How Was The Show - Gay Beast, STNNNG, Vampire Hands at Big Vs

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Vampire Hands CD Release Party with STNNNG, Gay Beast and Daughters of The Sun at Big Vs on 9/15/07

Vampire Hands at Big V's - Photo by David de Young

Bad weekend to be at the cabin, dude. Saturday night it was as if a mini music festival went down at Snelling and University Avenues in St. Paul. At the Turf Club were Little Man (freshly-returned from tour), Romantica, and Captain Yonder, while at Big V’s were Vampire Hands, STNNNG, Gay Beast and Daughters of the Sun. Add Saturday’s lovely weather to seven local bands playing practically within shouting distance of each other and it made for a pretty good night.

Before you go picturing wall-to-wall people pushing their way down University Avenue between Big V’s and the Turf Club, I should mention that wasn’t quite the case; though plenty of music fans did meander back and forth over the course of the evening. And it just so happened that the way the sets were timed, you could catch most of each show if you were willing to walk the 100 yards or so down the street and ignore the panhandler at the corner whose rap was a blunt, “Hey man, gimme $5.”

I photographed the shows on both sides of Snelling Saturday, but for the purposes of this review I will focus on Big V’s, specifically on Vampire Hands and their show celebrating the release of a brand new 8-song CD, Virgin Dust, American Lips (2007, Freedom From).

Daniel Luedtke of Gay Beast

Openers Saturday at Big V’s were Daughters of the Sun, and a quick listen to them on MySpace, you will not be surprised to learn that First Communion Afterparty are fans. Next up was Gay Beast, a noise rock outfit featuring Daniel Luedkte on keyboards and vocals. Luedkte is going on tour with Olympia Washington’s Twin (http://www.myspace.com/wearetwin), so Gay Beast will likely be on hiatus for a while. In the Third Slot was STNNNG, a band that has no problem asserting dominion over even the First Avenue Main Stage, so you can only imagine what happened when their carnal energy was unleashed onto the 8 x 12 Big V’s stage. (Humorous aside: At least one concert-goer believed STNNNG lead singer Chris Besinger when he introduced the band as Little Man; though perhaps a giveaway that he was joking was when he preceded the claim by saying, “Welcome to The Turf Club.”)

Vampire Hands new disc was recorded early this year at Old Blackberry Way studio (the same location where The Replacements recorded Let It Be). Some of the songs that now appear in fully studio versions on the disc were previously available as live recordings from a 7^th Street Entry show in November, 2006 taped by Schedule Two. Track two from the new album, “Cool Bath,” is available as a download from 89.3 The Current who made it their song of the day on September 7^th.

Vampire Hands continue to find more and more fans even since being “Picked to Click” by the City Pages in 2006. Many people, including me, saw them for the first time when they were featured on the lineup of the Hexagon’s “8 Ball” in September 2006. They also played Radio K’s Best New Bands Showcase at First Avenue in January of 2007. (See Andrea Myers review.)

Their live shows are sweaty, fun visual affairs. Though Chris Beierden sings and plays bass towards the front of the stage, it may be secondary drummer and vocalist Colin Johnson shaking maracas while beating a second set of drums and sometimes twiddling effects knobs that leaves an impression. The group is rounded out by Chris Rose on guitar and Alex Rose on drums. Two ferocious drummers who seem determined to eat rhythm alive give Vampire Hands a primal feel that stays firmly on the psychedelic and punk (think The Stooges’ “1969” or the percussion to Bow Wow Wow’s cover of “I Want Candy”) side of the drum jam vibe instead of the hippie side you might experience at say, The Winnipeg Folk Fest. “Cool Bath,” closes with over a minute of just drums, and that’s just fine.

At Saturday night’s CD Release Party you knew it was a party from the second song into the set when a member of First Communion Afterparty was lifted into the air for a quick crowd surfing session. Given the close proximity of audience members to one another, they had no trouble keeping her up. It was actually pretty hard to move in or out of the club until the end of Vampire Hands’ set, which ultimately came to a close with a cover of The Beatles’ “Tomorrow Never Knows.”

VH depart for an extensive tour on Thursday, September 20th, which will take them to both coasts before it's over. Sharing the road with them will be Thunder in the Valley, a band with whom they share member Colin Johnson. They’re back at the Hexagon on November 16^th.