Recap Women and Jail at Rathskeller

In the age of Mother Internet, a band can record itself pissing onto a snare drum and tour behind it, providing some high figure in the great hype machine gives it a positive blog mention. And while Calgary’s Women aren’t doing anything quite so crude (they are writing some damn fine songs), its show on Friday at the Rathskeller proved to be a pleasing, though not exactly monumental, arrival in the Midwest.

The show began with an arguably tighter set of twist-and-shout garage rock from Milwaukee’s Jail. Opening with the danceable barnburner “There’s No Sky (Oh My My),” mustachioed guitarist/vocalist Vinnie Kircher howled his way over jangled chords as lead guitarist Ryan Adams stamped out well-timed melodies. Meanwhile, Drummer Austin Detmer (wearing Jail’s other ridiculous moustache) banged out rhythms for bassist Andy Harris to walk all over. A refreshingly excitable, engaged Rathskeller audience danced and twirled each other around as Jail blazed through an equally scorching and nerdy set that pulled largely from its latest record, There’s No Sky (Oh My My). After the foursome wrapped things up with a new tune entitled “Lips Lock W/O Key,” Women shared their charming fusion of sunny-'60s pop and math-rock.

The four-piece crawled its way through a wall of screeching feedback to kick into opener “White Sedan,” a tentatively titled new tune that plummets further into the world of psychedelic pop, and away from the band's math-rock roots. During “Black Rice,” a bleakly infectious pop tune that channels Psychocandy-era Jesus And Mary Chain as much as it does the Zombies, drummer Michael Wallace nailed melodies on a xylophone while punching out rhythms on his kit. Throughout the set, which comprised songs from last year's self-titled album and a few new freakouts (including “Diamond Boys,” “Spain,” and “Salt Remains”), every space between songs was polluted with walls of feedback, making one tune bleed into the next.

As the vocals of guitarist-vocalist Patrick Flegel rang out over the all-too-brief closer, “Group Transport Hall,” it was easy to envision Women playing in the auditorium of a high school or tearing up a basement. They seemed rather green as a live band. But their imaginative, if underdeveloped, energy is what makes their songs special, so Decider can't complain about seeing that trickle into this show.