(Ariel) Pink is the New Bore

By Kim Bellware in Arts & Entertainment on Jul 23, 2010 5:20PM

Time, it seems, makes memory fuzzy for Ariel Pink. “It’s our first time in Chicago,” was a bit of a half-truth when Pink (aka Ariel Rosenberg) addressed the sold-out audience at Lincoln Hall Tuesday night. Though it may be the first time in the city with his current lineup of Haunted Graffiti, we have heard Pink before—twice at The Empty Bottle, most memorably when he was on tour supporting Animal Collective after the band invited Pink to join their label.

You really don’t remember us, Ariel?

During at least one of the shows, Pink was booed off stage by an angry crowd. Maybe those are shows he’d like to forget, after all.

But a fresh lineup full of strong musicians and new dedication to his live show after getting heckled off stage one too many times prompted the LA-based artist to shape up his performances, in turn drawing huge numbers to his shows with Haunted Graffiti (a particular 9.0 rating of the new album probably didn’t hurt, either).

Travel snafus, by what we were told, held up the entire bill, pushing the performances back more than 90 minutes, but the wait didn’t dampen fans’ enthusiasm a speck as Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti took the stage for more than an hour of echoing, lo-fi, damaged-pop weirdness. Pink jump started the first song funneling hissing, waves-crashing-on-surf “drum” beats through his mic, one of the oral percussive moves for which he’s been so noted.

Unfortunately for the audiences as well as everyone on stage, no single element—instruments, effects or vocals—was given nearly enough space to make an impact. Pink’s voice was so swallowed up by the echo FX pedal that it made him impossible to make out, a double disappointment for those who enjoy his songwriting. We near exhausted ourselves trying to decipher lyrics or hear the textures of bass, keyboards and kitchen sink sound effects. Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti built a wall of sound, only to get lost behind it.

The band played a mix of song from the newly-released Before Today, as well as earlier albums The Doldrums and House Arrest, that included “Fright Night (Nevermore),” “Don’t Think Twice (Love),” and “Hardcore Pops Are Fun;” the creeping, syncopated bass on “Menopause Man” arched into a blistering guitar riff that cut through the chaotic overdrive in one of the standout songs of the evening.

Actually mitigating a bit of the clutter rather than adding to it, Pink tinkered all night, asking for different levels and pitches, modifying tunes (and throwing in a requesting some well-timed lights and disco ball). It was refreshing to see a band so actively engaged in their performance as it unfolded, which helped stave off the boredom we felt when Pink tried on yet another cartoonish voice or persona. After affecting so many different characters, we were starting to grow indifferent to who, or what, was the “real” Ariel Pink.

Like a break in the musical fog, someone finally killed the overdone echo as Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti wrapped their set and moved into a long encore. We were more interested than we’d been all night, hoping to clearly hear some of Pink’s voice and hear the rest of the band that had sounded much more intriguing on Before Today. The best of the set came from Tim Koh’s bass lines kicking through the muck, and the blended harmonies of all the band members singing, an effect made more rousing for its simplicity.

We never mind when a band’s live show doesn’t follow the album point-by-point, but consider the flip side: had Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti's record sounded anything like their live show, we doubt it would be riding as high a wave of acclaim. Pink has also noted before that much of his music was never meant to be performed live which is as frustrating for fans as it is impractical for the band. According to the audience, though, Pink must have done something right: for maybe the first time ever in Chicago, he left the stage to applause and not jeers.