Gang Gang Dance at the Majestic Theatre
Not a photo of last night's show, though probably just as sweaty.
Next to The Mighty Mighty Bosstones and Avail, we can now add Gang Gang Dance to a sterling legacy of bands with a member who specializes in dancing. This is all thanks to the recent addition of “spirit guide,” or “guy dressed in white who pretty much only dances across the stage with a giant hand drum,” Taka Imamura. As great as Imamura sounds, it wasn’t actually his presence that stole the show when GGD played at the Majestic Theatre Wednesday. We could tell from the early polyrhythmic bear hug between percussionist-vocalist Lizzi Bougatsos (who was sporting an enviable Ghostface Killah T-shirt) and drummer Jesse Lee during the set opener, “Adult Goth,” that this show was all about the rhythm.
Don’t get us wrong, though; watching electronics wizard Brian DeGraw multitask behind his mountain of samplers and synths was, in its own way, like seeing a new-age spirit leopard (or whatever). DeGraw would be twisting knobs with one hand while hitting a sampler with a drumstick in the other, and then drop the drumstick to nail some melodies on the keys resulting in a nonstop flurry of motion that kept GGD’s sonic skyscraper insulated with huge synth washes, alien tones, and massive sweeps of noise. Meanwhile, Josh Diamond injected his own heavily synthesized guitar melodies, but the line between Diamond’s and DeGraw’s sounds was often blurry and indistinguishable, particularly during tunes like the infectious, Far Eastern-flavored “Mindkilla.” Tracks like “Chinese High” and “Glass Jar” we’re often stretched deep into new dimensions via extended jams as the psychedelic film projections that shone upon the band kept the audience further entranced. Some kid in the crowd seized these moments to twirl around some rope-thing with tennis balls tied at the ends. Yep, GGD is that band now.
Whether Bougatsos was lost in her otherworldly wailing or pounding away at her roto-toms, her ear-to-ear grin remained firmly intact; she looked like a good match match for the words “positive energy” that kept spinning around in the projections behind her. The band and its dancing spirit guide worked their way through a set that pulled largely from this year’s excellent Eye Contact and even brought out an untitled new song that really showcased more of the mighty synchronicity between Lee’s slanted pulse and DeGraw’s percussive sampling. After closing it’s proper set with another new tune in “KOU-DA-LEY,” the band members re-emerged with the rhythmic stomp of “Thru And Thru,” and then waved goodbye and let their spirits guide them on.
