The Shondes play T.C.'s Speakeasy

It's 1 am. I just got home. My ears are ringing. I have get up in 4 1/2 hours. And I'm grinning ear to ear. What a night.

My favorite Brooklynites, The Shondes, hit the North Coast tonight and I got to see them. They were fabulous. They hit the stage ducking, weaving, and slamming the audience like a boxer going for a first round knockout, each song full of dynamic changes, tempo changes, mood changes but held together by a fierce lyricism and a strong voice.

And that violin. Who knew that it was an essential punk instrument waiting to be discovered? One minute it provided a lush swirling bridge between rapid-fire guitar phrases, the next it sawed away in unison with the bass and drums to provide a create a wall of sound.

whew. I guess I liked it. I haven't spouted this much purple prose in while. But the Shondes deserve it. Their tour is heading west, so check their dates and go see them. Tell 'em I sent you.

Here are a couple grainy camera phone pictures I snapped.


One of the best parts of the evening was getting a chance to meet and talk to the members of the band. I'd emailed back and forth with them a couple of times, but this was my first face to face meeting. What a nice group of folks. I had a great chat / interview with Temim. We talked Israeli politics (she wants the Palestinian people to have more say over their own future and wants the American Jewish community to engage in real discussions over what policies we should encourage Israel to follow), Jewish music (she thinks the 'Jewish Hipster' scene opened up a lot of space for bands like the Shondes to find a following) and being a Jewish band (she thinks the bands Jewish identity is very important but doesn't want to be pigeon-holed. The Shondes songs and interests are broadly political, deeply personal, and equally pre-occupied with Jewish and queer issues.) (I'm a terrible note taker. Temim, if I goofed this up, please email and correct me.)

Oh and one last thing. I have their new album, the Red Sea, and you don't;) But you can fix that on January 8th when it's officially released. Keep checking their website for details.