Rain fell heavily on the roof of the Ché Café. Girls with bangs and septum piercings filled the small, wooden room as the aroma of incense with a hint of cinnamon drifted around the space. The rain poured outside. Dreamlike patterns of reflected puddles danced across the foggy windows. Girlpool, Cleo Tucker and Harmony Tividad, stepped on to the low platform stage. They casually greeted the crowd, completed their own mic check, and started the show with “Ideal World.” Their eyes were closed as the two girls cooed softly. Their voices evoked an element of youth. Their humble band of guitar, bass, and vocal created an undeniably minimalist sound. The absence of excess added more emphasis to the untamed roughness of their voices tucked neatly away for precise moments.

Tucker looked up at the crowd and said “Has anyone ever hit their head in the bathroom here?…I guess I just don’t focus enough… I’m just in glee when I’m here.” With the compliment well received, they went into the folky “I Like That You Can See It.” The middle of the song swung with momentum and strained, passionate vocals that filled the room. The crowd was standing calmly but none-the-less adoring as if the show were some sort of art exhibit or poetry slam.

Tucker and Tividad put up no barriers, asking people what they were for Halloween and even drinking out of a water bottle from someone in the audience. The way they sing about life in a relatable way, and the manner in which they interact with the crowd shows that they are comfortable and don’t take themselves too seriously.

The next song was a newer one as the girls disclosed. The core of the song, recently titled “Soup,” was not unlike the previous ones, but with lyrics like “Come over to my house I’ll help find your fix/ You’ve got lots of potential/ Can you feel it?” it was darker, eerier, and more seductive.

They closed with “Cherry Picking” which, starting out slow and deliberate, escalated to a heavier rhythm that led to a small and abrupt mosh. Girlpool stuck around for a two song encore. They played one of their more dynamic songs “Plants And Worms,” then they switched instruments and performed “Paint Me Colors.” Tucker and Tividad took turns on the vocals, energy building all the while, until, at the peak, a mosh pit broke out, spilling onto the stage and causing the musicians to stop abruptly. After a pause, they picked up where they left off and ended the show. In their performance was something naively passionate– a blend of immaturity and insightfulness. The impression that would remain was the image of these two quirky girls, seemingly so sweet but also a touch misunderstood, channeling their agitation into outspokenness.

More on Girlpool? Checkout:

https://twitter.com/girlpoolband

https://www.facebook.com/GIRLPOOOL/

girlpoolmusic.com

Photo / @sodabarsd / Article / Gabriella Librizzi

11/11/2015