Pygmalion: Saturday

Zach May and the Maps (Exile on Main St., 2:30 pm)
I'd been waiting to see these guys for a long time, and I wasn't disappointed. Zach May and the Maps have a sound somewhere between Neutral Milk Hotel and the Legend of Zelda soundtrack. Zach is hilariously awkward, the percussion consists of a wooden box, and the band played off hand-written sheet music, but somehow it all came together and worked. Definitely worth the trip to Exile.

New Ruins (Parasol Records, 3:40 pm)
Man, I forgot how good this band is. Originally billed as Caleb and Elzie acoustic, this morphed into a full-band affair by showtime (and yes, Paul is back!). Personal favorite had to be "Lake". As a sidenote, the Parasol store is absolutely awesome.


The Horse's Ha (Parasol Records, 4:40pm)
I was expecting something a lot closer to the grungy and feedback laced sound of Eleventh Dream Day, but instead The Horse's Ha played a breezy, almost jammy set (some songs stretched past seven minutes!), with a little bit of alt-country and bluegrass thrown in for good measure. While the crowd had steadily dwindled up to the point when they went on, those who stayed were thoroughly rewarded.

The Books (Krannert Center, 7:30 pm)
I don't have too much to write about this underwhelming show. Basically, while the visual gimmicks are really cool at first, they get old after about three songs. I had more fun listening to the middle-aged Krannert denizens next to me arguing about "all these twenty year olds with the women's jeans" than listening to the actual music.

Iron and Wine (Krannert Center, 8:45 pm)
Sam Beam is one funny motherfucker. Who'd have though? Opening with "Such Great Heights" was a nice surprise, and definitely cut through the sometimes impersonal atmosphere that can arise from Krannert shows. The rest of the set was mostly filled with old favorites ("Naked as We Came", "Sodom, South Georgia", "Upward Over the Mountain") along with a few new songs. The encore of "Flightless Bird, American Mouth" was another major highlight. Overall, the acoustics couldn't have been better, and Beam turned in an intimate performance that perfectly cut through the psychological muck of the Krannert Center.

YACHT (Canopy, 10:45 pm)
YACHT's gimmicky stage antics included inviting the crowd to mail them packages or stop by their apartment should they happen to be in Portland, while they half-rapper, half-shouted over their canned electro beats. That said, the show was still a blast, and "I'm in Love with a Ripper" is still a fucking great song. I'm sure they won't be any fun in a few years (see: Girl Talk, Flaming Lips), but it was great being on the bandwagon while it lasted.


Gazelle (Cowboy Monkey, 12 am)
These guys are somewhat of a supergroup, featuring three members of Absinthe Blind, two of Headlights, two of Honcho Overload, and one of Hum (yes, I realize that adds up to eight). While I was somewhat disappointed with the short, six song set (Seth and Brett from Absinthe Blind were both in the building, along with Matt Talbott), but the music was good enough that I didn't feel cheated. Gazelle's sprawling studio material sounded tighter and closer to Absinthe Blind in a live setting. "Lineal" was the definite highlight of the show.

RJD2 (Canopy Club, 12:45 am)
He was using four turntables ZOMFG. Plus a small army of drum machines, synths, and sequencers. RJD2's set leaned more towards Hip Hop than the DJ Shadowisms of his album, which was definitely feeding into the crowd's reaction. When he dropped "The Horror" the roof just about blew off of Canopy. For me, however, this was a chance to chill in the balcony and rest my feet for...

The Hood Internet (Cloud Factory, 3:15am)
This was the sweaty, hipster, PBR fueled dance party I'd been searching for all weekend (ten points to whoever booked them into someone's living room!!). They started by segueing out of the DJ playing before them (someone from Physical Challenge, I think??) into a mashup of M.I.A.'s "20$" and New Order's "Blue Monday", then hitting some old chestnuts ("Drop the Icebox Pressure", "Pro Nails Forever", "I Got Your Smoke"). Unfortunately, the combination of Highlife, Skoal, and dancing started to get to me around this point, and I decided to stumble home. Fucking AWESOME end to an amazing weekend. Can't wait for next year.