Performing under the name Les Yeux, Brooklyn’s Oberhofer performed at Pianos Tuesday night to a sparse crowd. Fortunately for those in the crowd, we got ourselves a great performance with a dynamic frontman. The set was new songs full of happy, melodic tunes. Brad Oberhofer was intense, at times spastic, all too consumed by the music he was performing. When he wasn’t quivering, he was bouncing non-stop, as if he was a guitar-toting kangaroo.
By the third to last song, Oberhofer decided the tiny stage was a bit too claustrophobic and decided to perform on the ground with the crowd. Perhaps it was the lack of people in the audience, that made the band seem a bit awkward at times, but nevertheless, Oberhofer put on an amazing set.
Oberhofer, going under the name Les Yeux, perform again next week at their Pianos residency. Try to show up for that, it’ll be worth it.
Right before Oberhofer went on, London’s Splashh opened the night’s performance. I am loving these guys. You can definitely hear the Deerhunter influence in their guitar, but I also sensed some breathy Zombies vocals in their harmonies. I loved the synchronized head shaking between singer/guitarist Sasha Carlson and guitarist/synth Toto Vivian. Though there was a synthesizer, it was rarely played, and when used was barely noticeable, which was refreshing.
They’ll be playing a few west coast dates, which you can check out here. Go see them LA and SF!
The final performance of the night was Norway’s Carmen Villain (Carmen Maria Hillestad). Her set was 3 songs only, all of which were slow, slow, and slow.
So, if you’re in need of some shows to attend, go see Oberhofer next Tuesday at Pianos or if you’re in LA (4/27), San Diego (4/28), or San Francisco (4/30) go see Splashh. You won’t be disappointed with either band.
The TEAR-N TAN Files 