Latest In The Red singing the Vivian Girls get a nice show review (which includes thorough details on what the band was wearing) in the New York Times.
Music Review | Vivian Girls
Punks, but Really Romantics at Heart
By JON CARAMANICA
Published: August 21, 2008
Original post
During the 20 minutes it took Vivian Girls to set up their gear at the boxlike performance space Death by Audio in Brooklyn on Wednesday night — fiddling with guitar strings, asking for more volume in the monitor — a melodic mix was playing over the sound system: Cyndi Lauper’s “She Bop,” Elvis Presley’s “(You’re the) Devil in Disguise,” Heatwave’s “Boogie Nights” and Rupert Holmes’s “Him,” a spectacularly schlocky yet effective soft-rock number. To this last song, particularly, Vivian Girls’ bass player, Kickball Katy, was bopping her head.
In May Vivian Girls released their self-titled debut album on vinyl on the Mauled by Tigers label, generating a minor blog-hype storm; it will be reissued on CD in October by In the Red.
When Cassie Ramone (in a weathered Graceland T-shirt) and Katy (in a paint-splattered T-shirt bearing the name of the Portland punk band Wipers, given to her by a fan) sang together, they were strong, and the effect could be spaghetti-western soundtrack. But the two were even more effective when Katy sang
forged ahead with the main melody.
Throughout, Ali (in a Closet Fairies T-shirt) was precise and tart in her playing, adding a needed anchoring heft, especially on “Damaged.” Though this band’s songs are short, they are also dense; no matter how quickly it moved from song to song here, the music never felt rushed.
“I Can’t Stay,” a recent seven-inch single, was aggressive and sharp, with lyrics about, of all things, being faithful: “You are a perfect match, but he’s my other half/He always treats me right, and that’s why I can’t stay/Tonight.” And midshow, Vivian Girls performed a cover of the Beach Boys’ “Girl Don’t Tell Me,” roughing up its clean melody just enough to sound as if they might not be paying tribute, even though they were.
Not much later, exactly 24 minutes after the band began, the show was over, a hot, sticky blast. It left the impression of having gone on for far longer, and not just because it took almost that long for the members of the band to pack up again.
*A version of this article appeared in print on August 22, 2008, on page E17 of the New York edition.
Playing live a few weeks back.
There are plenty of opportunities to catch the band live this year:
08/30 Brooklyn, NY @ McCarren Pool w/ Sonic Youth, Times New Viking
09/02 Brooklyn, NY @ Death By Audio
09/06 New York, NY @ East Village Radio Festival
09/12 Swarthmore, PA @ Swarthmore College
09/19 New York, NY @ Cake Shop
09/20 Princeton, NJ @ Terrace Club
09/21 Philadelphia, PA @ Danger Danger Gallery
09/24 Nashville, TN @ Exit/In
09/26 Memphis, TN @ Gonerfest at High Tone
09/29 Knoxville, TN @ Pilot Light
10/01 Baltimore, MD @ Ottobar
10/03 New York, NY @ Rocks Off Concert Cruise
10/12 Boston, MA @ Great Scott
10/13 Danbury, CT @ Heirloom Arts Theatre
10/15 New York, NY @ Bowery Ballroom
10/16 Brooklyn, NY @ Harket Motel
10/17 Baltimore, MD @ Sonar
10/18 Philadelphia, PA @ Rock And Roll Hotel
11/08 New York, NY @ Bowery Ballroom w/Deerhunter, Times New Viking
11/10 Boston, MA @ Paradise w/Deerhunter, Times New Viking
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