Hidden only a couple miles from campus, a little jewel of a bar called The Temptation Club has been offering local bands a place to play every Thursday night. April 25, the day after classes ended this spring semester, brought a crowd of 60 or so together to drink some Pabst Blue Ribbon and enjoy an evening of live music.

Warming Up

Kicking off the night Children Boy was the first band to play. For a two-man band they created a solid delivery of some intricate music. Having been added to the bill at the very last minute, the entourage only had time to get three songs prepared for the show. Offering an entirely instrumental set, Children Boy used their music to do the singing for them. Looping guitar riffs created a deceiving sound of complex overlaid rhythms. Combined with prerecorded music and a concrete drummer, this last-minute collaboration proved to be quite successful. This was a great opener to get the crowd warmed up.

Siddhartha was next to take the stage, bringing a pencil thin mustache, indie rock beard, and another instrumental set to The Temptation Club. Fading in and out of rock deposits, their ear-plugged drummer played a vital role in song transition. Overlaying synthesized beats into their music, Siddhartha brought a surprising temperament to their sound. While their second track unexpectedly offered a pattern of drums appropriate to an early ’90s punk band, it somehow fit awkwardly well with their progressive sound. Without too much of a repetitive pattern, strong stage energy and continuous changes in tempo kept the entire set interesting.

Blast Off

Stealing the stage and the majority of the crowd captivation, the Blastoids were next to take the spotlight. Overshadowed with a carefully mixed video of the Power Rangers, the Blastoids filled the stage with different instruments. After 15 minutes or so of setting up and sound-checking everything, the band quickly grabbed interest with a high-energy track that was less than a minute long. Front and center stage Tyler Walker, was wearing a pair of bright pink shorts, no shirt and a colorful mask that covered only his eyes. He had a half set of drums, a synthesizer, soundboard, and an array of microphones. To his left Joe Volmer controlled another half drum set, another synthesizer, and an array of microphones, including a child’s toy megaphone through which he later screamed vocals in their next-to-last song. The right side of the stage was filled with Charlie Hareford’s full drum set, Apple laptop, organ, portable piano and three-tier set of guitar strings attached to wooden plaques on an upstanding brace. Dripping with sweat, the Blastoids blared through seven songs, each with a sound more creative than the last. Harmonic vocals were laced in and out of rampant screaming, all the while being accompanied with tranquil, listener-friendly keyboard tones. Applying face-paint, singing with a microphone effect sounding like a robot, and creating music seemingly fitting to a video game, it was damn near impossible to tear this audience away from what they were seeing. Mesmerized by the wild events, everyone seemed more than enthusiastic to be a part of the show. Closing out the set, Charlie picked up a set of beaten and broken cymbals and banged them into his drum set while Joe and Tyler danced through the audience. Offering a quick farewell, “Thanks guys, we are Blastoids, we had fun!” they exited the stage and made way for Dr. Asimov.

Visit From the Good Dr.

While the Blastoids created a hard act to follow, Dr. Asimov was next on the bill and had a faithful crowd of their own. Due to a four-month trip to Ecuador, the band will be taking a break from playing shows for a while. This created the mood for a fun farewell from Dr. Asimov to their fans. A four-piece band, the good Dr. offered a solid rock sound accented with voiceover samples, a zealous keyboard, strong lead guitar, and a bad-ass bass sound. With an almost dark industrial theme this band still brought in some great voiceovers, distorted dual vocals, and even a couple of songs that had a funky dance feel to them. Taking influences from all over, the eight-song set was enjoyable and yet hard to place. Taking abrupt pauses during songs, the band would allow for a beat of silence and then quickly crash back into the track. After seven songs, Dr. Asimov delivered the eighth and final track. A collection of high-energy, quick-paced vocals on a wave of knock-down music did a fine job of shutting down the show. Summing up the night, a member of the audience yelled, “We are cured!” and The Temptation Club slowly emptied.

For more information, visit myspace.com/doctorasimov or myspace.com/

blastoids. Also look for upcoming shows as the Blastoids kick off their summer tour!