Spike Hill
Wednesday, October 21st, 2009
By: Becky Firesheets
Rating: 6.5/11

Of all the sets at Spike Hill last night, The Click Clack Boom stole the show.  With an 8 pm slot, it’s often difficult to bring in a crowd and get the energy pumped up.  But this 5-piece indie pop/rock group met the challenge and flew past it, busting out their lively tunes complete with layered vocal harmonies, catchy riffs and serious guitar breakdowns for a crowd that only grew as their upbeat songs filtered out to the Bedford sidewalk and drew in new fans.  Throughout their set, the band members switched up instruments with ease, culminating in a driving number where lead singer Nathaniel Hoho banged wildly on the tom-tom while wailing the lyrics.  Their songs were tight and fun, the band members leaping and vigorously shaking their fuzzy heads throughout the entire performance.  While their MySpace recordings don’t capture the same energy, their live show will not disappoint.

With the bar raised high, Volcanoless in Canada out of Saskatchewan took the stage.  While they maintained the energy, including a finale where one of the guitarists took up a shaker and danced crazily through the bar and out onto the sidewalk, their songs sadly fell flat.  One or two stood out as quality pop but most fit too neatly into the Jason Mraz/boy band category.  Props for the dancing, however, and they were certainly enjoying their first trip to New York, which is always refreshing to see.

Trio Demander came on at 10:15 to an excited, packed crowd and dove straight into their punky pop, full of sweet vocal melodies set to complicated, pounding drum lines.  Their chops were strong, their tunes were catchy and their set was impressively consistent, but nothing about their performance popped out.  Each song felt like the one before it, all of them good but none of them great.  This is neither a compliment nor an insult; consistency is valuable but this band certainly has the potential to produce a few great singles.

New Zealanders Motocade played the 11 pm slot, followed by fellow countrymen Kingston with a midnight set.  The crowd dwindled once Demander left the stage but the excitement stayed as MTV cameramen loaded in to film the Aussys' sets.  Unfortunately, the night strayed from the more rock-and-roll vibe and embraced the boy band full on.   While there is an audience for this, perhaps Williamsburg during CMJ is not the best locale.

Shout out to openers Tenderhooks, a twangy rock/blues band from Tennessee who started the night with some serious musicianship.  I only caught one song and wish I saw more.  Tonight: The Press and Gunfight! at The Charleston.  See you there.