I love the Dirty Projectors unabashedly, as I have intoned in this space on multiple occasions. But despite giving them thousands of spins, I have only seen them live once - a subpar show in Dartmouth College's Fuel Rocket Club where a broken amp and a questionable sound mix made for a dodgy-but-still-good experience. After hearing them get a little lost in a tiny basement space, I was terrified that they would be overwhelmed at Boston's cavernous House of Blues - where they opened for TV On The Radio on Thursday night.
They were not. At all.
Playing exclusively from their new (and...um...FANTASTIC) album, Bitte Orca, Dirty Projectors melted faces in a weird and quirky way that only they can. Their sound was crisp and clear, with Dave Longstreth's vocals placed front and center where they belong.
Their set kicked off with "No Intention", the second track to drop from the new LP. It's a beautiful track that really flaunts the Projectors' strengths - complex harmonies, insane vocal ranges, sparsely jarring yet melodic guitar work. It was the perfect opener, particularly when followed by an incredible vocal tennis match between Amber Coffman and Hayley Dekle to start "Remade Horizon". Coffman, Dekle, and cute-as-a-button Angel Deradoorian added wonderful harmonies throughout the set, giving Longstreth's voice some depth and punctuation.
I was impressed with how well the crowd reacted, proving me wrong regarding Dirty Projectors' accessibility. They grooved to new stunner "Temecula Sunrise" and rocked out hard as Coffman's vocals ripped apart set-closer "Stillness is the Move". There's no question that Longstreth and co. have definitely matured in the past few years. Dirty Projectors has grown from a one-man side project to a full-fledged band with some mass appeal. God, I love these kids - keep it coming!
NOTICE TO BOSTON PEOPLE: If you're not already going to see Passion Pit and the Harlem Shakes at The Paradise on June 18th, or the Major Lazer/Diplo/Switch/A-Trak/Matt & Kim fiesta at the House of Blues, you should go see the Dirty Projectors play the Somerville Theater with Vieux Farka Toure. It promises to be an amazing concert - what a night for music in Boston!
PS. Want a great read about how awesome and insane the Dirty Projectors are? Check out the NYTimes
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