Show Review: Divine Fits @ Stubbs (10.31)

Spending your Halloween at Stubbs seems like a weird route to go, but I was pleased to see at least of a third donning costumes for the show.  I had high hopes for the acts, having missed Divine Fits last time around, and always loving a good Cold Cave jam.

Read on for more words and excellent photos.

Cold Cave are an interesting band.  It’s like a dark wave band, with the darkness probably being harnessed a bit more than one would expect, considering the group is fronted by a fomer hardcore vocalist.  But, that being said, I think they were probably the more entertaining band of the evening for me, both musically and live.  Sure, Wes Eisold’s vocals do have a tendency to seem a bit over dramatic at points, but for my two cents, the band sort of picks up where I always hoped the Faint would go (but didn’t).  It’s got a bit of punk, but also a blend of early electronic tunes; it is a heavier New Order–there, I said it. They did well, just unfortunate only half the crowd was there to witness it.

As for Divine Fits, I’m going to be honest and say that I was underwhelmed.  Yes, they sounded great, if you’re paying attention to those sorts of things.  But, I was looking at two things: did they have the songs to entertain and did they have the ability to give a good show? I expected the addition of Dan Boeckner to provide a dash of energy to the group’s dynamic, knowing that Britt’s never been the most entertaining dude.  But, having seen Boeckner in many settings before, he seemed rather subdued. You could tell he was trying to make it work, but that’s when I started to reflect upon the songs, thinking surely those would influence his playing.

And maybe they just don’t quite cut it.  Maybe these aren’t the best sets of songs these two have ever written.  There’s a real absence of hooks, someting both men have excelled at…even “My Love is Real” seemed sort of dialed down a notch.  I mean, their songs are better than most group’s best hits, but I left being a bit underwhelmed by it all, thinking that there should have been more.  The emphatic moments of A Thing Called Divine Fits just didn’t come across, at least not as impressively as I imagined.  It’s always great to see those two dudes throwing down on the stage, but sometimes two great songwriters is just not enough.

Check out some photos from Brian Gray.

There are a few more pics at the photo site…