East met West in the Midwest on December 2nd in Chicago, with the Beat Kitchen playing host to California’s Ganglians, New York’s Friends, and the Windy City’s own Architecture. The 17+ event was an odd but welcoming mix or teenyboppers & friends and more seasoned buzz band aficionados. There was plenty cooking for all of the above. The scent of the venue’s "world famous" tater tots wafted through the air as the bands powered their way through art-pop sets occasionally hampered by sub-par soundtech-ing.
Locals Architecture opened to a friendly crowd with their haunting, 
candied art-pop. Manicured melodies wove guitar & synth into hook-laden compositions studded with ethereal harmonies. Material from their debut LP When We Were Young sounded meatier live than on the album, which is a good thing. Give partial credit to the addition of a new full-time bassist who kept the bottom register warm and full. Architecture has leaned on pre-recorded drum (and bass?) tracks for live shows in the past – not so unusual for a band with electro origins – but they never sounded better during the night than when they were playing as a fully live four piece. Food for thought.
The buzziest buzz band of the buzz night, Friends, was a motley crüe of loveable Brooklyn hipsters that has figured out how to meld ‘90s alterna-pop nostalgia with a dance party sensibility. Actually, not such a difficult concept to wrap your head around, or execute. But it’s all about the delivery, and Friends delivers the booty-shaking goods. Strong Gwen Stefani vibes from the lead songstress, No Doubt vapors all around. You don’t always have to reinvent the wheel – steering it works just fine.
West Coast neu grunge, stomp box rockers Ganglians closed out the night. The majority of seventeen-year-olds in the house appeared to be especially excited for this band. Hard to say what Mountain Dew promo or Gossip Girl episode Ganglians had been featured on, but there must have been something, because Midwest teenagers (unless they were über-cool like you at that age) don’t know about out-of-state midlevel indie bands unless they have been included on a Twilight soundtrack (QRO soundtrack review). Overall, good stuff, though the frontman leaned too hard on a certain vocal effect to propel songs. If you didn’t like that effect, you didn’t like Ganglians.
