October 4, 2005
Alternative Rock Bands in a Minor League Ballpark
By KELEFA SANNEH
The New York Times
O.K., time for an indie-rock hypothetical.
If you were in a Scottish band given the opportunity to plan an American baseball stadium; and if this stadium belonged to, say, the Brooklyn Cyclones, the Class A affiliate of the New York Mets; and if your famously un-macho lead singer had gone to the trouble of putting on a Mets T-shirt and bringing a baseball bat onstage; and if, furthermore, your band had recently recorded a song about the sexual orientation of a famous Met (it's called, "Piazza, New York Catcher") - well then, wouldn't you take the opportunity to play it?
Apparently not. The band is Belle & Sebastian, which played Keyspan Park in Coney Island on Sunday, alongside Beck and the Polyphonic Spree. This was one of four concerts that made up Across the Narrows, a "modern rock event" that took place this weekend at Keyspan and at the Richmond County Ballpark, on Staten Island.
"Modern rock event" aptly sums up the vague spirit of the thing. Unlike most big concerts in the past month, these were not advertised as benefits. And while the name suggests borough pride, New York acts were a minority.
Instead, the focus was on veteran alternative-rock bands. (And inevitably, on the sponsor, PlayStation, whose representatives roamed the crowd asking fans to try out their video games.) The weekend's other performers included the Pixies, Gang of Four, Built to Spill, Rilo Kiley, Oasis, Jet, Doves, the Killers, the New York Dolls and Interpol.
The Sunday concert in Coney Island was a pleasant - though rarely thrilling - way to spend a glorious October afternoon and evening. "This is a byoo'iful day," trilled Stuart Murdoch, leader of Belle & Sebastian. And even without the tribute to Mr. Piazza, Belle & Sebastian has a big cache of gentle and cruel indie-pop songs; highlights ranged from the silly-scary ("I'm a Cuckoo") to the gloriously melancholic ("Judy and the Dream of Horses").
But the set (casual to a fault) and setlist (understocked with crowd favorites) combined to underwhelm. On Sunday this group seemed too small for even a minor-league stadium. There's nothing wrong with that, of course, unless that's where you happen to be.
By contrast, Beck knows how to create a spectacle. Over a decade into his career, he seems comfortable with his place in the alt-rock establishment, and with the respectful if not quite rapturous response accorded his most recent album, "Guero" (Interscope). He began with "Black Tambourine," which combines downbeat (the despondent lyrics) with upbeat (the playful rhythm).
It can be satisfying to hear all of Beck's songs together, from the country lament "Guess I'm Doing Fine" all the way back to his breakthrough hit "Loser." In fact, "Guero" works really well as a summary of his various tendencies, which is one reason it doesn't work even better. The low points of a Beck show can usually be summed up in a word: rapping. But on Sunday he made up for it with inventive arrangements, trial-and-error solos, and a memorable version of "Clap Hands," during which his band members sat around a dinner table, tapping glasses and slapping forks to create a dinner-party rhythm section.
The lineup also included the Danish retro-rockers Raveonettes, plus an early, suitably weird set from Gang Gang Dance, the New York band that builds heavily rhythmic songs out of echoes and blurs; the music gestured covertly at Bollywood, grime and lots in between.
And then there was the Polyphonic Spree, the most enthusiastic act on Sunday, as on most days. The group tries frantically to be uplifting and overwhelming; its leader, Tim DeLaughter, dresses up alternative-rock songs in a faux-Christian costume, complete with the robes, choir and harp. With some two dozen members, the Spree is certainly big enough to conquer a minor-league baseball stadium. But if this is the alternative, then perhaps Mr. Murdoch is on to something. Perhaps there's a case to be made for making a smaller - and somewhat less joyful - noise.
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