Seattle Subsonic

The Pica Beats At The Comet Last Saturday

March 3rd, 2009

After my, ahem, madcap evening on Friday, a group of us headed out for a more subdued experience watching the Pica Beats at the Comet Tavern. I was the DD even though we didn’t drive. You can see a few pics of it here. As I’ve said before, I’m currently quite addicted to Beating Back the Claws of the Cold, equally wrapped up in its stirring spectral songs, cryptic prose and poetry, overt oboe, and one very impressive sitar, mostly courtesy of Ryan Barrett (who wrote the thing, but had several guest musicians).

.

The Comet Tavern did not do this soft rockin’ Hardly Art band justice. Hard rockers like Kinski, or the Valley, have little trouble in this venue. Hamstrung by vocal feedback, I got the sense the group had a difficult time getting into a groove. The bass was turned down too low, as were the vocals; the keyboards, which supplanted the oboe I used to entice my friend not familiar with the band, were too loud.

.

Despite these shortcomings, however, the best songs (“Cognac & Rum”, “Poor Old Ra”, “Hope, was not a Smith Family Tradition”) shone through and compelled the crowd. The drummer, Colin English, was a hair short of perfection. Barrett, as promised, set up his sitar on a very clever swiveling device which allowed him to play it standing up. Three songs in, he took hold and the band played “Martine, as Heavy Lifter” and “Hikikomori and the Rental Sisters”.

.

I look forward to seeing the Pica Beats somewhere else in the near future.