Pittsburgh, PA

For those of you who missed Penn Brewery’s Oktoberfest and/or the Pgh Pop Festival and want to know how they went, feel free to read on. The rest of you may be bored, so I’m warning you now.

Oktoberfest was just how I’d imagine it’d be: a whole lot of drunkenness, crowds, kielbasa, polka and perverted guys. All in all, it was a good time and I thoroughly enjoyed drinking my half gallon of beer straight outta a plastic jug.

However, I’ll admit that the lines were a bit annoying, but I guess that’s what happens when you try and jam that many people in such a small space. I hate to say it, but I almost think they should have limited the amount of people they let in at one time. My sister was planning on going, but I told her not even to bother cause of the lack of parking, crowds and the long lines. Oktoberfest’s should definitely take place in larger areas where people can dance, sing and revel without bumping into people and spilling their beer. I’ll just go to a different one next year, no big deal.

I have been wanting to see Metric/Emily Haines live for years now and Pgh Pop Fest finally gave me an opportunity to do so. I just wish it would have been in a different place/city/whatever. Pittsburgh is not, nor probably will ever be in on this kind of music. Hardly anyone was dancing and all of the other cities had after parties for Metric, cept for ours. We suck. Usually it takes Pittsburgh a couple of years to catch up to NYC music wise, but in the case of electroclash/good indie music, I’m not sure it will ever happen. That’s ok though, since we do our own thing here and if I had the time I would start my own electroclash/party night, but alas I’ve already taken on more than I can handle as it is and shouldn’t complain. It’s just a little disheartening.

I guess I should comment on the bands, in case anyone is interested in checking them out. Most of them were actually decent, so that was a relief.

I missed most of the DJ sets which opened the festival, since DQ Pumpkin Pie Blizzards are more important, but I did catch all of the rest of the bands. Shade was the first band I saw and although they all play their instruments really well, they were a bit overbearing. This could have been due to Mr. Small’s crappy acoustics, but I’m not so sure.

Robbers on High Street also played their instruments really well, but took a lower key approach to their music than Shade, which made them sound really great. They were a bit mellow for me, but everyone seemed to like them.

The next two acts, Longwave and Crystal Castles were by far the best, obviously not including Metric, and were a lot of fun. Longwave is this really great indie band from NYC who have a nice ambient feel to their music. The effect was amazing and I definitely feel that if there’s one band to check out from this festival other than Metric, it’s them. Go to their Myspace here.

Crystal Castles were also a lot of fun, but in a dance/thrash music kind of way. It’s a duo from Toronto who play via a labtop and dance to strobe lights. They put on the kind of dance party I wish I could see more of in Pittsburgh.

And finally, Metric!

Although they didn’t play my favorite song, Succexxy, they played almost all of my favorites and some ones I’ve never heard. Emily Haines puts on an excellent show and has a wardrobe and voice I envy immensely. In addition to Metric, she has another band Emily Haines and Soft Skeleton, which play more mellow/haunting songs with lyrics that rival Metric’s. I think she’s one of the most prolific writers out there today and I’m glad I was able to witness this kind of talent in Pittsburgh. If you’d like to check out Metric’s music, go to their Myspace here.

Photo courtesy of Fiddle While You Burn.

Pittsburgh, Oktoberfest, Penn Brewery, Pgh Pop Festival, Mr Smalls, Metric, Crystal Castles, Longwave, Robbers on High Street, Shade, Millvale, music, beer