Pop Can Be Weird: !!! @ The Crocodile
!!! (Chk Chk Chk) / Stereolad / Zoolab
Live @ The Crocodile in Seattle
Tuesday, Dec. 1 2015
Words by Justin Jensen
Photos by Lynae Cook
“We believe pop can be weird,” quoth !!! front man Nic Offer – and he proved it – last Tuesday at the Crocodile in Seattle.
Exhibit 1: An “opening act” consisting of !!! as a Stereolab cover band (Stereolad).
Exhibit 2: Offer’s unbeatable stage presence. From punk rock voguing to dancing atop the crowd to methodically boogie-ing his way through the crowd during one of a few extended jams.
Exhibit 3: The entire first half of their set, from Scissor Sisters-esque falsetto to another costume change to funky live bass seamlessly transitioning to proto-dance-punk, e.g.
Exhibit 4: The entire last half of the set, from an extended keyboard solo through Offer and guitar/keyboardist Rafael Cohen swapping roles (vocals & keys) until Offer’s return via extreme vocoder (think: T-Pain) drowning progressive house jams until two sets of drummers take over for a very tribal 10 plus minutes.
There are few bands that merit comparison to !!! (Big Audio Dynamite maybe?) and I am happy to report their unique energy is wildly apparent in their live show. In fact, it cannot be fully contained in a studio album. If you have ever enjoyed even one !!! track, you owe it to yourself to indulge in their fun, weird, live pop experience.
Offer as Stereolad
See more of Lynae’s photos from this show on our Flickr page.