We Came to Play (Plastic Constellations, Pianos) [EDIT]

Punks The Plastic Constellations summoned up about as much energy as is possible at 2:30 on a muggy Thursday afternoon in a room with only a dozen people in it.  One of those people, though, was Hold Steady mastermind Craig Finn; the ex-Liftr Pullrer wasn't there to support them as fellow Minnesotans, or as new labelmates.  "I know these guys." 

They play again as part of the French Kiss Showcase at CBGB's on Saturday night.

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The Plastic crew should fit in perfectly at French Kiss (their label debut, Crusades, is due early next year), providing a missing link of sorts between the talky delivery of Craig Finn’s groups (think Lift Pullr more than Hold Steady) and the manic energy of Les Savy Fav and Thunderbirds! 

They’ve already gotten the acclaim:  AllMusic Guide gave their first full-length, Let’s War – released just after the band members graduated high school – four and a half stars; Pitchfork gave their collegiate Mazatlan an 8.5.  Oh, you’re listening now, aren’t you?

Sometimes the boys – sorry, men – make listening a bit difficult.  The vocals lapse too often into screamoish back-and-forths, and the songs seem to pride themselves on taking sudden, mathy left-turns that can leave a casual audience frustrated.  But their restlessness is rewarding and makes sense after repeated listening... and you do repeatedly listen because the band has a welcome sense of humor and a remarkable competency.  The title track on Mazatlan progresses from Finnish reminiscences over casually angular guitarwork into a pop-punk chorus, then lapses into a schmaltzy, hotel lounge-style piano solo.  This, after the previous song (“Movement Momentum”) featured a twenty-second rap during which the vocalist squeezes in...

Minneapolis, just clap to this

or scrap to this with passion so miraculous

Evangelists don’t know how to handle this

Metropolis, adapt to this, don’t turn your back on this

We mastered this, rewrote the chapters,

now the sneakers tap to this

But Minneapolis, it’s just too scandalous, we’re vandalists

Living disastrous, they’re pacifists

praying there’s something after this

Metropolis, adapt to this, don’t turn your back on this

We mastered this, momentum slashed the myths.

Live, they bring a lot of energy – though not the spazztastic stuff of TAN! – which makes for an exciting show, but has an unfortunate effect on the vocals:  Never as precise as the music, the tendency towards tuneless barking goes unchecked.  Here’s hoping that, as they get older, The Plastic Constellations realize nothing provides as much satisfaction when listening to their music as their occasional decision to get simple and melodic; it’s both surprising that it happens at all and that they’re so good at it when it does.

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The band, like the Brian Jonestown Massacre, had their equipment stolen that night; unlike BJM, they didn’t spend their entire next show whining about it.  TPC arranged for loaner equipment, and soldiered on through their next two CMJ shows.

tags: plastic constellations  concert photos  hold steady  

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