Concert review: Pure X / Real Estate @ Union Transfer 4/3
Please note: This article is published as an archive copy from Philadelphia City Paper. My City Paper is not affiliated with Philadelphia City Paper. Philadelphia City Paper was an alternative weekly newspaper in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The last edition was published on October 8, 2015.
A crowd expecting to dance got thrown for a loop.
Real Estate
Robert Skvarla
Robert Skvarla
Real Estate
Robert Skvarla
Robert Skvarla
Francisco Franco
Robert Skvarla
Robert Skvarla
Pure X
Robert Skvarla
Robert Skvarla
Pure X
Robert Skvarla
Robert Skvarla
Pure X
Robert Skvarla
Robert Skvarla
Francisco Franco
Robert Skvarla
Robert Skvarla
Francisco Franco
Robert Skvarla
Robert Skvarla
Real Estate
Robert Skvarla
Robert Skvarla
Union Transfer was an odd scene Thursday night. A crowd expecting danceable indie rock was thrown for a bit of a loop, before finally regaining their bearings.
The night began with a bit of a curveball as locals Francisco Franco opened. Utilizing the surnames of two of their members to settle on that moniker but well aware of that other guy who just happened to share the name, Franco the band isn’t quite as intense as Franco the man. Self-described “new wave elevator music,” the trio found a strange middle ground between guitar pop and odd electronic and krautrock detours that was closer in spirit to ’80s Factory fave The Durutti Column than the straight-ahead rock the audience was expecting. There was much arm-folding as the crowd tried to make sense of Francisco Franco.
Things got back on track for the audience with co-headliner Pure X. Foregoing older songs in favor of new material, the band used the night to showcase recently-released Angel. Beginning with “Every Tomorrow,” they made clear they were all in on a foray into soft rock and the crowd couldn’t have been happier. When one of the band’s two singers broke out the vocoder for “Angel,” a cry from an ecstatic audience member of “This is some Frampton shit!” rang out. This attitude seemed contagious as songs like “Heaven” had the crowd swaying to the point that they appeared almost ready to actually move.
All those pent-up urges to dance boiled over for Real Estate. The band’s brand of chiming indie rock immediately packed the floor with nodding heads and awkward shimmying. Covering mostly material off their new album Atlas, Real Estate sent the crowd home happy with an energetic set full of bright guitar textures and sighing vocals.
