Chief: Live At Joe’s Pub – NYC (8/17/10)

Chief’s Evan Koga leading the band through the entire new album Modern Rituals on Domino Records. Click through for a show review.

I knew this would be a good show once Chief drummer Michael Fujikawa walked out and quipped “this place smells like crab cakes.” On this early night, (show time 7:30) Chief celebrated the release of their debut album Modern Rituals, released on the very same day. Apart from the Last.fm Discover session they recently did, this might just be the most intimate I’ll ever see them. Joe’s Pub has a ticket selling limit of 180.

Once set-up, Evan Koga, Chief‘s main lead vocalist, told the crowd they’d be playing Modern Ritual in it’s entirety. After a false start or mess up, (it sounded like Michael Fujikawa began the extended drum intro of “Mighty Proud,” which isn’t on the album), they quickly regrouped and headed into the album’s opener “The Minute I Saw It.” Highlight’s of the night: “Breaking Walls,” “Stealing” and “Summer’s Song.” Following the album closer, “Night & Day,” they did two non-LP tracks as an encore. First off, one of my favorite songs from last year (which I made sure to yell out in hopes of hearing it), “Mighty Proud.” The night wrapped up with a recent b-side, “Your Direction.”

Joe’s Pub is always known for it’s great sound, and on this night, the guitars sounded crisp, the bass and drums had nice bottom, and the four-part harmonies were amazing! If you are a fan of Chief and love the album, do get your hands and ears on the vinyl copy of the album. One of the “warmest” sounding records I’ve had on my turntable in many years!