Electric Six at the Black Cat

P1190101
Originally uploaded by alexadan.

So I went to see Electric Six at the Black Cat the other day. Here's a review. I should have sent it to DCist but I was lazy.

You have to like a band whose biggest hit starts with the line "Fire in the disco! Fire in the... Taco Bell!" Electric Six, best known for that song, called "Danger! High Voltage!", and for a video of their song "Gay Bar" featuring flying viking kittens is one of those bands that sounds on records like they'd be good live, and they did not disappoint. Lead singer Dick Valentine (maybe an alias, maybe his real name) looked like a sweaty Southern congressman and stood stock-still, which served as a good counterpoint to the pretty ridiculous songs - besides titles like "Gay Bar", "Danger! High Voltage!", and "Dance Commander," one song's chorus was "you owe me money!"

The music, mostly fast-paced garage rock, is funny and a little off-center, but it doesn't cross the line into Weird Al or They Might Be Giants goofiness or shtick - they're pretty deadpan about their shenanigans. Even Valentine's dancing was deadpan, standing stiff-legged while he waved his arms awkwardly up and down, into his chest then out like some kind of flagless semaphore (pictured). The crowd, however, loved it, jiumping and singing along full-voiced to most of the songs.

Valentine (the highlight of the band, as most of the other members played without much showmanship) sings with a strange, vaguely foreign accent, despite being from Detroit. He also sounds almost exactly the same while speaking, like during the group's extended jam/slam poem about the President, who Valentine would call "Booooooosh" after a dramatic pause. A fun show, they're one of those bands that I'd see whenever they come to town, even if I hadn't heard the music much.