The End was filled with holiday spirit last night as crowd surfers swept over showgoers’ heads in waves and opened cans of beer rocketed through the air. People either just felt like spending Friday night at The End or Big Surr has a sizeable and loyal fanbase, or both, because the band opened the show to an already-packed crowd. From the fuzzy guitars of their opener, “Alright,” to the end of their set, the band’s revving noise pop was infectious – though the vocals were almost completely drowned out – and perfect for pumping up the crowd for Powerbrrrd.
Watching this trio-turned-quartet is like seeing a band from a cartoon (does anyone remember The Beets from Doug?). Powerbrrrd has a comic appearance and triumphant-nerd demeanor that made the set not just fun, but funny – in a good way. They assaulted the crowd with ’90s garage and punk-infused slop-rock, pierced by Seth Graves’ pinched, nasal vocals that befit their sound.
It would have been impossible to squeeze any more onstage during Casa Castile’s experimental pop set with seven musicians plus a clutter of guitars, keys and a Mac. Andrew Nabuco is the main man behind the group, but his live band is comprised of some very talented vocalists and instrumentalists who delivered each song with a finesse and precision that contrasted with the rest of the night’s lineup. The end of their set was a turning point in the night; once indie sophisticate Evan P. Donahue took the stage, clad in a jacket and tie, things began to escalate.
Donahue commands attention by himself just from his vocal and playing styles, appearance and sheer stage presence. As he blazed through a set of part punk, part minimalist oldies rock n roll, he launched himself several times into the receptive hands of the audience as more alcohol was arching across the room than going down the hatch. By the time Diarrhea Planet closed the show with some raucous, deafening noise rock, people in the crowd were catapulting themselves off the stage and from the rails near the table area, ending with a large portion of the audience singing onstage with the band as the last empty can of PBR hit the ground. – Jessica Pace