Review: Ladybug Transistor, Papercuts and The Widowers at Hi-Dive
at Hi-Dive in Denver. August 14 2007
Sometimes you need to go see a band live to really appreciate them. This was true for me and The Ladybug Transistor. Listening to their album a few times I was only interested in a couple of their songs. But seeing them perform live last night at the Hi-Dive was a different experience and listening to their album this morning I am really enjoying it.
The band seemed happy and were laughing throughout most of the set. That made it even easier to enjoy their easy-going sound that mixes sounds from so many different genres.
Ladybug Transistor were preceded on stage by The Papercuts, a San Francisco band which is really just Jason Robert Quever and a couple of his friends. Jason plays guitar and keyboard and when he sings he sounds as if his dog just ran away from home.
The bass player and drummer he brought along on tour were definitely minimalist but combined with the melancholic singing the sound was very powerful. They had all sorts of technical problems but maybe complaining about things going wrong on stage is just part of the show?
The opening band was The Widowers from here in Denver. They play a combination of psychedelic-tinged pop-rock that is interesting to listen to. I look forward to seeing more of them soon as they have several shows lined up.