The Scene

MusicDetour.com’s commentary on music, performances, and the DC metro area music scene

Although weather wreaked havoc on the shows the week before, rain helf off last Thursday.  Instead, the large crowd, some with incredibly well-behaved dogs, who came out for the final Fort Reno show of 2009 were treated to tropical breezes and an eclectic mix of music by Grendel Babies, Casper Bangs, and Title Tracks.  The sign painted on the front of the stage coyly said “maybe next year,” but the Fort Reno website promises news about next year’s concert series.  I’m certainly looking forward to it.  A review of last week’s season finale follows after the jump.

The Grendel Babies started the evening off with a unique set.  Athough I am almost certain that this impression is incorrect in formal terms, Grendel Babies seem like 21st C. madrigals, balanced with vaudevillian humor.  Marilena fronts this two-piece lilting voice and deft work on the keyboard, while Jennifer the accompanying violinist may be the most virtuoso performer to ever step onto the Fort Reno Stage.  Watching Grendel Babies perform I felt like I was at Lilith Fair’s second stage, and I mean that in the best possible way, singing songs about objectified damsels who may or may not be in distress.  While I have no idea whether or not this would be their inclination, I can imagine the humor of their act really coming through if they performed with one of the area’s avant garde burlesque acts at a venue such as the Palace of Wonders.

Casper Bangs took the stage next.  Considering frontman Rob’s sense of fashion, clearly displayed on his website, it is odd that he took the stage in a white t-shirt and white jeans, joking between songs that he resembled a house painter.  The Casper Bangs repertoire offers an intellectual take on relationship songs; anybody with a Hamlet complex can identify with the plea, “I need somebody to turn me off / I’m always on.”  Perhaps their songs could be more daring, mostly fashioning psychedelia out of simplified Radiohead and Coldplay riffs, but I really liked their set, and I expect to enjoy their evolution.

I came to the park really looking forward to seeing the Title Tracks, and I was not disappointed.  I’ve been missing frontman John’s band Q and not U since they broke up several years ago, but not so much now that I’ve seen what he is doing now.  The Title Tracks are clearly a product of a wide range of influences, but I mostly hear early Britpop, as if Elvis Costello and Paul Weller formed a band in Liverpool in 1965.  Their tight, catchy set was over in less than 30 minutes, and I definitely wanted more.  I’m sure the teenagers skipping and dancing in front of the stage agreed with me.

Thanks to Ron Akins, whose pics are available on Facebook.