I got to the Casbah just after doors opened, this was going to be a packed show and I needed to be up front early. I was still hobbling on my swollen foot, but a Cranhammer and a Stone IPA took care of that.

Click on any photo to go to the full gallery.



Tu Fawning opened up with a fun set of heartfelt dance pop. The unpredictable percussion and breaks made them a good fit for the bill.



The ladies were high energy and cute, which never hurts.



The blonde started out the set on drums before coming up front and pulling all eyes to her as she sang.



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Brooklyn's Suckers lived up to their name. The guy in the middle drunkenly climbed on stage later, trying to sing with Menomena. Security pulled him off, but not before he stumbled and broke a bunch of empty glasses on the stage and then fell on top of me and my camera bag. Thank to Tashena, who got my camera bag out of harm's way as this dude tried to crowd surf on me.

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Last time I saw Menomena, I stood in my favorite spot but couldn't move around the packed floor. This time would be no different, so I stood on the right side to get a better view of Danny.





The guitarist from Tu Fawning joined them to help fill out the songs drawn from the past two excellent albums.



Yep, those are baby heads on Danny's drums. I get the feeling he's a bit off, judging by his stage persona. It makes him fun to watch, though.





I bought Brent's CD of his side project, Ramons Falls. It sheds a lot of light onto what he contributes to Menomena, mainly the vulnerablesongwriting, lyrics and keyboard work. He made it with many collaborators, but it's cohesive and a bit more accessible than the lurching structures of Menomena music.



My best view was of Justin, who puts the low end into the music, using hands, feet, and breath.





To be honest, last year's show was better, but I think it was just a bad night for them. They left without playing an encore despite the crowd screaming for one. That's a sure sign that something wasn't quite right.