Tuesday night, I found myself at The Black Cat once more, to check out the show where Jerseyians Real Estate were opening for Girls. What a perfect show for a weekday night!

Real Estate kicked it off, opening to a considerable crowd, who all seemed pleased to see them. As my friend Ali described it, it “was a smooth sweet ride”, and I couldn’t agree more. The music washed over us and flowed together so smoothly, I could hardly discern the track shifts. It was more like being invited on a serene jam, in the best of ways. Also doesn’t hurt that they’re the nicest bunch of guys. As for all the lo-fi comparisons (guilty), here’s what frontman Martin has to say, “If we could record in the studio, I would do it in a second,” Courtney says. The Real Estate album, out on Nov. 17, “has definitely got a demo vibe. I think it sounds good for sure, but it’s not a choice we made to sound that way. It’s just the way it is.” Check the rest of the interview with the City Paper, here. I’m tempted to say, well I’m just going to say it, these boys definitely outshined their headliners, and it’s not just my personal opinion (or my Bennington bias), you could feel a definite shift in vibe from the crowd. Check out their previously posted tracks, here.

I didn’t really know much about Girls going into this whole experience. Much much much more low key than Real Estate, the general energy of the show took a dive. That being said, it wasn’t entirely unenjoyable, just unremarkable. A little bit more mopey than I usually take my coffee. The more upbeat tracks I can get into, and these recommendations come straight from the mouth of Ali Walton, with whom I agree wholeheartedly.

Overall, I had an enjoyable low-key evening with the occasional dancing (head bopping, gentle swaying and the like). Boys will be Girls, but that is some damn fine Real Estate (sorry I just had to squeeze in a little cheese).

Girls – Lust For Life
Girls – Laura

I awoke yesterday morning, and nonchalantly began reading Brightest Young Things, a local blog here in DC, and discovered that Cocorosie was going to be appearing at The Black Cat, and was miraculously, NOT sold out! One of my favorite groups at one of my favorite venues? Definitely not to be missed. Well naturally I put on my dancing shoes, grabbed a pal, and headed on down.

One of my favorite things about live performance is how much it can differ from recordings, obviously this can be manifested negatively as well as positively. In the case of Cocorosie, I think it was definitely a positive. It turned the show into a unique experience. It was immensely satisfying to see them playing toys, and of course hearing Sierra sing and play the harp is quite a mesmerizing experience. You could see how much passion everyone had for what they were doing, including the band. I went into it expecting it to be a little strange, and I was not disappointed. They definitely take the idea of costumes and performance to a new and mildly creepy place (but that’s one of the things I love most about their music), in which Bianca seems to play a major role. One of the top moments for me was definitely the realization that instead of drums, they had a guy live beat-boxing the entire time (that’s him in the background). So epic! “Japan” was the greatest crowd pleaser by far, and got everyone moving. Cryptic and haunting and beautiful, Cocorosie was everything I could have hoped for, and more.

Cocorosie – Japan
Cocorosie – Animals

Have a great holiday weekend, y’all.