Expert Alterations, fresh from their gigs at SXSW, brought their excellent indie-pop to D.C.'s Comet Ping Pong tonight. The band -- singer/guitarist Patrick Teal, drummer Paul Krolian, and bassist Alan Everhart -- delivered a brisk, invigorating set of songs culled mostly from the band's superb 2015 album, You Can't Always Be Liked, reviewed by me here. The album, out now on Kanine Records, was anchored by cuts like the title track and "The Past and You", both put through their paces tonight, along with deep album cut "Buildings" near the end of the set.
Also of note was relative rarity "Dear Thomas", all Left Banke hooks sped up with C86 vigor. The song was a delight tonight and if you want it, you need to head over to the link below to buy it via Bandcamp 'cause the vinyl, a split with Literature, is probably a tiny bit harder to find.
Another highlight tonight was "Midnight Garden", a track that first surfaced on the band's earlier EP on Slumberland Records. That EP, reviewed by me here, and You Can't Always Be Liked are uniformly excellent and I am excited about the prospect of new Expert Alterations music eventually...perhaps when the guys get a chance to catch their breath after so many gigs recently.
Follow Expert Alterations via the band's official Facebook page, or via Kanine Records. And, heads up: the band is playing a show with the legendary Jowe Head (Swell Maps, Television Personalities) in Baltimore in a few weeks, details here.