Bang Bang

It was "nu music" at The Horseshoe Tavern on Tuesday. Listening to samples online, the bands were in the "loud rock" category. I wasn't feeling it tonight, so I skipped the first two (Speed Control, Love Tapper). I arrived as Salt of the Chief Cornerstone was getting into their set. This instrumental band from Windsor comprised of a guitarist and a drummer. Together, they had a big sound. Their instruments were transparent: from the clear drum kit (lit up with white LEDs) to the plexi-glass-esque guitar. Though not metal, they got heads banging with their tight and synchronized changes. Both were good, but unfortunately the "rock vocabulary" isn't too complex. Guitar simply alternated between riffs and power chords, chunky melody and rhythm. Drums did have complicated polyrhythm but essentially boiled down to furious rock banging.

Language-Arts was the final band. Their set varied between light pop and impressively catchy rock. Lead singer/guitarist Kristen Cudmore might seem twee in speech, and that did carry over into some song lyrics, but her array of 12 pedals refuted that label. Though their latest album was not even officially out yet until next year, they played mostly new songs that were not on either records. These were quite raucous but still retained a melodious core.