Process <\/em>is a damn fine experience, but it doesn\u2019t really set you up for what Yvette brings to the stage. No longer the original line up, Yvette is still fronted by Karos-Fein on vocals, guitar, and effects, but Dale Elsinger now backs up Noah on the drums. I never saw Yvette while Rick Daniel was still a member, so I can\u2019t speak for his abilities as a live performer. But what I can say is that Elsinger is a welcome replacement. Quite easily one of the most fascinating drummers I\u2019ve seen live-and I don\u2019t get too excited about drummers all that often-it\u2019s almost impossible to look away while he\u2019s playing.<\/p>\nPerhaps it\u2019s merely the democratic stage set-up the band always employs (Noah at the center and Dale to his left) that creates the allure. Maybe if drummers weren\u2019t always banished to the back of the stage we\u2019d find them mesmerizing more often, but something tells me it\u2019s more that just his coordinates that make Elsinger such an intriguing performer. He gives it his all. Watching him smash his kit is exhausting, so I can\u2019t imagine how winded he must feel, but the fact that he\u2019s dripping in sweat by minute two gives me a good idea. Elsinger\u2019s parts are forceful but not fussy, and so directly to-the-point that I\u2019m tempted to call him a purist. He does he always drum barefoot after all.<\/p>\n
Yvette\u2019s sets are never long, but always tidy and packed full of energy. There\u2019s no banter, no fluff, just some very talented, straightforward musicians presenting their thesis and then leaving quietly – though what they play is the antithesis of polite and quiet. It\u2019s loud and full of guts and grit.<\/p>\n
Eaters is made up of multi-instrumentalist Bob Jones and recording engineer Jonathan Schenke. Their sound is rooted in the dark rubble of post punk debris, so they are a fitting band to share a bill with Yvette. Though while Yvette\u2019s tracks stay consistently hostile, Eaters sometimes float to the softer side of the \u201880s, sounding more Brian Eno than Suicide.<\/p>\n
There is certainly a fuller crowd for Eaters, and their presence is more elaborate; the lights turned down almost all the way to emphasize a sphere of light rotating on a hydraulic circular track. It\u2019s a curious and useless prop, but is a fun badge of nerdiness nonetheless.<\/p>\n
Eaters finished off sans encore, making way for the late show to follow at Baby\u2019s. Listening to both Eaters and Yvette you\u2019d suspect a late into the early morning set, but I was home and in bed by midnight, which is good, because some people had anniversaries to celebrate.<\/p>\n