Weblog
03/22/07 02:14 AM: Live Show: Oh No! Oh My!
Oh No! Oh My!
w/Mew
March 21, 2007 at the Black Cat, Washington, DC
Oh No! Oh My!’s self-titled album was ranked #22 on my top records of 2006 list. When I reviewed that album back in October, I talked about how I was hoping to see them live. Well, my wish came true the other night at the Black Cat.
Prior to the show, I joked that they would most likely play the songs I didn’t like on the album, mixed with “new material.” When the band opened with “Skips the Foreplay,” I knew my prediction was going to come true. I always wondered why they opened their album with that track, let alone the show. I find it to be a bit of an awkward song, but I held out hope for the rest of the set.
On the positive side, the sound quality at the Black Cat was excellent. This is often the case at the Cat, but last night was impressive. Unfortunately, though, high fidelity sound can’t make up for a poor set. The band played several new songs, including one that featured the drummer on vocals, singing “I’m not a monster.” That song was supposedly a “dance number” but was more just an awkward show of some awkward guys jumping around on stage.
They played every track off their record except for “On the Town,” “Farewell to All My Friends” and “The Backseat.” Unfortunately, those were some of the best songs. Their live versions of “Lisa Make Love” and “Jane is Fat” were awkward, and the instrumentation seemed to be off. “I Love You All the Time,” which relies on some synths and keys, seemed too focused on an acoustic guitar, which completely changed the sound.
I came away from the show thinking that they should just stick to the acoustic guitar and play songs such as “Farewell to All My Friends” rather than awkward renditions of the songs that sounded great in the studio.
Of course I give a band leeway in playing songs differently live. Most of the time the band can bring the song to life in a way that’s not possible listening to it at home. However, in the case of Oh No! Oh My!, it was much like watching a completely different band cover some Oh No! Oh My! songs.
It was the first night of their tour, coming on the heels of SXSW, so I’ll give them some benefit of the doubt. However, I wasn’t particularly impressed. Perhaps I was expecting something different, or something more. Instead I got a band that seemed like a bad imitation of The Boy Least Likely To.
