Brooklyn vs. Baltimor at The 1896. — Photo by Ellen Letcher.

[Ed. note: lots of videos linked below!]

Last Friday was a fully loaded Todd P show with all the standard features: a lineup of eight excellent DIY/indie bands, an exciting and atypical venue, and Todd P’s comforting and highly pragmatic flight announcements (as usual between every set): “Do not congregate around the door.” “Try to enter on the right and exit on the left.”

But this show, the Brooklyn vs. Baltimore Battle, also had a little something extra; it was more than the sum of its parts, as they say. There was a little bit of magic in the air. It might have been because Todd P’s been less active of late. Or, it might have been the amazing venue — the 1896 is a huge warehouse space (more Oakland than Brooklyn) and it’s in an exotic but very accessible location (that mostly uninhabited triangle of warehouses between Johnson, Flushing, and Stewart). Or, it might have been all the people — the show was huge and more than once I felt like I was at the McCarren Park Pool. I get a big thrill out of seeing gangs of pale-skinned hipsters wandering around industrial neighborhoods where they would otherwise not belong. So, when Colin Langenus of USAISAMONSTER said “What an awesome world on this planet tonight,” it felt like a totally right-on thing to say.

I thought every band on the bill was pretty good (though we missed Woods and Vivian Girls). But on this particular night one band reigned supreme: USAISAMONSTER. They kicked ass. They even got a shout out from Dan Deacon during his set. What was so good about them was their completely non-80s, hard-edged, prog-style rock action. They churned it out and more than once made me think of King Crimson at their hard rocking best. USA was the only act on the bill that made me think — in the middle of their set — that I need to get their latest disc, “Space Programs,” ASAP. The next day, because of the show’s silly title, a pal of mine wanted to know which city won. I told him Brooklyn — and it was USAISAMONSTER’s standout performance that clinched it. Go Crooklyn!

These Are Powers and Dan Deacon were good but they should have been much better — they were not properly served by the sound system. They needed way more volume. Ghost Punk needs to be loud! But TAP, with their dubby tribalisms still managed to put on a good show and get me curious about their upcoming release, All Aboard Future. Deacon, also despite the volume impediment, gave a solid version of what he’s become famous for since the release of Spiderman of the Rings (official soundtrack of the Summer of 2007): MCing, remixing his tunes, and dancing like a spaz, on the floor, in front of the stage, and working the crowd like a wizard. It was announced at the beginning of his set that this was the last time he was going to perform in this format.

Some of the Baltimore bands were good, too. Future Islands were at their best when they seemed to be invoking Joy Division. (Check out this Future Islands video. It was shot in Ridgewood.) And Double Dagger were at their best when they sounded more like Big Black than Fugazi. Thanks, Todd P.

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