I bought tickets to last night's Hot Chip show at the Crystal Ballroom several months back. I have been wanting to see them for a couple of years now. I had tickets to a show last year in Seattle, but a last minute job interview caused me to miss it. So, even though I knew this show was right around the baby's due date, I figured I would buy tickets anyway and see what happened. When Ami found out I had bought tickets she was none too pleased. But, this was the first benefit of our baby's holdout.
My favorite part of seeing bands for the first time is that often I have no clue what the band members look like. This was the case with Hot Chip. So, I was pretty surprised when the nerdy crew took the stage. Especially the lead singer who looked straight off of Beauty and the Geek (pre-geek makeover episode!). But they could bring the heat nonetheless. The padded floor of the ballroom was definitely bouncing as Hot Chip worked through 90 minutes of their own brand of electro-dance-pop-rocks. The main set was pretty much a dance party, especially when they hit the hand drums. The singers voice wasn't as crisp as on their albums, where there is obviously some production work involved. But, they did stretch out a few tracks which lead to some serious footwork from a Portland crowd often know for its shoegazing at shows.
The encore was a little bit of a letdown as 2 of the 3 tracks were pretty mellow. And they didn't play my favorite track (The Warning off of the second album of the same name). But, I and the rest of the crowd left tired, sore, and satisfied. Check out Hot Chip's albums. The Warning is my favorite; and the latest, Made in the Dark, is also a great album. You know what else was made in the dark.....?
