The night had been hotly anticipated for months. Years, in fact.
As Spaceland started to fill up, the crowd was turning out to be quite a mixed bunch. In one corner you have the Geek Chic girl with glasses that could see the future, the V.P. of the Indie Gazette, strategically placed bro dudes, and, of course, drag queens. Picture the cover of Poison’s Look What the Cat Dragged In, only the chicks aren’t quite as hot. Much speculation went into why a group of men dressed as women would come to Spaceland, but more to the point, for what band. After a brief huddle, and some rugged rouchambeau, BrakesBrakesBrakes was the lucky winner. But they were the headliners, so we can’t talk about them yet—or maybe at all actually.
Opening the show was Brighton’s own Electric Soft Parade, who made their second trip two the West Coast in about a month. “I think we were just here, weren’t we?” vocalist/guitarist Thomas White says, and then adding, “I think I finally took the wrist band off yesterday.” Other than that, the banter was kept to a minimum and it was on with the show. Having three albums under their belts, they had a lot of material to choose from, but still managed to mostly play songs off their latest effort No Need To Be Downhearted, which came out earlier this year. However, ESP opened with two from the back catalogue: “Silent to the Dark” from Holes in the Wall and “A Beating Heart” from The Human Body. The highlights of the evening were “Life In the Backseat” and “If That’s the Case,” which blew everyone away. The latter was pure and performed flawlessly. It’s such a huge track, but felt perfect for a venue the size of Spaceland. Overall, ESP played like they’ve played there before. They were comfortable and cool and most definitely earned themselves a few new fans—guys, gals and even a few transvestites.
Turning almost as many heads as the dudes in dresses was the astronaut wandering through the club, pointing a video camera at the stage as Pela began to play. The band bounced around stage like wide-eyed kids, obviously excited to be playing the west coast for the first time. “I haven’t been out here in like five years,” said frontman Billy McCarthy. “My sister’s here tonight. She’s never even seen me play guitar.” The band tore through a short set that included the majority of their new album Anytown Graffiti, as well as b-sides “Philadelphia” and closer “No Doves, Just Pigeons.” McCarthy is built like a lumberjack, and as he hammered away at his guitar during “Waiting on the Stairs,” the rolled-up sleeves of his long-sleeve shirt gave up the fight and began to shred. Mic stands got knocked over, drinks were tossed, amps were jumped off of, all in the name of rock. To say that it was a long-awaited evening (at least for these writers) is most definitely an understatement, and Pela made sure it wasn’t in vain.
more on pela – download "Lost to the Lonesome.mp3"
more on electric soft parade
