"The Forlini's of Detroit"

Pas/Cal; The White Rabbits
@Mercury Lounge
New York, NY – June 22, 2006

Detroit’s Pas/Cal are not like – and not really associated with – the bands that have come to personify the “scene” that has come out of the Motor City over the last half-decade or so. Pas/Cal is more like the Decemberists, Velvet Underground, and jangle pop bands and a guy who is a bridge between Lou Reed, Colin Meloy, Wes Anderson and a flamboyantly feminine emo dude fronts it. In describing the band, the lead singer dubbed them the “Forlini’s of Detroit” in reference to a Downtown NYC restaurant that was met with silence by the crowd when the lead singer asked if anyone had been there. That about sums up Pas/Cal in context. The standout song is “Summer Is Almost Here”, one of the finer indie pop songs to be released in some time – composed of the hooks and melodies that don’t exceed mainstream friendliness or indie sloppiness. This is a great band for fuzzy feelings.

The White Rabbits are a New York band in which some of the band dress like 80’s English teen sensations Squeeze (and even have a drum kit that says “William Tell” on it). The band’s music flows between the dance-beat rock that’s all the rage and indie pop etherealness. Surviving several equipment and sound problems, the band was able to put forward a mix of stimulating tunes and meandering malaise. Both Pas/Cal and The White Rabbits opened for Asobi Seksu.

(Photos by Roxxan H)