On October 8th, The Regency Ballroom hosted Kula Shaker and The Dandy Warhols. The Ballroom is massive with thirty five foot ceilings that resemble a gothic neo classical motif equivalent in representing the inside of a cake topper. It’s adorned with beautiful crown molding and numerous chandeliers. The venue was fairly full allowing enough room to dance without bumping into someone if remaining in one spot. The crowd resembled the acid rock hippies of the eighties and was a mellow crowd there to mostly vibe out and record on their smart phones.
Kula Shaker, an English brit pop band, first grew an audience in the 1990’s. The band resembles a pop acid rock band known for their mysticism, psychedelic sound and far out visuals. The visuals alone can keep an audience thoroughly entertained. This night consisted of neon pink, blue, orange and green rorschach-like slides that projected and engulfed the interior of the main ballroom. The band’s use of the sitar paired with krishna sanskrit and western instrumentals would allow for anyone in the audience to be put in a trance.
The crowd itself was mellow, swaying and dancing to the environment the group created. Despite the large venue, Kula Shaker’s set felt as if you stepped into an intimate jam session as their songs transitioned into one another. The band played their most popular song “Hush” bringing the crowd to life as more phones came out to record. “Hush” brought a particular buzz of energy to the audience. Before ending their set, frontman Crispian Mills threw his guitar in the air and caught it as their last act to their time on stage.
The Dandy Warhols brought Courtney Taylor on lead vocals and guitar, Zia McCabe on keyboards, Peter Holmstrom on guitar, and Brent DeBoer on drums. They entered to a blacked out stage and bright spotlight casting a shadow on each band member’s face. They opened with the song “Ride” with its heavy distortion and effects that changed the pace from Kula Shaker’s psychedelic pop rock to shoegaze. Despite the Dandy Warhols being a dedicated shoegaze band this song set the vibe of their dream-like sound for the night.
The stage was absent of any visuals allowing for the audience to connect more with their music and mysterious presence. The music was able to do all the talking as it pulsated and washed over the crowd. The audience filled the majority of the floor but not to the point of feeling suffocated from lack of personal space. Perhaps, it was their raw energy but the audience felt to have a symbiotic relationship with the Dandy Warhols.
The mood felt throughout the crowd was of ease till they closed their set with the song “Bohemian Like You.” This released the most energy from the audience and band as the strobe lights went off allowing the audience finally able to make out each band members face. The psychedelic effect of lights and high distortion on the guitar caused the audience to dance and accept the climax of the show. But, it didn’t end till the loan keyboardist McCabe announced “ FREE PALESTINE and F*** ICE” to a cheering crowd. No encore was permitted as McCane invited everyone out to her DJ gig at the Hot Rod Club after, which ended a psychedelic Wednesday night at the Regency Ballroom.
Review by Ezra Rodriguez
Photo by Nicole Nodland
