Concert Review Haikus + Animal Hospital

Yo La Tengo, Phoenix, October 2

epic songs from new
record really come into
focus for first time


Beirut, Horseshoe, October 4

transcendence cannot
be forced, although the trying
is enjoyable


And then there’s the one-man band Animal Hospital, the opening opening act at the Beirut show, which stymies the haiku format. They were (he was) totally new to me, but impressed me enough that I bought the self-titled CD. Reminded me of Canadian acts like Glissandro 70 and Final Fantasy, with the looping repetition of easy-on-the-ears musical phrases complicated by waves of light noise and structural trauma – at times ambient & minimal, at times confrontational. He only did a very short set, but it all worked surprisingly well in a live setting, and the record is worth checking out too.

• Animal Hospital, “Para Larva”

The other opening band for Beirut was the local Saffron Sect, and while they were utterly, shamelessly derivative – a little Byrds, a lot of old-style Britfolk – they were lots of fun, too, at least at times. (No less derivative than the wave of neo-garage bands, I suppose; it’s just that the derivations seem so much more dated.) The singer was a ringer for Roger McGuinn, and they used a lot of flute, a little too much even for me, and I’m a big supporter of flute use. I felt no need to buy the record (just as I feel no need to have the neo-garage bands in my life), but you can learn more about them here.

I’ll refrain from commenting on why? (the Yo La Tengo opener, which I’d never heard of before the show), because although I liked them enough I was talking to friends & wasn’t paying them much attention. Happens.