1990s At Bowery Ballroom; Cheap Time At Mercury Lounge | October 18, 2007
Glad I got to Mercury Lounge early, as Turbo Fruits started at 7 sharp and dished up their trash-psych-ish urgh. Great drummer, that one. Nashville’s Cheap Time followed with one of the best sets of the fest so far. This line-up was an In the Red Records’ showcase, and though Cheap Time’s ItR debut isn’t out yet (early next year), their half-hour blast made one salivate at the prospect. The threesome take a ‘79 Brit songwriting bent (a little Wire chop, some Jam mod-melodics) and run it through a not-just-another trash-rock junk dumpster, with guitarist flailing so much that you’re glad the ceiling is out of the guitar neck’s fling reach, lest they bust their gear and have to stop their set.
Booked over to Bowery Ballroom where for some odd reason the acts seem to be running quite early — odd for any festival show. So 1990s had the luxury of taking their sweet time setting up, finishing off their probably 6th or 7th beer, and hit the stage just a little loopy. Maybe it was all the film cameras up in their grills throughout the set. Once the band got used to the weird situation (about 3 songs in), they got down to working up their angular power pop for a crowd about half full of folks who knew every word and the other half just smiling at these charming Scots lads.
It was the third show in the last three days for the hardest working act in power pop. A Wednesday afternoon set at West Village frat-jerk hangout, the Village Underground, was weird, as it was a Rockstar Games promo party, so people on the periphery were whipping their Wiis around. But nothing keeps 1990s from sporting enormo-grins and looks in their eyes like they just can’t believe people come out and singalong to their tunes — a refreshing stance in the often bearded’n'bored indie pop mileau.
Went back to Mercury Lounge in hopes of catching Jay Reatard, but the jerks at the door weren’t “letting anymore badges back in.” So sorry, I would’ve liked to have told you about that one too. Oh, and the Mannequin Men set at Don Pedro’s on Wednesday night, where they slayed even more than Cheap Time, and the Coathangers opened and screeched like Bikini Kill’s snotty nieces, and, and…oh, gotta go…
