Scenestar

BY PAULA GONZALEZ
PHOTOS BY PETER RUBIO

MAY 21 | FT. LAUDERDALE—The Nylon Magazine Music Tour hits all the right spots for a music lover who prefers intimate gigs to gigantic festivals. This tour featured some new bands, some not so new and some fierce. Switches, The Virgins, Be Your Own Pet and She Wants Revenge all made the night worth it for the avid concertgoer.

Switches: Now on their third U.S. tour, these boys opened the show to blank stares, but the crowd immediately grew friendly with each song performed. Best described as cute, young and hip, Switches is a post-puberty presence on stage, playing hits from their debut album Lay Down the Law. You can say boys will be boys, as singer Matty Bishop made such comments as, “We like the ladies, and the ladies like us.” Acting a little older than they really are, the U.K. band’s tunes filled the venue with Franz Ferdinand-style pop beats and the obvious geeky-indie notes.

After meeting in college, the band members have already made some dents in the music world, enlisting producer Rob Schnapf (Beck, Elliott Smith, The Vines) for their first full-length. In an interview with The Scenestar’s Liane Chan, Switches mentioned various albums of influence to their music, from T.Rex’s Electric Warrior to Blur’s The Great Escape. The band also enjoys the likes of Weezer, Ben Folds Five, Outkast and Prince, all of whose influence can be heard in their music.

The Virgins: If I thought Switches were a post-puberty presence on stage, The Virgins kicked the youthfulness up a couple of notches by displaying pre-manhood (and I’m talking about the manhood of going off to college or getting that first job). I don’t know what was more amusing, to see a group of boys, no wait, young men who either were working out a little too much or wearing clothes that were a little too small. Either way, these New York boys have received much attention with their catchy and racy dance songs. Recently signed to Atlantic Records, The Virgins had the full attention of the audience tonight.

Be Your Own Pet: I had prepared the photographer about being on the floor, because I expected a massive slam pit to immediately form once this band hit the stage. I expected mayhem, chaos; I expected security guards to come in the dozens and control all the raging teenagers who were going to go crazy when Be Your Own Pet began their set. Well, none of that happened. There was only one wuzzy pit, but BYOP managed to tear it up on their own without the help of anyone. The only female performer on this tour, lead singer Jemina Pearl runs on her own energy, which is beyond impressive. And for those of us who still have a heart for punk music, listening to BYOP’s songs from latest album Get Awkward reminded some of the likes of Black Flag, Bad Brains and basically good ol’ punk. Hailing form Nashville, Tenn., BYOP keeps punk alive and well.

She Wants Revenge: Even though I’d like to say that BYOP stole the show, She Wants Revenge managed to fully pack the venue with people wearing black makeup, corsets (let’s just say there was a lot of jiggling tonight) and bondage clothing. In the end, the night was theirs. SWR hadn’t been in South Florida for sometime, so they immediately graced us with songs from their first, self-titled album, throwing all of us into a sing-along celebration of our favorite SWR songs. Never changing the style of their serious, dark and focused performance, SWR also played their newer songs, including “Save Your Soul” from their latest EP, released under the same title. Their encore featured the best of the best, closing off the night with “Out of Control” and “Tear You Apart,” which drove the crowd into a frenzy of singing along to every single word of each song and dancing along to them.

Yeah, it’s not Coachella, it’s not Lollapalooza, but for a good price, you get to see four entertaining and varied bands from all walks of life: U.K., New York City, Tennessee and California. There is still one more opportunity to catch the closing date of the Nylon Magazine Music Tour on June 21 at the Wiltern. Tickets are available now. Heck, with the heat wave that is currently making you put your head in the freezer, it just might be the perfect getaway, and you get to see some dope bands.