Deerhoof
» A Death In The Family - venue, Sat, March 21
» Deerhoof hit Australia for the first time - December 5, 2005
» Deerhoof - April 1, 2007
» Okkervil River - September 10, 2006
Who are Deerhoof? It was a question that was plaguing me. Together as ‘Deerhoof’ since ’91 and with a multitude of studio releases, these guys are heavy weights in a cardigan wearing Indie world. But to be honest, I always find it a little intimidating trying to get into a well-established band. I mean, where do you begin?
Hailing from the Bay Area in San Francisco, a place famous for its eclectic musical exports, Deerhoof are cutesy pop one minute, rollicking rock the next.
As I stood with the cardigan wearer’s, the trio came on and within a minute of the first track, drummer Greg Saunier busts the skin on the tom of his small kit. While it was getting replaced by the support act, he tells the cute story about the band wearing jackets when they left the Northern Hemisphere and after being assaulted by Perth’s sun on arrival, they quickly got rid of those jackets. This signaled two things to me, 1) this guys a little quirky and 2) this guy hits those drums really hard. Both things I like.
For the next hour it was us, the plebs that were getting assaulted- by the intricate and diverse set that Deerhoof busted out. And boy did they kick the shit! They played tracks from a range of different eras, their older tunes that have an abrupt cartoonish quality right through to the stripped back stuff of their latest release, Friend Opportunity, including the crowd fave, The Perfect Me- all performed with total proficiency, heart and humour.
To call Deerhoof experimental is a cop out. But to claim that Deerhoof is a band for everyone is an out right lie. While for me, their stuff is a complete delight, I can imagine if you are not au fait with the work of say, John Zorn, this gig might’ve been a bit of a struggle.
Half way through the set I gazed over at my friend, David and realized that both our mouths were gaping open- it was at that point that I realized that between us we will purchase the entire discography of this band- by the end of the week. John Deiterich’s guitar was infectiously unpredictable and I slowly developed a small crush on him, Satomi Matsuzaki’s cute lyrics, strange hand gestures and ballsy bass add a certain charm and sometimes reprieve from Deerhoof’s boisterousness.
It’s not at all surprising that these guys tour with acts as diverse as The Roots and Sonic Youth and are regularly associated with darlings of the Indie scene, The Flaming Lips. But unlike the Lips, Deerhoof never fail to surprise, don’t fuck around and are under no illusions of grandeur- and it is so refreshing to see.
Deerhoof’s first ever Perth show certainly would convince the skeptical but also alienate the unsure. It’s either your cuppa tea or it isn’t. I’ll take 3 cups. Fuck it. I’ll have a pot.
