The week’s best concert is a garage pop doubleheader, with Brooklynites Crystal Stilts and Widowspeak sharing a bill at the Rock and Roll Hotel on April 14.
Crystal Stilts’ brand of noise pop borrows from a whirlwind of influences, pairing lead singer Brad Hargett’s Beat Happening-esque vocals with their hazy take on post-punk that’s equal parts Joy Division and the Jesus and Mary Chain.
But what the band lacks in originality it makes up for in consistency, and their guitar-driven sound is twin parts jangle and gloom.
While former Crystal Stilt Frankie Rose has gone on to a fairly successful solo career, the rest of the band has continued to release well-reviewed records under the famed indie label Slumberland.
Crystal Stilts’ live shows have been described as less-than-friendly affairs, so don’t expect a ton of love from the band. However, the Rock and Roll Hotel’s dark, cavernous aesthetic is the closest the band will ever come to playing in a garage again, providing the perfect compliment to Crystal Stilts’ hazy sound.
Supporting Crystal Stilts on Saturday night was Widowspeak, who were just in town February playing with another former Frankie Rose project, Dum Dum Girls.
The quartet may only have one full-length album under their belt, but their shoegazy sound, complete with dreamy female vocals and sparse melodies, is just as developed as the night’s headliners.
Tickets are still on sale for the show, so come early for Widowspeak and bring some extra earplugs.
mmcdermott@theeagleonline.com
