I'd never been to a KEXP in-studio performance before (despite being sorely tempted last year), so I didn't quite know what to expect upon finding the New York home of this fantastic radio station. Once we finally found Gigantic Studios, the place was humming with people and activity. The studio itself is pretty nice (ridiculously nice compared to the college radio stations I've previously spent time in), with a viewing room, studio room and broadcast room all linked with big glass panes. You could hear the band soundchecking in the viewing room, as well as the live broadcast. After about a half an hour, Tokyo Police Club started their in-studio performance. Since I saw them last at the Southside Seaport, they've gotten new, nicer equipment which brightens up their sound. Their new guitar rig also makes them sound more like the Strokes than they previously did, probably because they are very similar. I don't know how I feel about this. Anyway, the band and instrumentation sounded great in the studio, they continue to become better musicians with time. The singer, however, sounded like he'd been partying pretty hard for the last week; his voice was hoarse, his demeanor was tired and a little awkward. He kind of fumbled through the interview section as well, hopefully he'll get better at answering obvious questions in the future. Did you really come to CMJ and not expect anyone to ask you about when your band might be recording their debut album? Really? Anyway, it was nice to see them again, and cool to see a KEXP in-studio. I'll likely check out another next year.

For the record, I still think that they'll be signing to Stolen Transmission, but only time will tell.

Labels: CMJ, Concert Reviews, Tokyo Police Club