Xeno and Oaklander - Wonder Ballroom, Portland OR - August 28, 2019


[from Brooklyn, NY] In my head, this band is electronica royalty. I don’t know why. I guess when I hear synth punk, old school industrial sound, I’m deeply impressed and think everybody else is too. I’ve never obsessed over them because they’re relatively mellow. In the same spirit, they were the reason I bought tickets to this show even though they were only the openers (for Drab Majesty - ?? – I didn’t stay but they were visually striking in their white bobs and sunglasses). This show started with a gauntlet of entirely ineffective security. They did a brief glance through my bag and as I walked off, said ‘better not be lying.’ I was flattered - finally being taken seriously as a threat. Primitive looking sound board – lots of wires. Mixed crowd. He’s got a striped shirt and a frat boy grin. She has a leather shirt tucked in a leather skirt over leather leggings with suspenders. Wispy awkward arms and legs. Hooded eyes. They draw on 80s like Chromatics? Minimal. More meditative than ambient. Robotic voice – they sound like Air but with more pickup and industrial clang. Darkwave tone. He’s enthusiatic. She’s awkward, in leather. Dramatic, with pained expressions. She’s just an arm tranquilizer. She plays keyboard and plays at having a French accent. Rather than sincerely gothic feelings, it might be that it’s 96 degrees and she’s about to faint. They bring to mind my favorite genre ever, Night Bus. When you’re mindless on a bus at night, rushing, lights speeding by – cool, calm, collected – taking in the scene with a gangster’s lean.

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