When I saw Miniature Tigers open for Freelance Whales back in December, they were unable to captivate the crowd as an opener. Sadly, when they opened for The Get Up Kids this past Sunday, the same held true, as the audience looked at the stage wistfully [Ed. note: I, for one, danced my heart out! - Beth]. That shouldn't have happened. In fact, both times, Miniature Tigers presented opening sets with consistently solid track choices and performances.
Both of the Tigers' albums translate wonderfully live, with songs like the thumping "Rock and Roll Mountain Troll," which offers an infectious mix of Charlie Brand's smooth vocals and a blasting floor tom. The tropical rhythms and knee-bend/knee-lock movements of the band recall Vampire Weekend, except that Brand wears a poncho.
As I said in my previous review, when a band invites another band on the bill to "jam" with them, I groan. "Cool," I think. "Someone's gonna come out and shake a tambourine for four minutes." That's not the case for Mini Tigers. Inviting the opening act, Brian Bonz, to join in on drums made "Cannibal Queen" even more groovy and percussion-heavy, adding to the impact of their figurehead single from their first record. [The odd addition of a dancing Spiderman also added, uh, something!] Even their weird haunted-house/carousel-tinged cover of Hendrix's "Fire" made me smile. Sure, before I might've thought changing a Hendrix tune was a sin, but it worked!
The band was also commendable in their ability to handle a disinterested crowd. When the crowd wouldn't join in on Brand's cue to clap, instead of expressing disappointment in the crowd vocally, he simply stared down an audience member in the front, who continued to refuse to put her hands together. This little statement made me appreciate their live set even more, even if it was based on spite and snark.
