There are concerts that make you think and concerts that make you feel. And then there are concerts that feature keytars and sparkling v-neck t-shirts. Unsurprisingly, The Go! Team and Cansei de Ser Sexy’s August 5th Phoenix sets fell into the latter category. But instead of spending the night winking and going, “Look what I’m wearing! Get it?” the bands upstaged their tongue-in-cheek catchphrases and ass-in-spandex outfits with unmistakably sincere enthusiasm.
For those tired of talented indie dance groups limiting their longevity with self-conscious styles and disposable pop-cultural lyrical nods, openers Natalie Portman’s Shaved Head give reason to worry. Not only do the Seattle group sing about beards and wear retro t-shirts with arm tassels, but they’re also short-sighted enough to drop a rapidly decomposing movie reference into their (admittedly awesome) handle. But that’s fine. Natalie Portman’s Shaved Head probably don’t want your grandkids to listen to “Beard Lust;” they just want you to dance. And clap like an idiot. Frankly, it was hard not to do both. The energetic fivesome’s infectious, insistent bangers felt like a Pop Rocks-and-Coke cocktail poured in your ears.
The same could be said for the night’s fabulous second act, Matt and Kim. Launching into Europe’s “The Final Countdown,” the Brooklyn duo couldn’t have generated more excitement if Gob Bluth himself had rolled out on a Segway. True to their opening number, the band kept the proceedings fun and frivolous with witty banter. Since Canada's lowest-denominational bill is the five, drummer Kim asked, “When you go to the strip club, do you just drop coins down there?”
On the other hand, there was nothing frivolous about Kim’s drum beatings. Matt and Kim? More like Matt and Thor. Right? While most bands hide their drummers like shameful porn collections, Kim wisely pushed her set opposite Matt’s keyboards in the middle of the stage, enabling the energetic duo to feed off of each other and create a disproportionately massive sound in the process.
With six players, Brazil’s Cansei de Ser Sexy packed as big of a bark as their noisy openers. In fact, at times, singer Lovefoxxx, decked out in a full-body spandex suit with a giant face on the front, struggled to rise above the barrage of dentist-drill guitars, insistent basslines and thumping beats – not that anyone missed the lyrics. ESL singalongs like “Off the hook, I think I’m off the hook, baby” sound like focus-group-generated catchphrases for kids’ snacks commercials — “Hey kids, Go-gurt is off the hook, baby!” But the audience were there for dancefloor-rattling bangers, not a poetry reading, and as CSS churned through “Meeting Paris Hilton,” heads bobbed obediently like boats in a storm.
Still, no one controlled the crowd like Go! Team frontwoman Ninja, who would make one hell of a cult leader, or at the very least, an aerobics instructor. When she said jump, the crowd made like Tigger. Meanwhile, the rest of the band kept pace, regularly swapping instruments and bouncing around the stage like a bunch of hopped-up Gummi Bears. Like all the night’s acts, The Go! Team threatened to come off as overly cute and self-conscious. But The Go! Team sold their musical melange and cheerleading chirpiness with precision and passion.