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Surfer Blood
Granada Theater
March 15, 2010
Better than: Watching The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, if nothing else.
Surfer Blood took to the stage ahead of schedule last night–and saw a decent crowd (for a Monday night, at least) awaiting it.
Not bad following a weekend of pretty much relentless partying for most of North Texas.
With a kind of Jimmy Eats World-ish frat-boy sensibility (except the token wild-man percussionist keyboardist), the band played a crisp 50-minute set, mostly consisting of its recent release, Astro Coast. Heavy on reverb and pedals, the songs were poppy and competently delivered.
But, whether due to the aforementioned weekend burnout or the lack of dynamic stage presence, the songs barely got heads nodding.
And maybe therein lies the problem: While Surfer Blood is riding a decent swell of critical acclaim at the moment, the band is young–maybe too early along in its evolution–to command top billing on a national tour.
Not enough showmanship. Not enough songs. Just not enough…
Critic’s Notebook
Random Note: Checking up at the soundboard for the set list, I found there was none. Probably not enough songs in the band’s repertoire to allow flexibility in what songs they’ll play and in what order from one night to the next, huh?
