Autolux @ Double Door
May 13th, 2005Technically, The Raveonettes were opening – but this was Autolux’s show. I had just caught them the week before at Coachella, but due to a lunch miscalculation and an extremely long line to get in, we showed up a song or two into their set. But it was no matter – they rocked at Coachella and they rocked at the Double Door. Let me just say now, how grateful I am that the band Autolux exists. They combine my favorite qualities of The Pixies, Sonic Youth, and a bit of Nirvana into something that is unlike music that anyone else is playing these days. There’s a male and female vocalist, the guitars are thick and dirty, and there’s a lot of dissonance to their sound. Their debut release "Future Perfect" is just about perfect, and their shows do not disappoint.
However, I can’t speak as highly about The Raveonettes these days. Their earlier recordings had a great gimmick – songs that sounded like they where written in the 50′s, but produced by The Jesus and Mary Chain. It was a great sound, and it rocked like hell. But their new work sheds the JAMC sound in favor of a more sparce 60′s sound. But that’s just it – it sounds like something recorded in the 60′s. No interesting juxapositions, just pure nostalgia. And a little of that goes a long way.