Amoeba In-Store: Vampire Weekend, Monday February 4th

Amoeba's just full of 'em lately. In the past couple months we've seen Band of Horses, Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings, Kate Nash, Sia, and now Vampire Weekend. I think it's a pretty dumb name for a band because it doesn't make any sense (but I guess there are other things that I'm into that don't make any sense, like that Gossip Girl show, but whatever that's not what this is about). Anyway, yea, there's something not normal about their music. Rolling Stone'll tell you it's cause they've got "a suave sound that incorporates ska, New Wave and Afro-pop", a combination of genres that makes even less sense in my mind than Puffy and Sting, but I'll have to agree with Pitchfork when they simply state, "Vampire Weekend come along like Belle & Sebastian and the Strokes each did, sounding refreshingly laidback and uncomplicated, and with simple set-ups that make good songs sound exceedingly easy. (The result being not "this is mind-blowing," or "this is catchy," but "I have listened to this, straight through, four times a day for the past month".)"

Sia live at the El Rey

SIA: The name I’ve heard a gazillion times. Well since our own little orphans Eagle and Talon had gone on tour with her and the Six Feet Under hit single, I thought it was time to experience the Australian wonder-ess.

Last night’s sold out show at the El Rey Theatre opened with Willoughby. A super tall guy with a warm calm voice (Gus Seyffert) backed with another tall guy (Charlie Wadhams) on tambourine and vocals and a short dude (Bram Inscore) on bass and a guy whose size I couldn’t tell that was playing drums. It was the perfect set and they even did a cover of John Lennon’s “I’m Losing You”.

Well where do we start with Sia? As soon as the curtains opened the whole band had on glow in the dark children’s painted outfits on. It was likes these floating cartoons performing. After the first song finished Sia introduced her new friend who had just performed with her, it was actor Giovanni Ribisi’s daughter who is like 8 years old or something. Sia told the audience they made a song together and broke out into a fully structured song called “Little Black Sandals” that they sang together.

As the show progressed the set was dressed with neon lights shaped like children’s drawings of big palms trees and flowers that lit up different colors to the beat. Behind a backdrop of a painted rainbow and a smiley blonde girl stick figure.

Of course the audience went wild when she announced her hit “Breathe Me” and as I lurked across the room I could see a thousand mouths singing along. It really struck me then how powerful one song on a television show can connect a room full of music lovers.

She was such a charmer and kept asking the audience if they needed anything, particularly a beer or a hug. At one point into her set she pointed out some Aussies in the room and told the audience not to buy them beer because they were underage. Then she almost dedicated a song to them called “The girl you lost to cocaine” but realized in the same second into the attempt that it wasn’t appropriate so she corrected herself and dedicated the song after to them.

Sia is on tour her North America and UK tour now and you definitely wont want to miss it, so you better check yo’self before you wreck yo’self. Put an Australian accent with that…