FYM ON THE LIST: SLEIGH BELLS / PICTUREPLANE / THE SUNDELLES @ DETROIT BAR, COSTA MESA

Last week, New York City-based dance rock duo Sleigh Bells bounced up and down the California coast, opening up the LCD Soundsystem show (along with Hot Chip) at the Hollywood Bowl on October 15, then opened up for Hot Chip two days later at The Warfield in San Francisco before heading back down to Southern California to headline shows in Orange County and Los Angeles. We here at For Young Moderns, who flew to the East Coast a few weeks ago to catch LCD Soundsystem/Sleigh Bells in Boston (read coverage of that show HERE), were on the guestlist for their show at Detroit Bar in Costa Mesa. On these headlining dates of Sleigh Bells' tour, they brought along one-man dance-rave party Pictureplane (from Denver), and the lo-fi pop rock of NYC's The Sundelles.

Sleigh Bells battled through some unfortunate PA system issues that significantly took away from their signature sound of deafening yet danceable guitars. For much of their set, guitarist/songwriter Derek E. Miller had to rely solely on his Marshall stacks behind him rather than the amps being aided by the venue's PA system. When the sound was coming out correctly, the distorted guitars made your skin vibrate.

Luckily, singer Alexis Krauss always bring along more than enough charisma and energy to make up for any technical issues the band suffered. She's a one-woman party monster and can definitely hold her own and keep the crowd fully entertained even when she is rocking the stage solo during one of the guitar-free, sample-heavy tracks. A combination of alluring, mysterious, and dangerous, Krauss commands and receives the crowd's attention and affection throughout Sleigh Bells' set.

Their set was a bit brief, with no encore. They played for not much longer than their opening slot sets recently played when opening for LCD Soundsystem and/or Hot Chip. Highlights from their set are the same songs that are highlights from their excellent debut album, Teats, including "Rill Rill" (a song of the year candidate) and "Infinity Guitars", which has a music video you can check out here:

THE MIDDLE EAST @ DETROIT BAR, COSTA MESA

The Middle East are currently opening for Mumford & Sons across the country, but tonight (June 5) they headline a show at the wonderful Detroit Bar in Costa Mesa, California. FYM will not recommend too many trips to Orange County, but when we do, Detroit Bar will usually be the destination. It's oddly located in the corner of a strip mall between a Mexican grocery store and a donut shop, but once you enter, you'll think you're right in the middle of Silver Lake or San Francisco. Its top notch slick atmosphere supports the excellent quality of bands that are often booked at the venue.

Before going on tour with Mumford & Sons, headliners The Middle East opened several shows for Pavement. They perform hushed yet exquisitely vibrant folk rock that sounds so very American, you'll be convinced the members of the band never left their hometown somewhere in small town Kentucky or Ohio or Tennessee before touring, and then you'll be shocked to find out they are actually from Queensland, Australia. For fans of Bon Iver and Arcade Fire.

Call them Australian Americana, if you will.

Here's the video for "Blood", one of the highlights of their album, The Recordings of the Middle East:



Tickets are $8 advance or $10 at the door.