Baltimore’s best show all year (according to a guy you don’t know but should trust)
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MP3: Vivian Girls – Where do you run to
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MP3: Crystal Stilts – The Sinking
On Friday, August 15th, Baltimore’s Nerve Center in Remington will host the best lineup on a bill I’ve seen here (given I’ve only lived in Baltimore a year): Vivian Girls (Brooklyn), Crystal Stilts (Brooklyn), Witch Hats (Australia), Pygmy Lush (Virginia), and Mr. Moccasin.
I don’t know much about the latter two bands so I’ll skip over them but that doesn’t even matter.
Vivian Girls and Crystal Stilts have (justified) hype buzzing all around them. I was fortunate enough to see both of them in Brooklyn a few weeks ago. Vivian Girls, taking their name from Henry Darger’s million page manuscript, are a 3 piece all female group that sounds like Y Pants or The Raincoatsplaying 60’s girl group songs. Their recent debut LP sold out fast, but you can find it on eBay for $80 or wait for it to be re-released by In The Red in the fall.
Unfortunately, I am also going to compare Crystal Stilts to their influences, but when you sound like a perfect mix between Joy Division and Velvet Underground, you can’t go wrong. Witch Hats will get my lazy comparisons as well to great bands of the past: The Scientists, Scratch Acid, Six Finger Satellite.
It is a shame that Baltimore rarely gets bands like these to come through and all on one night. The Nerve Center, arguably the best venue in the city, is a punk(row)house that hosts a plethora of bands spanning many genres and every show is a party. So be prepared to actually have fun, and if you don’t know where the Nerve Center is, your ass better call somebody! (I only know by sight)