Quadros 8: Sleigh Bells, Skrillex, The Antlers, Talkdemonic

Sleigh Bells

So what did it take to make the Quadros cut? It’s pretty simple, I have to like the act’s music. The more positive things I can write about, the better chance they will end up here. Sure, I’ve added a couple bands I’m not too thrilled with, just because I knew their material well, but as we’re counting down the days until the festival, there are several bands I really enjoy who I haven’t written about yet.

Enter Sleigh Bells, who created one of my favorite albums from last year, Treats. You’ve probably already heard it, and formed an opinion of the band, but at least you can agree/disagree with the ordering of my suggested tracks. If you haven’t heard Treats, you must lead a very busy life. The best part about this album is the unique sound. Who else sounds like Sleigh Bells? The album has so far held up over time, meaning a lot of my favorites from 2010 have already been forgotten, yet I still find time to listen to Treats occasionally.

So what’s their live performance like? First off, it’s hard to imagine a woman with a mic, and a man with a guitar, can pull off all the different sounds you hear on the album, because, well, they can’t. One good thing about this fact, it’s (nearly) impossible for the show to be a true train wreck, since so much of the music is prerecorded. Wouldn’t it be cool to see five or six musicians on stage recreating the album live? While I didn’t care for their performance last fall, I still appreciated hearing their music being played so darn loud. I’m getting amped to see them again. And since the question was asked 43 times on the Sasquatch Message Board, Sleigh Bells set time is so short because Treats is their only album, and is 32 minutes long.

Suggested Tracks:
1. Crown on the Ground
2. Infinity Guitars
3. Rill Rill
4. Tell ‘Em
5. Treats
6. Straight A’S


Skrillex

I caught Skrillex at Coachella last month, and wrote four paragraphs in my Day 1 Coachella review, which can be read here. I doubt you’ll see Korn, and the light show in the Banana Shack will be elementary compared to the insanity of the Sahara at Coachella, but it should be a fun show.

Suggested Tracks:
1/2. Do Da Oliphant (into) ---> With Your Friends
3. Reptile’s Theme (from Mortal Kombat)
4. Rock ‘N’ Roll
5. My Name Is Skrillex
6. Fucking Die 2 (I really enjoy a good love song)
7. Kill Everybody (sexy, seductive)


The Antlers

The Antlers are an indie rock band from Brooklyn. They burst on the scene following the strength of their 2009 album, Hospice, which received critical acclaim. I don’t really know anything about this band, but I know once Hospice caught my ear after about three listens, I wanted to hear it every morning for two weeks. I saw them live, before I became obsessed with Hospice, but they didn’t keep my attention. Maybe it was the most spectacularly beautiful performance of their career, but after Phantogram got my dancing shoes twitching, the Antlers didn’t match my mood.

Their songs are pretty mellow, actually, very depressing is a better description. The phrase “hospice” doesn’t exactly conjure up swell thoughts. You won’t pass crowds of people blaring the Antlers in the campground while shotgunning beers, and Foo Fighters fans need not apply. If you walk by their performance, you might not even want to stay. If their music has clicked with you though, you’re going to appreciate the slightly smaller crowd, and the beauty theses songs can offer. Their new album Burst Apart is as lovely as Hospice.

Suggested Tracks:
1. Sylvia
2. Every Night My Teeth Are Falling Out
3. Two
4. Parentheses
5. No Widows
6. The Universe Is Going To Catch You
7. Bear
8. Putting The Dog To Sleep


Talkdemonic

Talkdemonic is a duo with a cute chick playing the viola, and her dad who mostly plays the drums. What? Okay, that was a joke, it's not really her dad on the drums, He might not be that much older than her either. Speaking of jokes, I caught the National a couple times last fall, the
second of which, Talkdemonic was an opener. Front man for the National, Matt Berninger, is pretty much a character, so he cracks a lot of jokes. Bands are basically required to thank their
opening band(s), and talk about how much they like hanging out with them and touring with them, and that sort of thing. So when one of the guitar players was thanking the openers, Matt followed it up with, "except Talkdemonic," joking about how much they don't get along. The thank yous came up again near the end of show, and again Matt pointed out, "except Talkdemonic." It was pretty obvious he was joking, but even more obvious to me because he used the same crack against a different opener the night before in Seattle. Hopefully they have a sense of humor.

Truth is, outside of their friends and family, I'm one of the biggest Talkdemonic fans attending the festival. I actually own three of their albums. Yeah, they have that many. There are no vocals, so it's just whatever they can play live on top of studio recorded material. It's great music to work to, lyrics being occasionally distracting. If you happen to catch their set at Sasquatch, tell the old dude I'm sorry.

Suggested Tracks:
1. Hillside Monarch
2. Ending The Orange Glow
3. Manhattan '81
4. Black Wood Crimson
5. Bering