Live Review: The Cribs, with support from The Von Bondies--Bowery Ballroom, November 13, 2009

I love subversion. In fact, subversion in art—music specifically—may be my favorite thing ever. After kicking off Friday night’s sold out Bowery Ballroom show with the anti-lad stomper “We Were Aborted”, The Cribs launched into “Hey Scenesters.” To see a largely hipster crowd shout along to every word of a song essentially mocking them was a subversive feast for the eyes. Whether it was intentional of the band or not is debatable, but given Manhattan's large population of trend junkies and the insincere, and The Cribs predilection for talking smack on, well, everybody, my theory has a pretty firm backing.

Due to such audience-abasing thrills, I can’t give The Cribs live show a bad review. However, having Johnny Marr on board and antagonizing the very scene which bore you does not singularly redeem a sub-par live band. Not one of The Jarman three has been blessed with what could be considered winning stage banter. The first time I saw The Cribs, it was at The North Star Bar in Philadelphia. Twenty-eight people were there; about fifteen were interested in the show that was unfolding and thirteen were just there for something to do. The Cribs came on, shouted and sweated a lot, blurted some indecipherable nouns or verbs in between songs, and that was it. On Friday night, they responded to audience shouts of “Leeds!” (which is north of The Cribs hometown, Wakefield) with stone-faced, “Yes, I can see where you would confuse Leeds with New York” and other half-intelligible but extraneous remarks. Not all bands need banter nor a figurehead. If you can believe it, some bands are just adept at playing tunes, simple as. If you are in such a band, play those tunes, sweat a bunch, and get out. If you've got a Johnny Marr-like master on stage right, take his cue and let your talent speak for itself.

My other issue with the show was The Cribs sound; it's just so damn generic. While The Cribs do tackle various social issues in their songs, I just can’t see them as a life-changing band. Not all music has to be life-changing, so this gripe has more to do with my overlooking an obvious fact. The main reason I listen to The Cribs is because their music makes me feel like I’m thirteen and therefore gives me an excuse to jump around my room as such. Due to being stuck between two statues at the gig, my enthusiasm was marred. Where’s the fun in generic music if it isn’t serving a personal purpose?

Yet, there is an excuse for The Cribs’ punchy US-indie-rock influenced sound; and that brings us back to the subversion. It may be an excuse I too often rely on when defending bands I enjoy or love, but subversion works best with big gleaming hooks and punchy riffage. It’s quite hard to balance lyrics which undermine with sounds that venture outside of the norm. Thus, the same old combo of guitar/bass/drums can be excused. When your newest member is considered by many to be a living legend, you may even be awarded a “get out of your dull scene for free” pass.

Opening on Friday were the Von Bondies, or, Jack White’s punching bag, a cool Asian drummer, and two hot rockin’ chicks. Their stage presence was fine, but the music overlong and hookless. In other words, their set was the opposite of The Cribs, yet The Cribs were far more enjoyable. In reiteration, subversion music always wins.

Level of Disappointment: 7; although this rating reflects my hopes being too high than the gig itself.

Watch: The Cribs--I'm A Realist (live on Jools Holland).