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review: Jacob London & Garth
Feb. 22nd, 2020 09:13 amI did indeed make it to Re-bar last night, crutches and all, for San Francisco's DJ Garth and local folks Jacob London. And an air kiss to Re-bar's staff for helping me out with my gimpiness.
First the bad news: Re-bar's landlord has seen its property taxes leap thanks to the gigantic condo buildings that now tower over Re-bar. That means Re-bar's days, at least in that location, are numbered. Re-bar has been the place for kinda weird, kinda gay, kinda theatrical stuff for thirty years; it's rightly described as an institution. I'm afraid for it, because I've seen so many good places like it get gentrified out of existence.
Fantasy: When I amImperatrix Mundi mayor of Seattle, I will designate a club zone. That means the police will laugh at noise complaints from anyone living there, something they'll probably be happy to do. It also means that gigantic development projects won't happen in that zone.
Next, the meh news: I didn't like Garth nearly as much as I expected. I'd describe his set as dark with a hint of Bay Area acid, which you'd think would be just my thing, but I just wasn't feeling it. Today's Garth is not early '90s Garth, and I was foolish to expect him to be to the degree that I did.
But here's the good news: Jacob London whips! Those two, Dave Pezzner & Brit Hanssen, have mostly gone their separate ways in the last decade, but I think they're greater than the sum of their parts, and I love their solo work. The weren't as glitchy as back in the aughts, but they still had that cheeky propensity to mess with their audience; I was reminded of Aphex Twin, only more fun. I was having such a good time chairdancing at the bar that a photographer with a Slavic accent congratulated me on my "energy", which he said was better than is young roommates. I already try not to miss Jacob London's rare gigs, but I was given fresh reason to do so.
You know what the difference between Jacob London and Garth is? JL doesn't seem to take themselves as seriously, and I think their music is better for it. There's a metaphor for Seattle vs. San Francisco in there somewhere.
First the bad news: Re-bar's landlord has seen its property taxes leap thanks to the gigantic condo buildings that now tower over Re-bar. That means Re-bar's days, at least in that location, are numbered. Re-bar has been the place for kinda weird, kinda gay, kinda theatrical stuff for thirty years; it's rightly described as an institution. I'm afraid for it, because I've seen so many good places like it get gentrified out of existence.
Fantasy: When I am
Next, the meh news: I didn't like Garth nearly as much as I expected. I'd describe his set as dark with a hint of Bay Area acid, which you'd think would be just my thing, but I just wasn't feeling it. Today's Garth is not early '90s Garth, and I was foolish to expect him to be to the degree that I did.
But here's the good news: Jacob London whips! Those two, Dave Pezzner & Brit Hanssen, have mostly gone their separate ways in the last decade, but I think they're greater than the sum of their parts, and I love their solo work. The weren't as glitchy as back in the aughts, but they still had that cheeky propensity to mess with their audience; I was reminded of Aphex Twin, only more fun. I was having such a good time chairdancing at the bar that a photographer with a Slavic accent congratulated me on my "energy", which he said was better than is young roommates. I already try not to miss Jacob London's rare gigs, but I was given fresh reason to do so.
You know what the difference between Jacob London and Garth is? JL doesn't seem to take themselves as seriously, and I think their music is better for it. There's a metaphor for Seattle vs. San Francisco in there somewhere.
