By Julia Reidy
When Tapes ‘N Tapes soundchecked after their opener Wild
Light left the stage, all four members sported inappropriate outerwear — black
stocking caps, puffy winter coats — and they wisecracked about the recent Atlanta
snow, dressed better for their Minneapolis winters than our sporadic chill.
When the band returned to the stage for their set, though, not only had they
shed these shells, but the barrier between audience and performer. Armed only
with my fervent adoration for their 2005 debut, The Loon, and a rumor that the band didn’t really deliver live, my
expectations were probably much too low; it was the perfect setup for pleasant
surprise when that rumor proved entirely false.
A little background: last year, Tapes ‘N Tapes released
their second full-length, Walk It Off,
to a flurry of discussion about sophomore slumps, blog backlash and what it
means to be beloved of the hipster set (I mean, there was more than one pair of Buddy Holly glasses on stage…). Tuesday’s
show, for me, effectively silenced all those detractors, as even the material
they played from their less crushworthy follow-up was delivered with an
unmatched intensity and undeniable charm.
The show read like a debut sandwich,
if that makes sense. The first several numbers were tracks from Walk It Off, the most enjoyable of which
was the infections “Hang Them All.” Then, they turned to performing the
majority of The Loon, and one song
they introduced as being “very new.”
Standout selections included “10 Gallon Ascot,” “Omaha,” “In Houston,” “
Manitoba
” and
“Cowbell.”
Toward the end of the set, after exploring more newer material
(including Walk It Off opener “Le
Ruse”), they returned to the frantic audience favorite “Insistor,” before
concluding with “Just Drums” and another new selection. It was a manic set,
full of deliberately pulling tempos and distortion, all just barely
controlled — but that’s what makes Tapes ‘N Tapes so charming overall. All their
instrumentals seem precariously poised, teetering on the brink of chaos with
Josh Grier’s bizarre, idiosyncratic vocals balancing atop them, and no one ever
falters.
Several times during the set, keyboardist and trumpeter Matt
Kretzman stopped to ask the audience, “So does anybody have any comments or questions
at this point?” The crowd tittered, but no one spoke up. I personally couldn’t
muster the courage to yell out an idiot query like, “How do you continue to
compose successfully despite blog backlash?” or, “Why do you guys look so
composed when your songs sound so unhinged?” so I kept my silence. Though our
questions remained unanswered, no one left the show unsatisfied.
