A few months back, I asked Twin Shadow via twitter when they would be coming to Detroit. I didn’t see a stop here in their tour dates so it was more of a hypothetical question/suggestion more than anything else. When I got a response that they would be here on November 12, my spirits were lifted instantly. Their album Forget has been on heavy rotation here so I was looking forward to seeing what they had to offer in a live setting. When I found out that it was at the Pike Room, the tiny venue upstairs from The Crofoot that I hadn’t been to since The Walkmen back in early 2009, and then found out that Glasser would be there too, AND that this was all going down on a Friday night, I knew it was an event not to be missed and, for me, one of the highlights of my action packed fall concert schedule.

When we arrived, the youngsters in attendance had formed a large semi circle around the stage, leaving plenty of room for us to start a trend and go right up front and center. It was awkward at first, but everyone quickly followed suit. When I have my camera, I often regret not seizing these opportunities, but not on this night. The 4-piece band took the stage around 9:30 and announced that they were starting late because of someone who wouldn’t be mentioned. But we didn’t really care, because what came next was well worth the wait.

There were a lot of surprises during this set that made this show really special. First off, all of the songs seemed slightly modified for the live show, but all for the better. For example, “Castles in the Snow” featured a second verse that was played at full intensity rather than holding back like on the album. We were also surprised to learn that frontman George Lewis Jr. was one hell of a guitarist (on top of being a great vocalist). He threw in guitar solos left and right and from right up front I got a great view of him shredding. My mind was also blown by the drummer who kept things moving along briskly with speed of light rhythms and fills. A friend of mine saw their set in Chicago the following night and texted me about how he felt like with all of the energy, synth, drum machines and vocals and overall 80s feel of the music, it all felt very Prince-esque, and I think I would agree with that.

George talked about how we were a better audience than Toronto had been the night before, then retracted and said we were at the very least better dancers (this is a true story), and then apologized that they had sold out of CDs and LPs and only had 7″ singles left for sale. George told us that when they got some more he would give us a call. He also mentioned that he had no idea what to expect from Pontiac and that they were really surprised in a good way with the size and enthusiasm of the crowd. I felt proud that Detroit had finally shown up for an extremely worthy but slightly under the radar show, something the city hasn’t been too great at in recent history. The banter felt personal and humble and was frequent without being too much. But like I mentioned the real story was the insane amount of energy which words cannot describe. I expected a great show, but I did not expect all of the excitement throughout every single tune. With a solid album under their belts and an incredible live show, I fully expect these kids to blow up like what.

My brand new wide angle lens also came in super handy at this show as the Pike Room stage is roughly one foot off the ground, so when you’re up front, you are basically looking the musicians in the eye.

Twin Shadow – At My Heels

After the crowd collectively caught our breath from Twin Shadow’s set (I’d go so far as to say it was one of my favorites of the year due to the performance and overall atmosphere), it was Glasser’s turn to take the stage. They came out with keyboard and drum pad setups covered in peach and pink streamers and Cameron Mesirow took the stage in a head-to-toe red number with chorded necklace as the other three members of her band wore dark blue jumpsuits with similar necklaces. This slightly conceptual appearance was the perfect compliment to Glasser’s eerily beautiful music, and the stage seemed clear and wide open.

We discovered during the soundchecks that there were some prerecorded backing tracks that would be used throughout the show, but it was more than OK because its those vocal harmonies that make Glasser’s music so special, and Mesirow’s incredible voice was definitely still the star of the show. The most interesting part for me was that the guitar player, while it appeared he was playing a guitar, was actually playing a modified guitar that was actually a synthesizer, as the bright-red clad singer informed us. It was pretty cool to watch him playing all of the backing instruments through a guitar. Xylophones, brass instruments and strings all seemed to extrude from that guitar and it was a really interesting effect to go along with everything else. I think I first noticed him playing the speedy xylophone riff that rolls throughout “Treasury of We”. It was the little things like this that helped Glasser to stand out. Even the drum set wasn’t a drum set at all, but synthesized drum pads that provided a lot of the backing sounds from Ring.

One of the most personal moments was when the drummer and key player took a seat at the side of the stage (you see, the Pike Room has a sort of strange setup where the band can’t go backstage without walking through the crowd), and Mesirow and her synthguitar player performed a quasi-acoustic version of “T” (well, as acoustic as you can get with a modded guitar turned synth). MOST of the crowd became silent and we got our best glimpse at the haunting vocals that Mesirow provided. The set maintained all of the tribal feel of the album and was a stark contrast to the madness that Twin Shadow brought, but still had a really great esthetic all its own.

The crowd seemed slightly less enthused than during Twin Shadow’s set, but this was just a result of the fact that Glasser’s tunes were by nature slightly more subdued. After “Tremel”, complete with tribal drumming from the keyboard player, the crowd went kind of nuts, to which Cameron commented, “Wow, that one really woke you up!” She moved around the stage with ease and I especially enjoyed her little shimmy shake that she would do so very often. Her squeaks and squeals (that you hear most noticeably on “Apply”) made a few welcome appearances as well. She’s a tiny little thing, but that just makes it all the more impressive when you hear her voice.

All in all, with all of the unique instrumentation you hear on Ring, the live show was just as interesting and entertaining as I’d hoped for. The tribal nature of her music was more than apparent both aurally and visually. These two bands on tour together are a bit of a must see as far as I’m concerned, and I’m glad we got a chance to witness it from the intimacy of the Pike Room because I have a strong feeling that next time these bands roll through town (hopefully sooner than later), they will be in the much larger Crofoot downstairs, and they are both more than worthy of any success they see.

Glasser – Mirrorage