Veronica Falls, Brilliant Colors, and Grooms live at Music Hall of Williamsburg (2/9)

As I waited for the doors to open outside the Music Hall of Williamsburg last night, the three of us who were just a tad early overheard a venue worker remark that only around 240 tickets were sold—not too good for a 550 capacity venue hosting what was supposed to be the largest New York City gig yet for Veronica Falls. All we could do was shrug in disappointment.

When the first act, Grooms, took the stage, there couldn’t have been more than 30 people inside; quite shameful considering that, from the first song, all three band members ignored the small crowd and put their energy into performance, and by the set’s end, the crowd—now probably over 100—was shouting for another song. “One more song! I just got here,” one audience member screamed, but either time constraints or a lack of performance-ready material, forced the band to decline, probably just as disappointed in their missed opportunity as the late-arrivals were in theirs.

Grooms’ set was short, but sweet. Blending noise rock with elements of jazz, songs ranged from your three-minute pop structure that leaned on melodic riffs built on top of one another and culminated with distorted choruses and tender bridges, to longer, less conventional structures that allowed the rhythm section to shine. As throbbing bass lines and energetic drum beats captivated the audience, assaults of Sonic Youth-style noise washed over us, and pointed, Eric Bachmann-like riffs flowed naturally through the songs. From their killer, well-constructed breakdowns that saw frontman/guitarist Travis Johnson make full but careful use of his collection of foot pedals to their succinct, light verses that saw the band display their musicianship and chemistry, Grooms was always a presence on stage. The early-arrivers were given a treat, and the only shame is that there were far too few of us. Worse yet, Johnson seemed content to simply make jokes, commenting that “these are all Neil Diamond covers” and not repeating the band name for an audience that couldn’t find their record at the merchandise stand. Grooms has the music, but their showmanship may have left a few wondering when they could hear it again.

The second act, Brilliant Colors, hailing from San Francisco, did not waste much time on soundcheck, and so two-thirds of the band took the audience through one song while the guitarist tried to get his amp to work, causing the band to think twice and go through a more elaborate soundcheck. The decision was necessary, but it never should have needed to be made in the first place, and the audience seemed turned-off by the preview. And indeed, by the time Brilliant Colors started up again, it became clear that the sound guy was the unsung hero of Grooms’ set, doing a great job mixing and allowing everything to be heard. With Brilliant Colors, however, we were pummeled with repetitive chord progressions and a constant kick drum while struggling to make out anything else. The sound problems persisted throughout the set, but lackluster stage presence and the abundance of similarities each song shared made it feel like I was not missing much. The short, indie pop-punk songs were mostly forgettable and occasionally enjoyable, but never had enough punch to be noteworthy. The lack of energy in the crowd and the talk after their set did not make me feel particularly unique in this respect, and nobody was rushing back to the stands to pick up their LP, like my surroundings friends did for Grooms. Fans of The Chills and Best Coast might want to check them out, but should not expect anything that those two bands don’t offer themselves.

With Veronica Falls scheduled to take stage at 10:45, I was pleasantly surprised to see the room filling up around 10:30 and 10:40, and a look around led me to believe that even if just 240 tickets were sold in advance, at least another 100 had decided to buy tickets at the door. As such, when Veronica Falls took stage on time, they were playing to a respectable crowd that may have indeed fulfilled the promise of being their biggest audience yet. Hailing from London, Veronica Falls was in New York once again to promote their justifiably acclaimed (yet criminally under-represented on year-end lists) debut LP, so expectations could not have been much more than a showcase of those tracks and a few B-sides to pad the length. Veronica Falls did anything but “pad the length,” neglecting the B-sides of acclaimed singles Found Love in the Graveyard and Beachy Head for new songs. The new songs were, for the most part, in the same style as the tracks on the debut. The quality of the songwriting, the great hooks, and Roxanne Clifford’s alluring voice were all there, but they were much lighter and less spooky than the familiar material. Guitarist-vocalists Clifford and James Hoare had to concentrate to start these tunes together, but while arrangements may still be in the works, the quality of the songwriting is beyond doubt.

The older material sounded just like it did on the record, which, depending on the bands you have seen live, is either a disappointment or a pleasant surprise, but for Veronica Falls, it was just pleasant as it became apparent that the ghostly layering of vocals present on many of their best songs was created without any multi-tracking or doubles. The band played most of the songs off their debut with a confidence and flair that was matched by the band’s attire. Indeed, the polo shirts and red dresses put the band on a small pedestal, as if we came to observe them as opposed to simply interact with them and have fun with their music. But such an atmosphere was perfectly suited to the eerie pop that marks songs like The Fountain and Wedding Day, but the flowing lights were replaced with more directed, static spotlights on lighter songs, such as the album highlight. Stephen. The effect it generated was exactly what you would want from a live show: A showcase of natural talent that made complementary use of the aural and the visual, captivating the audience enough to demand an encore: A cover of Roky Ericson’s Starry Eyes that was left off the setlist, but, like the rest of their show, played flawlessly.