So really there’s not much of a story to last week’s triple bill at the Rock and Roll Hotel in NE. One of our first visits to the club started with the City Goats, a local modern rock band with a Southern Californian punk feel, who played loud and aggressively, if not…you know…well. Part of the blame was certainly on the sound system at RnR (a recurring theme), but if either nuance, discernible vocal melodies, or invention are your things, City Goats may not be for you.

We went upstairs between sets to get a feel for the place, and, though no one was there (another recurring theme), there are some great lounges, a hilarious beer selection that includes Schlitz, Sparks, Sparks Plus, and some decently priced “good stuff.” They also play pretty good tunes upstairs, from Arcade Fire to New Order to Johnny Cash.