There’s always a bit of fear and trepidation when I anticipate a show as much as I did this one. Usually you’re setting yourself up for a disappointment, but that was not the case Monday night at San Francisco’s Bottom of the Hill. The stellar double header of Foreign Born and The Veils definitely goes down as one of my top concerts so far this year.
Both bands were excellent, but I have to say Foreign Born really delivered an outstanding performance with a rich, polished and professional sound rarely seen at the likes of this venue. And they had a stage show too. When’s the last time you saw a show at Bottom of the Hill with two drummers, stage lighting and smoke effects? It was a first for me. They were tight.
The Veils, Finn Andrews, bared his soul during the show giving such a passionate performance he could barely compose himself after “Larkspur.” Wow, was all I could say. His vocals reigned true throughout the night and his graciousness on stage was and unexpected surprise for me. Impressive all around.
Wow. There is an absolute stellar line of music happening tonight at Bottom of the Hill featuring London-based The Veils, So Cal up and comers Foreign Bornand Cleveland buzz makers Other Girls. Two of whom also happen to be the creators of my more beloved albums this year. Why the hell this show isn’t sold out is beyond me. It’s quite possibly one of the finest line ups I’ve seen all year. So if you’re SF-based, I highly recommend you get out to see it. Regardless of where you live, you should definitely add these albums to your collection.
The Veils frontman and songwriter, Finn Andrews, makes me swoon. His voice is stunning, his lyrics are soul baring. Couple that with a heady rush of guitars and you’ve got yourself ballad rock epitomised (nod to the Brits here with that spelling). For a band that constantly earns comparisons to Nick Drake, Morrissey and Jeff Buckley, it’s almost incomprehensible why they are not a bigger deal.
Sun Gangs is their third release and I would go so far to say it might be one of the sleeper albums of 2009. And now for a little music trivia. Did you know that Finn’s father Barry Andrews is a renowned musician himself? Playing with the likes of XTC, Brian Eno, David Bowie and Iggy Pop.
Foreign Born started in San Francisco in 2003 after singer Matt Popieluch and guitarist Lewis Pesacov graduated San Francisco State University. After playing a few shows, the pair went down to LA to clean up their rough demos. The results were promising enough for Lewis and Matt to quit their menial jobs and move down to LA where the current line-up of Foreign Born was, yes, born.
Their first LP, On The Wing Now, was released in 2007 and their latest effort, Person to Person, just released last month. I adore their first single from the album, “Vacationing People” andhad the chance to see them perform at SXSW earlier this year. Judging by the number of recognizable faces in the audience at that show, it was evident that I’m not the only one who loves them either. After all, if Grizzly Bear’s Ed Droste deems you as his “favorite new band”, you must be doing something right.
And I’m off…adios…sayonara. We’re going on vacation. Hooray! Can you guess where? I have some posts queued up while I’m away and so do my guest bloggers. I hope you enjoy the fresh voices. See you in a few weeks!
Foreign Born started in San Francisco in 2003 after singer Matt Popieluch and guitarist Lewis Pesacov graduated San Francisco State University. After playing a few shows, the pair went down to LA to clean up their rough demos. The results were promising enough for Lewis and Matt to quit their menial jobs and move down to LA where the current line-up of Foreign Born was, yes, born.
Their first LP, On The Wing Now, was released in 2007 and their latest effort, Person to Person, is due out in June. I’m in love with the first single from the album, “Vacationing People.” Judging by the number of recognizable faces in the audience at this show, I’m not the only one. Chris from The Morning Benders was as equally excited as I was to be there. And Grizzly Bear guitarist Ed Droste called Foreign Born his “favorite new band” recently.
My rock-n-roll vacation is just days, hours away. I’ve been combing the line up of 1400 bands for weeks now. My list is made, I’m checking it twice and trying to keep the panic at bay as I struggle to find a way to fit it all in.
SXSW is the equivalent of Mecca for the indie music junkie, like me. It’s the place you go to discover the best new artists everyone else will be listening 6 months or a year from now, depending on where you fall on the music curve. And already I’ve found some gems. Here’s a sample of a few bands I’m particularly excited to see. Believe me, there are many, many more. Some of them are classics reunited – like Echo and The Bunneymen and Red Red Meat – others somewhat establish, but most are new to the scene and trying to break out. Enjoy!
the OCMD 