Show Review

The Jaguar Club Date: August 24th 2007 Venue: The Cake Shop (Manhattan, NY) For anyone taking notes, here’s a really terrible way to start a rock show review:  If you go to see the Jaguar Club, you might not like them.  And here’s why that’s alright for an opening salvo:  If you are lucky enough to catch this trio live it won’t matter.  You’ll be so caught up in the sheer energy this band throws around on stage that you’ll be too excited not to get caught up in their music. However, with that said, you are likely, very likely to enjoy these excellent songs.  While the Jaguar Club may have their feet firmly planted in what’s getting called ‘indie-rock’ these days; their head is lost in a decidedly exuberant mix of dance-friendly  rock and a touch of retro flavor that’s damn hard to resist. Anyone who frequents rock shows has to be at least vaguely aware of the unfortunate scenario of going out and watching a band trudge through their set, never managing to convince you why you didn’t just stay home and listen to the record instead. The hell with all that. The Jaguar Club leapt (get it?) on stage and immediately took control of the crowd.  Leadman Will’s performance and contagious energy spread across the room over the course of a single song.  Music this infectious certainly doesn’t need to be brought to an audience with a sweaty, full-force performance – but it was and the crowd responded in turn.  Always in motion, moving on and off the stage as if being drug back and forth by his guitar itself, Will never seemed outside of the music for a single second.  The show ultimately seemed about half-concert and half-party; in the best, most fun way possible. Leadman Will Popadic’s guitar and voice complement each other well and lead strong tracks backed by the precise drumming of Jeremiah Joyce and the nimble, driving bass of Yoichiro Fujita.  All three elements mix well together to create the strong sound the Jaguar Club plays so well - and it almost works better live than on their two recorded Eps (Ceci ne'st pas le Club de Jaguar is a great, new six-tracker and features the unnecessarily good lead track “Beat of My Heart”).  Live, the songs acquire a bit of a rough, post-punk edge that grits up the clean-production sound and makes it even more immediate and energetic.  As a testament to a strong set, it seemed to end much too soon.   Breaking out of a trance-like state, I couldn’t seem to remember if the set had run long or short; I just knew that I wanted more.  I think the entire audience would’ve been happy to see the Jaguar Club keep playing throughout the night.  After all, no one wants a great party to end. More photos of the show availible HERE Jaguar Club Official MySpace Author: Will Joines Photography: Will Joines [ Back to Shows Index ]