The Bravery at Slim's - March 29, 2005

The Bravery are an interesting illustration of the fickle nature of indie music buzz. A few months ago, they were the up-and-coming band of the moment, chosen #1 in the BBC's influential "Sound of 2005" poll and all but handed the title of 'Next Big Thing.' Their debut album was leaked a few months early and received largely positive acclaim, with two singles ('Unconditional' and 'Honest Mistake') receiving pretty solid radio airplay. It seemed this was a band worth the buzz.

Then it all seemed to turn a bit sour. Before the album was even released, a torrent of backlash began to swell among those who questioned the credibility of the band, especially after the revelation that lead singer Sam Endicott had sported blond dreads as the bass player in a reportedly awful ska/rock band called Skabba the Hutt. Some picked on their sound, calling them derivative and unoriginal, while others fixated on their fashion style, which ranges from Strokes hipster chic to The Cure goth rock, painted fingernails and all.

I saw them at Cafe Du Nord back in mid-January, but was forced to give them an 'incomplete' due to A) an equipment malfunction that marred a good portion of the band's short set, and B) my extreme drunkenness, which completely erased my memories of the second half of the set.

So when I heard they were coming back to co-headline a show at Slim's with Ash, I was all in. I was digging the CD and wanted a chance to see them again in a less comatose state.

I bought tickets in late January and then proceeded to gradually lose enthusiasm about the band until their show last week. I don't know if it was the persistently negative comments I had heard in the weeks leading up to the show or the fact that the album doesn't really lend itself to repeated listens, but I was having a hard time motivating myself to head out for the Tuesday show. Two huge margaritas at Don Ramon and a few Heinies helped the cause a bit.

Ash opened up (well, The Crimea technically did, but I didn't make it for their set), and stormed through an energetic, if a bit short, set. I haven't listened to Ash that much, but they're a fun live band and they've got a great presence; there's no pretense, just music. As they wrapped up, I was wishing they'd played a bit longer than the 8 or so songs they ripped off.

Leading into The Bravery's set, I was all set to have a miserable time. I was tired, bored, and not nearly drunk enough. There was a ridiculously long wait between sets while the band's gang of retarded roadies limped around the stage in extreme......slow......motion. If these assholes had been in charge of setting up the Popmart stage, it might have taken a month.

After more than an hour, the lights dimmed and The Bravery came out to 'Unconditional', my favorite song on the album. Fuzzy memories of the first show started coming back to me, and I realized that I did indeed enjoy the show in January. And I was already on the way to enjoying this one.

When you ignore all the cynical sniping by the band's critics, it's really hard not to love their music. I challenge anyone not to dance to 'Honest Mistake' or do some heavy head-bobbing to 'Out of Line.' I've heard a lot of New Order/Joy Division/Cure rip-offs, but few of them pull it off like The Bravery.

They sounded great as they powered through an album's worth of songs, bringing a surprising amount of intensity to their live act. I had seen them on MTV a month ago and lead singer Sam Endicott seemed about as comfortable onstage as a fat girl singing 'Baby Got Back' at karaoke. So it was nice to see that he had developed something of a stage presence (even if it was a bit excessively Morrissey-esque at times).

They encored with a rousing 'Fearless' and walked off to healthy applause from the sold-out crowd. Plain and simple, they delivered. It wasn't a transcendent, religious musical experience (Pearl Jam at San Jose's Spartan Stadium in '95 was as close as I've gotten to that). But it was a helluva fun show, a solid performance by a band that has been given far too much praise and criticism in its short life.

Regardless of how derivative or manufactured or trendy the band is, they crank out thoroughly enjoyable, danceable, catchy songs. And what more is there, really?