Explosive psychadelia courtesy of Caribou @ Bowery Ballroom

What a trip! My new friend Tatiana and I'd been talkin' 'bout seein' live rock music for a while. Well we finally did it. The main event was Caribou -- hot off the heels of their acclaimed new record.

But before the show it was a stop at Spitzer's Corner at Ludlow and Rivington. Possibly my favorite bar in NYC yet! In Tatiana's words, it had a Terrace Club vibe, but with significantly more class. And a much finer array of beers. A couple of drinks down and we were off to the Bowery Ballroom -- a legendary venue I've always been set on attending. Definitely lived up to my expectations! Quite an amazing place.

We first walked into the concert hall to be greeted by a truly wild performance from the first opener. The singer seemed to be throwing temper tantrums on stage as he furiously flailed his arms up and down while stomping about. He then grabbed the microphone and started madly sliding it along the guitar strings. A new technique? Not sure if I cared for it. We were curious to know what sorts of substances might inspire such erratic behavior.

After that we were treated to some more pop-oriented songs from the clearly Canadian, and very catchy group Born Ruffians. The singer had a really fun voice! Lots of potential for these guys I imagine.

Then the crowd swelled as the main act took the stage. I hadn't heard too much of this band so I didn't know exactly what to expect. I was pretty blown away by the intensity of their performance. Projected visualizations of swirling geometric images bathed the band in an eerie light. Kicking off with doubled up drums immediately brought on a hypnoticly rhythmic atmosphere.
The music sounds as if they they grew up in modern times with all the electronic stylings of Boards of Canada but then stepped into a time warp back into the 60s and were using their modern sounds to adapt to the dreamy, psychedelic sounds of the bygone era. Very driven and focused musicians -- almost as if they were in a trance, but occasional smiles between each other let you know they were having fun and pleased to see such an enthusiastic crowd. I think I'll buy their new album.