We got to check out a new venue this past Friday night that I have heard is doing good things for the music scene. The venue, XPO 929, is located in the Bushwick section of Brooklyn, NY. Not known for its musical output as much as nearby Williamsburg is, but if venues like this keep doing what they are doing that could change before long.
The show was a collection of bands that I had been really wanting to see including EndAnd, The Barrens, and Generator Ohm. Debbie from The Barrens put the whole show together and showed how bands that support each other can make for a fun night. This is the start of a cooperative music scene that is much needed in today’s NYC music landscape.
XPO 929 is not an easy place to find as it has no proper sign yet and is underneath the elevated subway line but I just followed the ‘out of place’ sound of rock music emanating from the blank black storefront. I walked in during the middle of a set by the band Invisible Days. The trio was producing an interesting mix of psychedelic shoegaze music that had the small crowd captivated. They used their instruments in unnatural ways to create some very interesting music.
Next up was the fuzzy noise punk stylings of EndAnd. I loved their debut record Adventures Of Fi In Space and wanted to see if they could reproduce the sound in a live setting. The energy was amazing as every band member pounded their instrument to get as much as they could out of it. The sound in XPO wasn’t the best and everyone, including Daniel the guitarist, was having trouble hearing his guitar. The songs did translate though as their stage presence and sound had the feeling of a hardcore show from 20 years ago minus the slam dancing audience.
Since Debbie put together the show, it was only fair that The Barrens had the prime 11pm set. It was a little tough to fit all 5 members of the band in the XPO stage area but they made it work. Their style of mixing atmospheric keyboards with punk guitars creates a sort of mish mosh of creativity that has to be witnessed. The band also seems to have a great time on stage which always makes for an even better show. The Barrens did not disappoint and had the crowd glued to their entire set.
The closer of the night was Generator Ohm, a band I had heard of, but embarrassingly had not actually heard the music of yet. Boy was I in for a treat. The band exploded onto the stage with an energy that drew everyone in the venue to the front of the stage. It must have been hot up there too because Willie had his shirt off by the start of the second song. The sound is reminiscent of At The Drive In before they broke up and formed the shitty Mars Volta. It is stadium rock mixed with an experimental edge that creates pure electricity. Mike Morales’ drums led the power to the point that he knocked a crash symbol right off its stand. Their performance was a class on how to keep an audience entertained and into the set.
Bottom Line: This was a show that I am more than glad I made it to. The community of the bands supporting each other and rocking out to each other’s sets was inspiring and, as I said earlier, is severely lacking in the current NYC music scene. These bands can create something great both with their stunning music and with the attitude they have to the scene in general.
Indie Band Guru recommends you check out all the bands: