In what was one of the most hyped Aestheticized shows this summer, Deer Tick and Dead Confederate proved to be a Thursday evening worth every penny of the $10 cover charge. Four bands, each with their own flavor of whiskey-drenched, world weary Southern-alt-rock, played to a nearly sold-out crowd at Crowbar.
Tampa's Sleepy Vikings were my most anticipated act of the evening, as I've been unable to catch them live up until this show. In 2007, the unexpected energy and strongly crafted songs of their earlier incarnation, Giddy-up Helicopter!, stole the evening's hype from (then) up-and-comers Silversun Pickups. Giddy-up's dark shoegazy sound pulled me in rapidly, and I listened to songs streaming on their Myspace for months. They received an onslaught of local press and had begun touring to build a larger fanbase when suddenly, they dissolved. I was thrilled to hear several members had re-formed under the new moniker, Sleepy Vikings. After tonight, I can decisively say Sleepy Vikings is much more than Giddy-up, Part II; they've taken everything fantastic about the earlier band and pushed it farther. I rather enjoyed their earlier dark tendencies, but the new pop twist and addition of Tessa McKenna on vocals has made them infinitely more listenable. Julian Conner's vocals have developed well, gaining a new clarity of enunciation and Southern-rock slant with strong echoes of Deer Tick's John McCauley. The sadness and depth of both vocalists merges beautifully with the elaborate guitar work of Nicole Schleif. Drummer Ryann Slauson still brings an energetic joy that gives me the sense she's caught up entirely in the moment. Every song really sounds ready for release, and I sense real possibility for momentum outside of the Tampa Bay area. As with the Silversun show, the band was once again my favorite of the evening (and myspace is seeing more traffic from me than it has in a long time).
This article appears in Jul 29 – Aug 4, 2010.
