in point: the bouncy, electro-pop symphonies of Starfucker. This DIY trio energized the Vera Project last Saturday (11/1) night for a collection of about 100 or so younglings and maybe a handful of adults too entranced to care that they were severely outnumbered by the new neon breed of alternative kids (i.e. me).

 

 

I would like to first point out that the space the Vera Project has commandeered (the old Snoqualmie Room adjacent to Key Arena) for its all-ages venue is quite nice. Kind of a smaller, cleaner Neumos is how I would describe it. Rather than set up their gear (which included at least 4 keyboards, 2 drum kits, bass, guitar, iPod, lights, and electronics galore) atop the stage like the previous two acts, Half Yogurt and Coco Coca, the three guys chose to put themselves right on the floor in the middle of the action. Given the somewhat sparse crowd that had collected early, it was good to see the circle of people converge into an intimate, house-party-like setting such as the band has used to gain its following.

 

The set began, actually, with a few songs not on the band’s self-titled debut, and, by my blurry count, played maybe three or four others also not on the record. A nice little surprise, I’d say. And while some musicians have trouble replicating their often over-produced sound in a live setting, Starfucker had absolutely none at all; their songs sounded just as sugary, just as bleary, just as punchy, and just as grand as they do through the headphones. They charmed the onlookers early with “Isabella of Castile”; they serenaded the adorers halfway through with hits ”German Love” and “Pop Song”, and they revved the bounding pack of fans by closing with the resounding space anthem “Rawnald Gregory Erickson the Second”.

 

 

 

We were even treated to a break-dance CLINIC from guitarist/keyboardist/vocalist Ryan Biornstad, a horse-head hat atop the noggin of drummer/bassist/keyboardist Shawn Glassford, and stellar multi-musicianship from vaporous vocalist Josh Hodges. Good times.