When we last saw the guys, it was at a pub in DC where the stalwart Sally and I were invited to have a few drinks with the band at an intimate press party (recapped in the blog entry for January 23).
Hugely popular in the homeland, Bell X-1 released its American debut, Flock, in February and started making the radio/TV rounds, including a spot on “Letterman.” After having hung out with them, and seeing what polite, soft-spoken guys they were, it was a hoot to see them on my TV full of rock swagger and sharp music.
Of course, Sally and I had to make it to their concert at the 930 club at the start of this month. I’d heard that the band’s NYC dates were SRO, but this was an instance in which DC’s most modern venue pushed its mobile stage forward to make the club look smaller, and even then it wasn’t very crowded.
At first, the band seemed a bit bummed by the quantity of the crowd, but its quality warmed them up. This was an audience that roared its approval, called out titles and sang along with songs that one could never have expected them to know. The band got looser and smiled more, dropped cool Talking Heads references into two songs, and lead singer Paul Noonan offered an acoustic Depeche Mode cover during the encore. Well done, boys.
Trivia note: frontman and primary songwriter Noonan was originally the band’s drummer but original vocalist Damien Rice left to pursue a solo career, so Noonan came forward to take the spotlight. Suffice to say he’s a natural.
And that leads to a new title to add to the O/CD Tally:
BELL X-1 - Flock (Yep Roc)
This was an official copy of the commercial release.
I got a generic advance late last year, in advance of the pub meeting.
Year-to-Date: 102
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