Tune-Yards & Sudan Archives played Thalia Hall (pics)
Tune-Yards released their fourth album, I Can Feel You Creep Into My Private Life, in January, and they've been on tour in support of it. With ICFYCIMPL, Tune-Yards officially became a duo, with Merrill Garbus and frequent collaborator Nate Brenner co-writing and producing. Live, the pair are also joined by a drummer and their tour brought them to Chicago's Thalia Hall on Saturday (3/3), which also happened to be Merrill's birthday. Chicago Tribune was there, and they write:
Assisted onstage by collaborator/bassist Nate Brenner and a live drummer, Garbus celebrated her birthday taking stock of her role in systematic injustice, racial disparity and environmental ruin. As she broadcasted phrases pregnant with scorn and self-accusation — “Sitting in the middle of the sixth extinction”; "I smell the blood in my voice”; “We let freedom ring, but whose freedom?” — Garbus and company juxtaposed them with dance-club grooves. The upbeat vibes both underscored the personal contradictions and made the heady subjects palatable to a weekend crowd bent on having fun.
A ukulele proved no match for the repeatedly tapped cowbell and streamlined funk responsible for the hip-shaking motions of “ABC 123.” “Coast to Coast” marched to processed sounds that evoked blurting saxophones and a background choir. Questions of consumerism and entitlement emerged in the “Water Fountain,” but a barrage of layered voices and hip-hop beats transformed the protest into a party.
Throughout the 70-minute set, Garbus altered the texture and tempo of her hybrid collages with her voice. On “Powa,” she veered from delicate balladeer to tongue-out banshee wailer faster than the time it takes a luxury sports car to go from zero to 60. The former puppeteer also used syllabic and nursery-rhyme deliveries as rhythmic devices, complementing and contrasting the band’s mix of live and electronic drum-pad percussion.
Check out pictures from Tune-Yards' Chicago show, including some of opener Sudan Archives, in the gallery above.
The North American leg of Tune-Yards' current tour wraps up on Friday, March 9 at Brooklyn Steel with Xenia Rubinos, and tickets are on sale. After that, the band head overseas for some dates - they return to North American in April for more shows with My Brightest Diamond. See all of Tune-Yards' upcoming tour dates below.
Tune-Yards 2018 Tour
Mar 06 Danforth Music Hall Toronto, Canada
Mar 07 l'Astral Montreal, Canada
Mar 08 Royale Boston, MA
Mar 09 Brooklyn Steel Brooklyn, NY
Mar 13 Sage Gateshead Gateshead, United Kingdom
Mar 14 The Liquid Room Edinburgh, United Kingdom
Mar 16 Albert Hall Manchester, United Kingdom
Mar 17 Church Leeds Leeds, United Kingdom
Mar 18 Attenborough Centre for the Creative Arts Falmer, England
Mar 20 The Roundhouse London, United Kingdom
Mar 22 Botanique - Orangerie Saint-Josse-Ten-Noode, Belgium
Mar 23 La Maroquinerie Paris, France
Mar 24 Gebäude 9 Koln, Germany
Mar 25 Melkweg Amsterdam, Netherlands
Mar 27 Festsaal Kreuzberg Berlin, Germany
Mar 28 Uebel & Gefährlich Hamburg, Germany
Mar 29 Pumpehuset Copenhagen, Denmark
Apr 25 The Depot Salt Lake City, UT
Apr 26 Boulder Theater Boulder, CO
Apr 28 Norman Music Festival Norman, OK
Apr 29 Fortress Festival Fort Worth, TX
May 01 White Oak Music Hall Downstairs Houston, TX
May 02 Emo's Austin, TX
May 04 Georgia Theatre Athens, GA
May 05 The Orange Peel Asheville, NC
May 06 Haw River Ballroom Saxapahaw, NC
May 07 The National Richmond, VA
May 09 Jefferson Theater Charlottesville, VA
May 10 Union Transfer Philadelphia, PA
May 11 Mr. Smalls Theatre Millvale, PA
May 12 Skully's Music Diner Columbus, OH
May 13 Taft Ballroom Cincinnati, OH
May 15 Headliner's Music Hall Louisville, KY
May 16 The Ready Room St Louis, MO
May 17 The Bluebird Bloomington, IN
May 18 Exit/In Nashville, TN
May 19 Variety Playhouse Atlanta, GA
May 21 9:30 Club Washington, DC
May 25 Lightning in a Bottle Festival Bradley, CA
May 27 SASQUATCH! Music Festival (May 25-27) George, WA
Jun 22 Jazz Winnipeg at The Garrick Winnipeg, Canada
Jul 07 Pohoda Festival Trenčín, Slovakia
Jul 10 Tivoli Theatre Dublin, Ireland
Jul 11 Roisin Dubh Galway, Ireland
Jul 13 Latitude Festival (July 12-15) Beccles, United Kingdom
Jul 14 Cactusfestival Bruges, Belgium
Jul 15 Melt! Festival Gräfenhainichen, Germany
Jul 19 FIB Benicassim Benicàssim, Spain
Jul 21 Larmer Tree Festival (July 19-22) Salisbury, United Kingdom
Jul 27 Fuji Rock Festival (July 27-29) Naeba, Japan
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photos by James Richards IV
