Live 105 Summer Showcase at 330 Rich St. ($7)

I’ve only been to one other Live 105 event, but I get the feeling that they all have a very “all-ages” feel to them. The Live 105 Summer Showcase (8/2/2008) was no different. While we were waiting in line for tickets at the door, what looked like a 16 year old asked my friend for a smoke. She, of course, asked to see his ID before she doled it out. (emily)

330 Rich St. was the perfect venue for the showcase. It is a tiny social club with two bars, four luxurious (but “reserved”) booths and three tiny tables next to the small dance floor. Due to our optimal place in line, we got a table. However, the drinks were $2 more expensive than the cover! Faux Pas!

Live 105’s music director, DJ Aaron Axelson, got the club warmed up with some righteous, upbeat indie singles and some dancey 80’s gems. He spun right after the door opened, in between sets, and at the end. I was excited to get to dance to the likes of Sam Sparro’s “Black and Gold,” Joy Division’s “Love Will Tear us Apart,” and The Smiths’ “How Soon is Now?”

Aaron Axelson is not a club DJ by trade; he’s a radio DJ. This was pretty obvious, as he simply played one song leading into another, and did not mix or mash them. But that was Ok with me, there were plenty of unexpected singles to get excited about. I would definitely go to an event just to hear him spin again. The best part about Axelson’s DJing? The way he used the bands influences to warm up their sets. He made the Showcase appear much more seamless than it actually was.

The first band up was SF’s very own, The Trophy Fire (http://www.myspace.com/thetrophyfire). Judging by this performance alone, The Trophy Fire seems to have a very generic sound. They’re like an indie band with a little too much influence from pop and classic rock. They were shaky on stage. They pretty much just stood there and played their instruments. While the lead singer looks very much like a lead singer (cute, tattooed, apathetic), he most certainly didn’t inhabit the music. The lead guitarist was the only one truly into the performance. He sang along to all of the songs and closed his eyes during his solos. Turns out he wrote all of the music and lyrics.

After Axelson spun in some Joy Division and The Verve, next up was Low vs. Diamond (http://www.myspace.com/thisisntlowvsdiamond). It was instantly obvious that their performance had everything The Trophy Fire’s was missing: stage presence, passion, complimentary haircuts. Low vs. Diamond absolutely stole the showcase. On stage, they sound like a less synth version of MGMT. With a voice like The Strokes and drama like Coldwar Kids, their formula is solid.

The lead singer, Lucas Field (pictured above), is an amazing showman. During the softer lyrics he stood up at the front of the stage, showing his vulnerable face, ripe with potential and burgeoning fame. He admitted that, although they had just played David Letterman, he was extremely nervous before he went on stage. He then added that he felt better and thought that we did too. We cheered.

During the second to last song, he got down on his knees, which seemed to be a testament to his dedication. My favorite thing about the band was that each member was singing along, even when they didn’t have microphones. The only real issue was that they were different to the point of awkwardness from the other two bands. It seemed like Low vs. Diamond had outgrown this showcase between the time they booked it and the time they played it.

Finally, the headlining band, Carolina Liar ( http://www.myspace.com/carolinaliar), took the stage around 12am. These boys clearly got too big for their britches as soon as they got a single in the US. By the looks of it, they hired a hack of stylist and grew oversized egos. They wore matching boy-scout uniform tops and the first thing the lead singer did was to thank the audience for getting them into the top ten. Top ten of what, I can’t tell you. It made me appreciate Field’s humble, “I was nervous” approach even more. Maybe it would have been forgivable if Carolina Liar had blown the entire audience away with their groundbreaking music, but that is not what happened.

The lead singer meekly drove this blasé performance. Reminiscent of so many easy listening emo bands such as Taking Back Sunday or Saves the Day, Carolina Liar is just an amalgamation of different types of shitty music. My friends and I were still focused on the members of Low vs. Diamond, as they were hanging out with fans close to the stage. It’s pretty sad when your stage presence is so humble that the audience is still paying closer attention to the last band that took the stage.

I am definitely biased, due to the fact that I don’t like the type of music Carolina Liar represents. But with such generic lyrics such as “cuz this hurts, I can’t leave, I understand, but can you, I’m just scared, you’re lonely, everyone knows you’re better than me,” how could anyone? I’m shocked that a music director with such impeccable taste in alternative music would choose this less than mediocre band to headline the showcase.

All in all, the experience was very enjoyable, though. The venue, the DJ, one of the bands and the price were all great. The best part was that one of the jocks, Tanner, was there representing the station. He was clearly drunk, as he was dancing like an asshole. He really got going during Carolina Liar’s set as he emphasized the cheesier choruses by jumping up and down and throwing his arms into the air. He was obviously mocking them. He kept pulling people into his dancing circle. It was pretty sweet to see someone making lemonade from bad music and sharing it with strangers.

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