Spinner

Cold Cave Return to Chicago After Tour Postponement

Cold CaveBack in February, New York-via-Philly electro act Cold Cave suddenly postponed their tour to rework their live setup just before they were due to play Chicago. On Thursday night, they finally touched down at the Windy City's Empty Bottle to perform their '80s-inspired dark-wave dins. The three synth-playing members formed an instrumental wall onstage while drummer Guy Licata occasionally added percussion to the onslaught.

Aside from three blue lights, the band played almost in total darkness and didn't say a single word until the end of the set when they thanked the exuberant crowd. Instead, they greeted the audience with acute and trembling feedback emanating from the synths that led to a dizzying sonic assault. 'ICDK' from their debut record, last year's 'Love Comes Close,' came next as they intently marched in place to the rhythm.

As the set wound up, Cold Cave maintained their mystique, opting to stare down and twist those dials instead of interacting with the dancing crowd. After a fan stage dived during 'Youth and Lust,' the band experienced the biggest reaction of the night when they played the somewhat upbeat 'Life Magazine' to a cheering aftermath.

Besides concentrating on 'Love Comes Close,' Cold Cave performed short instrumental interludes possibly from their compilation record, 'Cremations.' Near the end of their set, shrill pre-recorded voices mixed with sounds that evoked a rushing waterfall. After only nine songs, Cold Cave finished on their B-side from the 'Death Comes Close' single, 'Theme from Tomorrowland,' combining co-ed vocals and synth bliss. Their set lasted under an hour and they didn't come back for an encore, but their ear-splitting noises still managed to make a strong impression.

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17 Comments

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ignorant

yeah spinner, please stop posting about new music that might be good. I only like reading about music I have actually heard because then I don't need to be exposed to anything outside of the bands I already like. I want to hear more about coldplay, u2 and dave matthews. I am going to ignore the fact that this band is on the matador records label, the same label that has put out records by belle and sebastian, yo la tengo, sonic youth, cat power, neko case and interpol because I don't know any of those bands either.

June 21 2010 at 12:21 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Brandon

YEAH SPAMMER I HATE ON YOU AND I'LL KILL YOU WHEN I CATCH YOUR WORTHLESS ASS.

June 19 2010 at 7:55 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Mike Hill

Cold Cave inspired Back Yard Storage Shed and Dog House Hotel. Their single is Dog Poo for You

June 19 2010 at 7:03 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
lawrence fishberg

To Rob...I LOVE "POORLY-LIT LAUNDRY ROOM"....DO YOU HAVE THEIR EP, "BROKEN DRYER"?....IT WASHES, DUDE!

June 19 2010 at 6:50 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
tony wilson

"Cold Cave" ?
That's what I used to call my x-girlfriend.
The Weedz have re-united !
This Friday at Syd's Bar & Grill in Noblesville Indiana !

June 19 2010 at 6:23 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
1 reply to tony wilson's comment
Brandon

Will the Weedz be opening for Henry Lee Summer, Roadmaster and Faith Band???!!! Well at least ole Henry had some HITS!!!! YAY FOR INDIANA ROCKERS!!!

June 19 2010 at 7:54 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Sean

I remember when obscurity was the "in thing" and then it was because they did not play by the record industries standards, thats what we called cutting edge. It's too bad the corporate cheese you all listen too has you thinking its the norm, posers, lip sync-ing to the camera and all looking like the plastic phoney's they are. none of them are real musicians, not a one.. yeah I remember real music, and they where all Obscure.....

June 19 2010 at 5:23 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
TweedleBeatleBoo

who cares!! must be really slow in th music news biz to post this

June 19 2010 at 4:47 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
lawrence fishberg

FOAMOLA IS THE BEST BAND IN THE WORLD.

June 19 2010 at 4:21 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
lawrence fishberg

WOW!...COLD CAVE IS BACK!...THERE ARE A BUNCH OF OTHER BANDS WHO HAVE BEEN INFLUENCED BY THEIR BRILLIANCE...LIKE, HOT ATTIC, AND LUKEWARM BASEMENT, AND FRIDGID LIVINGROOM, AND WINDY BATHROOM, AND OF COURSE, DAMP KITCHEN...CATCH THEM ALL!...THEY ARE GREAT!

June 19 2010 at 4:20 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
1 reply to lawrence fishberg's comment
Rob

I like Poorly-Lit Laundry Room , A band on the rise .

June 19 2010 at 5:47 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Jennifer

I too have never heard of this band. But aol does have a tendency of mentioning obscure groups. My guess is that the road managers approach aol with the information. "Free publicity".

But I have an idea...lets all take a moment to mention an obscure band, and see who else may have heard of them. I'll go first...

The Lukas Cates Band. Anyone ever hear of them? They are a Wisconsin group. Obscure, but have lots of talent to share with the rest of the country:-)

June 19 2010 at 3:54 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply