City of Women is a band that will remind you how cool guitar solos really are. Guitar solos, remember those? You may hear the ghosts of that eroding rock n’ roll tradition every time you flick past a classic rock radio station (or shuffle through a Jack White tune on your iPod), but City Of Women is no relic act, no nostalgia-tinged ode to the past. Their sound is unique, occasionally jarring and at times completely disconcerting, but never boring or insufferably incoherent. One second, they’ll bust out a heavy riff worthy of Tony Iommi’s fingers, and the next they’ll lay into a deep funk groove or buoyant surf-rock jangle.
Take “Seance,” a song that perfectly encapsulates their musical essence: it starts off with a hypnotic chant that could pass for a loop on some M.I.A. B-side, settles into a danceable bass n’ drum-driven beat, and then melts into a psychedelic jam session so potent you can practically smell the incense burning.
In addition to a self-titled album out now, be on the lookout for an upcoming video to the track “Beaufriend” inspired by Fellini (art school sheen meets rocker grit!) and a new EP dropping this spring.
Books On Fate, Night Train, City of Women
Hemlock Tavern
March 10, 2014
6:30pm, $5 (21+)
