Girl Talk, Violens - Hiro Ballroom 05.28.09

Thanks to BrooklynVegan's tip, I entered in a photo contest and won a camera and a pair of tickets to a private Girl Talk show at Hiro Ballroom. The 2nd prize winning photo can be found here, and you can see that it's a pretty amateur fan shot. Nonetheless, it won something and I happily danced to Girl Talk for the fourth time in two years. A significantly smaller and older crowd (21+ only) made the experience much more enjoyable, although I was a little disappointed to see so many people not dancing as if they didn't know what to do at a Girl Talk concert. Girl Talk shows are always a good time to let loose and jump around to songs that you may remember from Jock Jams (Volume 1).

By now, you should know that Girl Talk shows are crazy, complete with inflatable balls, bubble machines, and a DJ who will not stop moving around. I wouldn’t say that I’m the most dance-happy person, but I will get down to Girl Talk because it really is a shame not to have a good time. Although the grand prize winners were supposed to dance onstage for one song, the crowd rushed the stage during the first song in true GT-show fashion. This time I didn’t get crushed by eager dancers, but my friend J. and I opted for more breathing space and left the stage after a few songs. I pretty much lose it every time Gregg samples anything Daft Punk (especially “Aerodynamic”), but I wish he would bring back the Grizzly Bear “Knife” sample. I’m still holding onto my memory of Grizzly Bear joining Gillis onstage at Pitchfork Music Festival ’07.

Girl Talk shows have always been a bonding experience for my friends and me. I listen to music that they’ve never heard of, and I flabbergast them by barely knowing any Top 100. These differences aside, my friends and I know how to have a good time and we have Gregg Gillis to thank for providing a happy medium. Girl Talk: Bringing weird indie kids and mainstreamers together since 2006’s epic Night Ripper.

Violens, who has also been given love on Made a Blog, opened for Girl Talk. Their performance of “Already Over” was divine, and I can’t wait for their forthcoming album.

Thanks to Spin and Canon for sponsoring the event and Absolut for the complimentary open bar.



Violens


Onstage view of Gregg Gillis

Already Over - Violens



In Step - Girl Talk

Purchase Feed the Animals here.