"When you forget [Valentine's Day]--you're f***ed!"

Luckily, last night's performance at Beat Kitchen gave us something to remember

photo credits (in descending order): Emily Driskill, Ted Newsome, and Jonny Leather


Beat Kitchen was abuzz last night with Chicagoans looking to add music to their Valentine’s Day celebrations, or commiserations depending on who you asked. Couples leaned against the tiled walls of the back room as small groups circled together in front of the stage, waiting for the night’s opener the Jealous Girlfriends to take the stage. The audience crowded around the stage as singer and guitarist Holly Miranda introduced the band. The Jealous Girlfriends wowed the crowd with their multi-layered brand of indie rock with a touch of nu-wave sound. Boy-girl vocals of Miranda and guitarist/singer/owner-of-an-awesome-mane-of-hair Josh Abbott blended beautifully with drummer Mike Fadem’s energy and heady synth effects of Alex Lispen’s keyboards. A slight Miranda stood on her tip-toes as she sang, jumping from a plaintive wail to light-hearted “oh oh ohs.” Her voice was powerful and full of emotion as she sang, sounding a little like Brandi Carlile (whose music—along with the Jealous Girlfriends—has been featured on “Grey’s Anatomy”). The Jealous Girlfriends kept the audience happy in between sets with their sweetly awkward between song conversations with the crowd: “Oh yeah, it’s Valentine’s Day. I hope you remembered. Because when you forget—you’re fucked.” It was the second time Jealous Girlfriends has played to a Chicago audience and, hopefully, not their last.

Up next was AA Bondy, with a couple of choice comments about Valentine’s Day up his sleeve as he was setting up, guitar strap around his neck and harmonica holder in place. “I’m gonna do my best to do a Valentine’s Day…loosely Valentine’s Day themed show,” Bondy said in a comedically weary voice. “Even though I think it’s a corrupt, consumerist holiday. So don’t buy anything.” The audience cheered and clapped enthusiastically but a hush soon fell as Bondy sang. It’s easy to make a Bob Dylan comparison (I mean, it’s a dude with a guitar and harmonica!) and truth be told, he had a similar sound to Dylan with his folksy melancholia, easy croon, and introspective songwriting. And true to his word, he kept his set all about Valentine’s Day. His songs covered vampires (explaining that “everyone loves Vampires, there in, Valentine’s Day”), drugs, and doomed loves (“Watch in 10,000 years, love will be an antiquated thing.... I have low blood sugar, so if it gets dark, I can’t help it,”) Between his great set and cynical comments between each song that kept the audience laughing, AA Bondy sent a nice, albeit dark, Valentine to the crowd at Beat Kitchen.

While in the restroom before Kevin Devine’s, a girl explained to her friend that Devine was great, but you’d probably want to kill yourself after listening to him. And she was right. I emerged from the restroom and into the venue, hearing the crowd singing along with Devine in a whisper, pleading for a noose around their necks. Hmm. From what I got to hear, Devine’s dark folk-rock was hauntingly beautiful but I decided to leave before his set was done…. The night was still young and Valentine’s Day can be for lovers as well as music lovers.