Woods [Family Creeps]

I recently went to see a show in Brooklyn. Typical. What was not so typical, however, were the band who graced my ears upon arrival at the Silent Barn.

First things first-the Silent Barn is in Ridgewood…just south of the Brooklyn-Queens border. That is Woods playing the Silent Barn in the picture above. If you look just left and right of the drummer’s head, you will see dishes and a sink, respectively. People live there. So, noise must be kept to a minimum if ya don’t want the fuzz around yo residence. Therefore, the windows were shut and there was no air conditioning (the lack of air-conditioning actually has nothing to do with the noise). It was summer.

It. was. hot. as. all. hell.

Seriously, I’m getting clammy skin from just thinking about it…

That being said, I really needed some convincing to stay in that sauna. I had come to the show to see Crystal Stilts and Vivian Girls, who were playing later in the night, so my friends and I figured we could cool off outside and just saunter in when it was about time for the headliners to take the stage [well...kitchen floor].

However, the first song of Woods drew us in. Apparently, my friends had seen these guys before, and they told me that it was a slow-moving, psychedelic mix of folk/freak rock. Eh, not exactly my taste. But these guys decided to step up their tempo and beef up their tone for this gig, and they toootally sucked me in.

There’s nothing too interesting about their set up. Except, of course, for the fact that one member of their band apparently yells into a headphone set that serves as a microphone and has an enormous table full of [cheap-looking] effects pedals, faders, and a tape player. Oh, and the drummer plays a bass string in his drum set up. No, really. He lays a bass guitar [with one E string] across his lap/over his floor tom, and he bangs on the bass string.

Now, onto their sound. As previously mentioned, these guys had a pretty driving beat to their songs, and the lead singer sang everything in this really nice, reverbed-out falsetto voice. Basically, it was amazing. Their music presented a strange juxtaposition of driving, grunge-punk-esque guitar riffs, drum beats, and bass lines and soothing melodies sung in this really beautiful vocal range.

Unfortunately, I was too busy thinking about a) when/where I could find a bathroom and b) how I was going to rehydrate myself after losing 15% of my body weight in water loss.

Keep an ear/eye out for these guys. Or, you know, both ears/eyes, if you’re feeling ambitious.

www.myspace.com/woodsfamilyband