The Annuals are one of those bands getting buzz on blogs. I’ve only had a chance to hear their album a few times streaming it online, and it struck me as pretty good, didn’t blow me away. Their live show last night, though, was damn good. Two keyboard setups right up front, with lots of percussion and passion. I like all these new bands (inlcuding the Arcade Fire, of course, but also British Sea Power and others) though go beyond the standard one-drummer arrangement. Annuals had a second drum set that one of the guitarists used from time to time, plus the lead singer did his own crazy drumming thing at various times (see photos…)
Another band from the Carolinas, the Never, put on a decent opening set. I’m not familiar at all with their music, which had some elements of art rock and light pop. There were a number of Never fans in the crowd singing along. I should be nice about Canasta, since they’re the hometown band, so I’ll just say I’ve never really gotten into Canasta’s music. Not my thing, exactly, but it was a fairly fun performance, complete with some trombone solos.