Au Revoir Simone soothes Chicago with beautiful music on a historic day of loss

June 25, 2009, at the Logan Square Auditorium

By Selena Fragassi
Published: June 27th, 2009 | 11:10am

There was no way of getting around the Michael Jackson comments as Au Revoir Simone took the stage on the infamous night of the King of Pop’s death, although the atmospheric synth pop band thankfully opted not to do an impromptu cover of “Thriller.” But it was Farrah Fawcett who really came to mind as the three keyboardist/singers, dressed in various patterns of plaid summer dresses, delighted the house to twelve soft songs of dreamy electronica that projected the image of a real cast of angels.

Most of the evening was dedicated to selections from the trio’s latest, Still Night, Still Light (Our Secret Record Company) including the ‘80s-flavored “Shadows” and the catchy number “Another Likely Story,” which nearly broke key player Annie Hart’s equipment and resulted in a slight show delay as sound techs rushed to fix the problem. “I broke my Casio when it dropped at a show in D.C.,” Hall said. “But this is a new one from a fan in Tucson.”

Minutes later, the band was plugged back in and returned with a couple of earlier tracks, the down-tempo “Stay Golden” and “Through the Backyards” from their self-released debut, 2006’s Verses of Comfort, Assurance & Salvation, that just couldn’t muster the courage or energy of Au Revoir Simone’s evolving pop sound likely inspired by fellow Williamsburg neighbors like MGMT and Chairlift. Most evocative was the opening number, the new Francophile, Air-inspired track “All or Nothing,” that was akin to a modern barbershop quartet as each girl offered vocals in an assembly line order.

As laidback as the music often was, so were the band members — except for Hall who compulsively danced to her own beats as partners Heather D’Angelo and Erika Forster mellowed out but offered much stronger vocals than Hall could produce, as hard as she tried.

Although Au Revoir Simone’s set had its moments of beauty, it was hard to live up to the entertaining theatrics of opener Findlay Brown who was handed the double duty of playing twice due to a time mix-up by the promoters. The London ‘50s-inspired alt-country band, named for its lead singer, gave double the pleasure as the five boys in skinny jeans, plaid blazers, and western shirts ripped through songs of pure Americana and rockabilly on “Come Home” and “Everybody Needs Love.”

Even after their time was over, the band moved to the floor for what could be considered their third set of the night and played acoustically, one with a guitar, another with a harmonica, and the drummer crouched down as he assaulted the floor with his sticks. With his pompadour and high cheekbones, Brown played up his Elvis shtick to the delight of many smitten girls in attendance. It was yet another reminder of the true Kings that inspired so many of today’s greatest artists, in a night that became an unofficial tribute to the royalty of Pop and Rocknroll.

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For more photos from this show visit Venus Zine’s Flickr page

Au Revoir Simone official site

Au Revoir Simone MySpace page

Our Secret Record Company