Two bands were opening for Omar Souleyman on Thursday night, I hadn’t had the chance to attend any of the Twilight Concerts on the Santa Monica pier this year, but I knew that Souleyman would be a must see. I remember about his show at the FYF fest, he blew up the top of the large tent and I couldn’t first comprehend how an unknown guy from Syria could have attracted such a crowd when playing opposite to MGMT!
But first, we heard the Slightlys, a very young band fronted by a blonde guy, Finneas O’Connell, who let everyone know he was already a big rock star, at least, he had all the right stage moves. The baby quartet won a battle of the bands this year and got the first place against 16 other bands, which explained why they were playing with such assurance and confidence. They made a big entrance on stage and soon one of the guitarists was shredding like a pro despite his young age. They were playing music which sounded like a much brighter and lighter side of Nirvana with big rock hooks, and took an electric violin during their last song to jump into a Gogol-Bordello-esque gypsy number. They wanted to impress, got a big support from their fan club in the crowd… and when the organizers interviewed Finneas O’Connell, it’s clear that he was determined to tour and not go back to college,… haaa, good luck to them, it’s so good to be 17.
I had seen the next band De Lux before, but they played an impressive set as if they had increased their range and diversified their songs. I like their post-disco sound with a funky undertone, and I couldn’t get David Byrne out of my head as Sean Guerin’s vocals sounded really close to that of the Talking Heads’ frontman, reworking the famous deadpan delivery, and I am not saying this in a negative way at all! Their music seemed to reinvent soundscapes navigating between LCD soundsystem, Blondie and obviously the Talking Heads, with funky and throbbing disco beats, and at times, almost that Giorgio Moroder’s Midnight Express theme soundtrack (‘Love is a Phase’). At the origin, De Lux is a duo but they were five on stage this time, giving more volume to their songs with a Korg synth, layered guitars and Nile-Rodgers-like super funky bass lines… disco may be back with Daft Punk’s big success but De Lux’s music is much more intricate, inventive and may be too complex for mainstream success? Although their song ‘Better at Making Time’ could totally work in this sense. The young girl on my right had totally come for them as she left as soon as they were done… and I understand since Guerin had this sad romantic look, despite the fact that their set turned to be a big dance party on the pier, with infectious disco and trippy grooves (their album on Innovative Leisure is called ‘Voyage’) sprawling for a few good minutes.
More pictures of the show here.
