Best Coast rings in another long summer In Los Angeles

March 27, 2010, at the Echoplex

By Catherine Disabato
Published: March 30th, 2010 | 7:40pm

March 27 was Los Angeles’ hottest day of the year so far, a sure sign that the city’s premature summer is on its way—and the perfect day for a music festival called Waved Out: a pint-sized, parking lot Pitchfork Music Festival, which was translated into L.A. style (food trucks instead of stands, for example).

Nestled in the middle of an all day line-up, L.A.’s noise pop darlings Best Coast played to an enthusiastic, densely packed crowd. The band’s songwriter-guitarist-front woman Bethany Cosentino took the stage with little chatter, except for a shout out to the awesomeness of the second half of the band, Bobb Bruno, and then served up a set with a heaping spoonful of tracks from their upcoming full-length debut.

Best Coast began with a previously released B-side called “This Is Real,” but didn’t connect with the audience until the second song, which was an unreleased track called “Boyfriend.” Cosentino crooned about pining over a boy like she was still seventeen, mixing in coy glances at her throng of dedicated fans.

Cosentino’s vocals were set far lower than the audio of the guitar, bass, and drums, so her lyrics were only intelligible when she decided to raise her voice. Luckily, she was moved to shout by the most evocative lyrics of her songs. Throughout the whole set, she painted a picture of summertime longing and nostalgia—the themes that permeate every sun-soaked note of Best Coast’s repertoire.

The day’s highlight was a new song that the band did not name, which started quietly with Cosentino repeating the phrase “I want you so much” over bass and drums alone. Then, she grabbed her guitar with both hands and burst into a frantic, choppy melody that energized the previously immobile audience to dance. This new track led effortlessly into the band’s best song, “When I’m With You, I Have Fun,” a warm little love song that epitomizes Cosentino’s minimalist songwriting.

The only thing missing from Best Coast’s otherwise fantastic set was the layers of ambient fuzz that covered all the tracks on their previously released EPs and helped shape the band’s beach-ready vibe. However, if this show is any indication of what’s to come from this promising new band—it sure is going to be a sweet, sweet summer.

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For more photos, visit Venus Zine's Flickr page.

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