Deerhoof/Danielson Famile
with Nedelle
Monday May 9th, 2005 @ First Unitarian Church, Philadelphia

Only a week ago, if someone were to mention the city of Philadelphia, a few things would come to mind… cheese steaks, Fresh Prince, Rocky and last but not least, AIDS. Now, after an eight hour trek to attend one of the best shows in years, I can add one more thing to the list…the Liberty Bell.

Although the bell did not live up to the 9/11 style security measures taken to protect it, the trip to the ‘City of Brotherly Love’ was definitely worthwhile thanks to a packed show at the First Unitarian Church. Upon hearing about this show, it only made sense that one of the strangest, most broadly accepted Christian acts would choose such a venue for a rare performance. The interesting thing is that the show wasn’t exclusive, the church regularly features high level indie acts gracing its small stage.

The atmosphere reminded me of the one time I was dragged out by some friends to attend a youth group activity night. The space looked like an oversized rec room, lit by overhead pot lights, turned off with the flick of a light switch as the show began, as though attending a show put on in your friends basement. The first act goes by the name Nedelle, a female singer/songwriter singing catchy folk songs of faith. An enjoyable performance, but hard to take in seeing as she was sitting for the most part and completely hidden by the crowd. Shortly after that, a two person act of drums and guitar, whose name escapes me, played some stripped down noisy pop songs, suiting a Deerhoof bill. Moments of catchy guitar work and poppy hooks were possibly overtaken by the lack of bass, repetitive song structure and some sort of technical difficulty which seemed as though the guitarist had forgotten how to play a part of a song.

As the place became increasingly crowded, the heat was beginning to rise. Luckily the Danielson Famile walked onto the stage in their trademark white nurses uniforms. The set began surprisingly with “Things Against Stuff”, the first track off of Daniel Smith’s solo album. As soon as the family began, I was reminded why they are one of my favourite bands. Although their instruments are almost entirely acoustic, their energy level could even give Guitar Wolf a run for their money. Watching Daniel Smith emit his signature vocals makes you realize that there is a real person behind a voice that seemingly could only come from a cartoon character. The sincerity behind the performance was incomparable. There is no question why the Smith’s and their friends make the music they make. They are one of strangest well-adjusted families in the world, and watching them perform makes you want to become an adopted member. The only downside to the performance was the fact that it had to end.

At this point I was skeptical about whether or not Deerhoof would be overshadowed. I was very familiar with their music, but had heard nothing about their live show. Maybe this emphasized my amazement when drummer Greg Saunier began swinging his arms around his kit at a lightning speed, sometimes seemingly not even touching the drums, maintaining an off time yet on time rhythm. At this point I had thought back to hearing Nervous Cop, Suanier’s side project with drummer Zach Hill of Hella. It all made sense. This introduced a whole technical side of Deerhoof which never really came across to me through their records. Technical instrumentals seem to make up almost half of their set, leaving the rest for some great noisy pop music. After a late instrument switch, bassist/vocalist Satomi Matsuzaki passed off her instrument and took front stage, performing a selection of songs from their latest LP Milk Man, and their newly released Japanese EP, Green Cosmos. This is where the show hit its peak, with Matsuzaki jumping around stage, infecting the audience with her Eastern-influenced pop vocals which may as well have been gibberish. (Or maybe they were?) I watched in amazement as she managed to draw the attention off of Saunier’s manic drumming, and onto herself.

The only downside to the performance was my hopes for a live collaboration between Daniel Smith and Deerhoof not being met. Seeing as they’re working on some songs together for Daniel’s upcoming solo album, I had figured there was some reason behind the live line up, but the show was too good to be disappointed by this.

Thinking back, this was probably on one of the best shows of my life. As Daniel Smith sang for the singers and related good news for the puss pickers, I was the happiest I’ve ever been standing in a ridiculously hot, crowded church rec room, in what is suitably known as the city of ‘Brotherly Love’. — Jay C.

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