Sunday, October 26th was the second time in a year that I was fortunate enough to see one of my favorite up-and-coming bands, RAC. The indie-rock/electronica band from Portland, Oregon was making their second stop at the 9:30 Club and this time was different – very different.
My friend Connor had purchased tickets well in advance – at least a month and half out from the actual concert date – therefore allowing me to block off the 26th of October when it was still only early September. I remember having a distinct feeling at the time that this performance was going to be different from the last one, which took place this past March. The reason I had anticipated this performance so much is because it would be the first time I would be able to see their new album, “Strangers,” live. Only the band’s second album, “Strangers” features hits such as “Hollywood”, “Ello Ello” and “Let Go”, as well as nine more songs than their previous album, “Holy Rollers,” contained. As the concert neared and days began to fly by as they always do at the start of a new school year, my anticipation grew and I found myself continuously hitting play on these newer RAC jams.
Remix Artist Collective (RAC) was founded by Portuguese music producer and collaborator Andre Allen Anjos and has now become a full band that not only includes synthesized beats but real instrumental sound as well. Since late 2010 the band has been touring all over the world, with locations ranging from Argentina to Istanbul, and they are showing no signs of slowing down. In fact, as of 2013, the group had a short-lived but successful tour of Europe that included major cities such as Paris, London and Berlin. As of early 2014 the band has actually gone almost this whole year on tour, as they toured playing some older stuff and then right through the debut of “Strangers,” having only taken off a few weeks in October. They began touring again on October 22nd in Boston, with the concert in D.C. to follow only a few days later with the group fresh off of a well-deserved break.
As Sunday morning rolled around and everyone was still talking about Homecoming, I was anticipating RAC that night and was mapping out my schedule for the rest of the day. I would get some work done here and there, catch up on some football, and then hail an Uber around 8:30 in order to make to the 9:30 Club just in time for the show.
We get there just in time to see the lights pop on and the show begin. A few songs had the crowd slowed down a bit at first, which was surprising given the amount of excitement RAC usually brings to their shows. For instance a song like “Tongues,” a RAC remix of the original song by Joywave, didn’t have the same effect I thought it might on a young crowd that was anxious to hear the live set. However, with the addition of the light show, which was incredible, RAC began to pick it up with crowd-pleasing favorites like, “Houdini” and “Something Good Can Work.” The lights were simply laid out behind the band but the way the combination of colors mixed with the beat of the drums and synthesizer made it work perfectly. All in all, I am a huge fan of RAC, however some of the original stuff off of “Strangers” could use a little work, at least when played in a live venue. Although the most fun I had that night was listening to their older stuff, I still look forward to the new singles they will release in the future.
Concert Grade: B+/B
Songs: “Something Good Can Work”, “Hollywood”, “Cheap Sunglasses”
Bryson Greene is a senior in the College. The Beat appears every other Friday.
