Surfer Blood/Harlem: Siren Festival, Brooklyn, NY 7/17/10

Seagulls flying overhead, the unforgiving sun beaming scorching rays, and countless patches of crowds filled the Coney Island area of Brooklyn this weekend as The Village Voice presented its 10th installment of the Siren Festival. In the past, its two stages (there’s the larger "Main" one and the smaller "Stillwell" one named after the avenue that it sits on) had hosted a number of indie’s bigwigs as well up-and-coming phenoms. The "Main" stage has been graced by behemoths like Modest Mouse, M.I.A., Spoon, and just last year, Built To Spill. The "Stillwell" stage has showcased rising talents like Mates of State in 2005 and Elvis Perkins in Dearland in 2007. The all-ages, free event is to New York City, as the legendary Cyclone rollercoaster is to Coney Island.

Among the random drafts of salty air from the nearby beach and pangs of icky port-o-potty wisps, there blared a new and impressive lineup this year. Most captivating were sets by Surfer Blood and Harlem, two groups both sitting atop mountains of critical buzz.

After releasing their debut album Astro Coast earlier this year, Surfer Blood have toured nonstop here and in Europe. Much like during their CMJ 2009 run, the Florida-based group — which combines bits of playful afro-pop and ’90s guitar-driven structures — played over five times at SxSW in March. Catchy, internet hits like "Swim" and "Take It Easy" have deemed them "in demand" everywhere, so naturally audiences flock to their performances; this year’s Siren Festival was no different. Even early in the day, at 3PM, people swarmed to the "Main" stage to see what the youngins in Surfer Blood had to offer. Frontman/guitarist JP Pitts, nicely dressed in a short-sleeved button down that was tucked into black jeans, belted song after song in the sweltering heat. "Wow, it’s really chilly up here," he joked in between songs, as he ran his hair through his dark bouncy curls (something he’d do quite often during their set, probably to keep his hair from being permanently matted to his forehead by sweat). The temperature was getting to the crowd a bit, as it was a bit tepid compared to the average raging Surfer Blood show. Pitts tried to keep the momentum up though, openly inviting people to take a ride with him on the Cyclone that roared right next to the stage, and at one point, putting down his guitar to sort of awkwardly sway around while his mic cord jerked around almost robotically. It wasn’t the most…natural, or graceful of sights. But while Surfer Blood aren’t the most entertaining conversationalists, their songs and their raw intensity live are more than enough to keep fans hungry. Drumkits were thrown into the crowd to inspire participant thumping, Pitts stood on large speakers to get up close and personal with us sweaty folk, and if that wasn’t enough, all of their surf rock songs seemed perfect for a hot day at the beach. What’s fitting also is how Pitts’ voice sounds when not properly recorded — live, he barks and growls lyrics, giving live shows their extra oomph, reminding you that everything is in real-time. There’s no polishing or overdubbing. The band has thrived on this sort of spontaneous, yet totally sincere realness. No two Surfer Blood performances are ever alike, and so, theoretically, their shows never get old.

Harlem, who come from Austin, are an interesting trio. They talk a lot of random nonsense, smile uncontrollably, and cheer on circle pits and crowd-surfers. All in all, hanging with them is probably like attending an all-day, outdoor drinking fest. It’s hot, it’s messy, it’s off-the-wall, but it’s damn fun. Their music, a giddy blend of lo-fi garage rock, spurs a lot of hip-twisting and head-bouncing. All around, girls’ bangs swung back and forth, dudes’ sunglasses slid up and down their noses and everyone’s sweat rolled down their necks and arms like they were melting popsicles.  Harlem know how to put on a show, even if audience members don’t quite follow the band’s stage talk half the time. One of the two vocalists, "Coomers" talked about his T’s odd graphic, a human and wolf making out (an Ariel Pink shirt) and how everyone should come join the band in "swimming in the big pool behind us" (the Atlantic Ocean). When they weren’t spouting funny banter, they were playing a nice mix of older songs and newer ones off their latest album, Hippies, like "Friendly Ghost" and "Gay Human Bones." Although they seem like the type of band that doesn’t give two sh*ts about what people think, they aren’t exactly egotistical rockstar material. They are more the hedonistic kind of artist, always seeking pleasure in whatever they do, whether it’s enticing kids to stage-dive onto asphalt or its playing fast and jangly music to dancing hipsters. Sure, they may come across a little sloppy at times, but if you’re throwing your hands up in the air screaming "Yeaaaah, Coooomers," and having a grand ol’ time, then there really isn’t anything to complain about.

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