No Age
The Trunk Space
Sunday, January 30, 2011
The Los Angeles noise rock duo No Age has toured relentlessly during the past year. They were originally scheduled to play at The Clubhouse Music Venue in December, but rescheduled the end of their U.S. tour for last night at The Trunk Space.
Singer/drummer Dean Spunt remarked on this right away, "Sorry for canceling the other show, but this show is fucking cool."
They exchanged a 600-person venue for a room full of die-hard fans. Not a bad trade.
Earlier this month, they performed "Fever Dreaming" on The Late Show With David Letterman, and won over new fans, including Paul Shaffer, who had nothing more to say than, "phenomenal . . . phenomenal." They opened for Sonic Youth and Pavement at the Hollywood Bowl earlier this year.
It may seem surprising that they played at a small venue like The Trunk Space after all that, but they tend to favor smaller venues. They were awarded "Phoenix Best Small Show" in 2009, and have a known history of playing house parties and last-minute secret shows. In fact, they'll play just about anywhere they can, even under bridges.
No Age's SST-era punk rock influences were clear last night, as they played the faster songs from their catalog and had minimal stage banter. They took the stage without a word as Randy Randall played the opening riffs of "Life Prowler." Once Spunt started drumming to "Teen Creeps," the second song of the evening, the crowd erupted into a small-scale mosh pit.
Spunt's vocals were difficult to hear at times due to Randall's six amps and array of effects pedals, but that didn't stop the crowd from dancing and singing along to their favorite songs, including a cover of Black Flag's "Six Pack." The mosh pit full of dancers consumed nearly half the crowd by the end of No Age's set.
Critic's Notebook:
Last Night: No Age at The Trunk Space
Personal Bias: I grew up with punk and couldn't help but sing along to "Six Pack."
The Crowd: Very energetic. The youngest and oldest arrived together as a teen/parent combo.
Overheard in the Crowd: "This is the best No Age show I've ever seen. They are so much better in a small venue."
"How many times have you seen them?"
"Three."
Random Notebook Dump: Hey, Randy, nice Black Flag tattoo.
