Finally. For any andall that ever gave or heard the very justified reports of a White Denim liveexperience, there is finally the proof on record. The Austin, Texas quartet has been reluctantto issue a concert album in their decade-plus of playing, denying the generalpublic irrefutable evidence of their explosive performances, leaving it toYouTube clips and word-of-mouth. Now, withthis 23-song inferno, the rumors can be confirmed, over and over again.
Leave it to White Denim to further apply a cryptic creativesensibility to the whole thing, choosing setlist shorthand and pseudonyms toidentify the tracks of this appearance captured in the backyard of their RadioMilk studio. So, “Drugs” becomes “Dorgs”and “Magazin” becomes “Zin,” and so on. Really, the titles are secondary, even incidental to the incident; apowder keg packed tightly, then ignited.
It’s a near continuous hour-plus of music, with most songstransitioning seamlessly into the next, often in a blur. The highlights are many, and they buzz bypretty quickly at times. Hear the crowdaudibly gasp at drummer Greg Clifford’s hyper-speed fills on “Farm,” orsinger/guitarist James Petralli’s soul-shaking voice pair with his Hendrix-likeriffs on the “Mirrored 2” and “Mirrored 3” and “Mirrored Too.” Listen as bassist Steve Terebecki glidesbetween doubling guitar lines or supporting Clifford’s kick to counteringkeyboardist Michael Hunter who, himself, is countering and/or doublingPetralli. It’s dizzying and brilliantand fun, and it’s a highly representative showing of White Denim, recorded andreleased, at last.
There is an exacting ambition about these four that belieshow in-the-moment the playing appears. The corners are sharp and the segueways so clean some go by in a blink,yet the show is loose in the best ways; sometimes it’s a wash of sound whereguitar and keyboard seem to trade tonal spaces, or when echoed vocals waftabove the syncopated frenzy below. A lotof the set is drawn from more recent entries in their catalog, particularly thePerformance and Side Effects albums, but mixed in are some of the earlier punkysprints such as “Start To.”
All in all, it’s a blitzkrieg akin to any of White Denim’smore recent outings on tour, filled with furious precision, idiosyncraticarrangement and medley, and musicianship that is mostly unrivaled in today’srock-and-roll.
