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It seemed like the Rock and Roll Hotel had two distinct crowds last night — those who came to see openers Office and headliners Robbers on High Street, and those who came to see local mood rockers Monopoli. Monopoli had the biggest crowd, but the Monopoli fans who left or went upstairs before Robbers on High Street did themselves a disservice.
New York's Robbers on High Street are one of those bands that are simply good. They're five guys who have a good time on stage and play catchy, head bobbing, fun indie music. They didn't get as much exposure on the New York indie scene as some other bands, but their debut EP "Fine Lines" and album "Tree City" were both excellent, and this tour is supporting their new EP, "The Fatalist and Friends."
A little Spoon-ish with some Animals mixed in, some of their songs rely on guitars, some on bass, especially newer ones like "The Fatalist," and others like "Spanish Teeth" on keyboards. Generally mid-tempo or faster, the set brought more people towards the stage as it went on, the sign of a successful show, and had a pretty festive atmosphere during the encore when the band brought a bottle of champagne and did some covers to commemorate John Lennon's death. Slow builder "Opal Ann" was another highlight, and the won-over crowd tried hard for a second encore, but to no avail. But second encore or not, they played a long set, and you have to like bands who play Uno in the bar before their show and take pictures of themselves getting stuffed in lockers.
Chicago's Office have been getting some notice lately -- a bunch of good reviews, performing at SXSW, and having their track "Wound Up" as a free download on iTunes - pretty impressive for a then-unsigned band. Looking a bit like the B-52s, the three girl, two guy band played happy, choppy new wave in front of an appreciative crowd which seemed a bit smaller than I expected from the buzz. And they said they heard the RnR Hotel used to be a funeral home, which makes the place inherently cooler.
Locals Monopoli had a big turnout in the middle for their serious rock. The foursome are good musicians and polished perfomers, but perhaps were a little too polished. Lead singer Alfonso Velez seemed to be doing a Bono impression for the entire set, complete with hand motions like hitting his heart and doing the peace sign while singing the word "peace." It might work at an arena or for an Irishman with bug glasses, but seemed a little forced in the close confines of the Rock and Roll Hotel. They had a good following though, even if most of the folks didn't seem to stick around for the Robbers' set.
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The Office and Robber were quite enjoyable...a bit Artic Monkeys cheeky BritPop--which always translates into a good time. Monopoli, on the other hand....definitely not worth my $12. Sorry. Getting away from boring, uninspiring sound is the reason for listening to indie.
Since you paid $12 to see three bands, technically Monopoli only had to be worth $4.
I thought they were worth at least $5.39 even with all the hand motions.