Polvo, Trans Am @ Bimbo's, 9/2/08

Bimbo’s is truly a great venue. Walking though the doors is like being transported back in time, where the interiors are plush, the staff is formal, and the glasses are real. It’s the perfect setting for a Lynch film; dim, red, and kitschy.

I’m not sure how I discovered Trans Am, but I’m really glad I did. They occupy some unusual genre hybrid space that no one will ever be able to think of a name for that will do it justice. They are a 3 piece from Maryland: an unassuming guitarist/keyboardist in red velcro Etnies, a lithe drummer wearing a 1 inch thick rope of ghetto gold around his neck, and a Michael Phelps look-a-like bassist/synths man.

The music- a soundtrack to a cyberpunk Quentin Tarantino film. Instrumentals run the gamut from space out to pump up vibes, and their songs with vocals are both weird and dance worthy. In fact, one of the most entertaining dude dancers I have ever seen was totally getting down the whole time- Napoleon Dynamite meets The Breakfast Club…yeah, you kinda had to be there for that one.

They focused a bit more on their instrumentals than when I saw them open for Tool, but like Battles and 65DaysofStatic, they keep it interesting. A joke was told by the drummer- something involving a cake and the letter B, and the synths guy ate a banana while playing a song. Random.

This Tuesday after a holiday weekend crowd full of music geeks nodded their heads in approval. I hope Natron didn’t piss himself.

Polvo, a 4 piece from Chapel Hill, is on their 10 year reunion tour, which is laughable considering they all look so young. I had never heard of them before, but they delighted with a technically accomplished, though rather mellow set. Their instrumentals are more in the discordant/sounds a bit out of tune spectrum, with odd tempo changes. I didn’t love it, but I appreciated it.

OVERALL: 9/10
Polvo performance: 7/10
Trans Am performance: 9/10
venue (Bimbo’s): 9/10
crowd/scene: 8/10
value ($16.00/ticket): 8/10
memorable: 7.5/10