Pains of Being Pure at Heart w/ Zaza, Tin Armor - The Summit

On the stage of the Summit Friday night, all the non-drumming members of The Pains of Being Pure at Heart stood at the edge of the stage, leaning over with their instruments, looking as if they were ready to jump into the crowd. If they weren’t all so mild-mannered.

That combination of rock ’n’ roll ebullience and reserved timidity has served the Brooklyn band well. There are the big, fuzzy guitars that make comparisons to shoegaze forebear My Bloody Valentine too easy, but then there are the twee melodies led by singer Kip Berman’s unaffected vocals, which bring to mind the indie pop of Belle & Sebastian.

There are other bands we could start adding to the recommended-if-you-like list (some people swear all they hear is the Smiths), and each name on the list would simply magnify that sense of nostalgia you get when listening to the Pains of Being Pure at Heart’s self-titled debut.

But the reason this band has garnered so much hype and press this year—well beyond the realm of fawning bloggers—is that: a.) Nostalgia is fun when it’s done in a way that avoids mimicry, and b.) Pains combine noise and pop better and more accessibly, in my opinion, than other bands who have recently attempted to revive the merging of those two seemingly disparate qualities. (I’m looking in your direction, Vivian Girls.)

There’s not too much that can be said about the Pains of Being Pure at Heart on record that can’t be said about the band live. If the mix is good enough, which it was at the Summit after a couple of songs, it’s pretty much like hearing the album. Berman sang his parts with a blank, doe-eyed stare to complement his easy, unassuming voice, and the rest of the musicians played their parts well—all with a kind of dorky-but-endearing vibe. It wasn’t mind-blowing, but it was a good representation of the band and made for a fun set.

On the other hand, Zaza, which was also on the bill, greatly disappointed. I had downloaded the band’s free EP from its website and liked what I heard—ethereal vocals, droney grooves and cool atmospherics. But live, the Brooklyn trio seemed to take itself way too seriously. It was pretty boring. To make things worse, the band insisted on using two high-beam lights as its only means of lighting, and one of those lights bounced off the Summit’s mirrored wall into the crowd, blinding a good portion of the audience. Donewaiting Duffy eventually got all MacGyver on the situation and blocked the reflection with some boxes, but even without Zaza’s stage props burning my retina, it was still boring.

Local opener Tin Armor has had some good slots recently, opening for Matt & Kim at Skully’s a few weeks ago. The band has earned those slots, too, because each time I see these guys, I like them more. There’s some punk fervor in there, plenty of pop sensibility and two equally strong singer/songwriter/guitarists to boot. Fans of Ted Leo, take note, and keep your eye on these young locals.

Matt & Kim, Hollywood Holt, Tin Armor - Skully's

From the moment Matt & Kim played their first note at Skully’s on Friday night, a guy standing in front of me gripped the railing of the stage, closed his eyes, threw his head back, smiled and moved to the beat. He didn’t stop until the final note was played.

At some indie-rock shows, a guy like this might stick out like a pair of pressed khakis. But I only noticed him because I was watching the show from the comparatively sedate side stage. From the front of the stage almost all the way back to the bar, enthused kids threw their hands up, danced, gyrated, shouted along and generally immersed themselves in the music coming from this keyboard-and-drums duo. I even saw someone skipping. While a scene like this is somewhat of a rarity at a Columbus rock show, at least at most of the venues I frequent, I get the feeling it’s standard fare for Matt & Kim--the smiliest couple in indie rock.

Though I’ll happily put on the duo’s sophomore album, Grand, when the mood strikes, I admit the couple’s youthful exuberance and Matt Johnson’s prone-to-cracking, slightly emo vocals don’t knock me out on record. But in a live setting, watching Kim Schifino pummel her floor tom with affixed perma-grin and seeing Johnson bang out the opening notes of “Daylight,” the giddiness is contagious as a runny nose.

It was odd that with a live show this good, the two screens behind the pair just rotated fairly boring images of words like “Grand” and “Matt and Kim.” The only cool image was some exploding fireworks. It didn’t detract from the vibe, but I imagine with some more time and thought put into the projections, wide-eyed fans’ heads would explode.

Heeding the “simple is better” punk philosophy, almost all of the tunes were propelled by Schifino’s simple beats. I was happy to hear all three of Grand’s opening trifecta--“Good Ol’ Fashion Nightmare,” “Cutdown” and “Daylight”--at some point in the evening. They’re the best songs the two have written. Before the last song of the night, Johnson stood up and gave a passionate, endearingly idealistic speech about supporting Obama, remembering everything in life and trying hard, followed by the only (seemingly) unironic rendition of Europe’s “The Final Countdown” I’ve ever heard.

Chicago rapper Hollywood Holt did a good job of getting the crowd all riled up, despite being relatively unknown and employing a sheepishly green deejay (“DJ Skyler”) prone to screwing up. Judging by the five to ten friends roaming the stage taking pictures and video, Holt is pretty new to this game. But he was determined to get the place moving, and his mix of old-school rhymes, crunky beats and vaguely punk influences did the job.

Like Matt & Kim, Hollywood ain’t afraid to make you smile, with lyrics about the cleanliness of his clothes and the recent purchase of a moped. For some reason, I also found his onstage sidekick hilarious (in a good way), so that helped, too. Fans of party rap, electro and the Beastie Boys should find much to like.

I forgot that I’d seen opener Tin Armor before when the band opened for Frightened Rabbit and Spinto Band, so I guess the locals didn’t leave a big impression on me. But I really liked what I heard this time. The band’s blend of punk, pop and rock just felt more put together, feeding off the energy of a full house. This time I’ll remember.