OCWeekly The Troubadour Review

   

By Taylor Hamby Sun., Dec. 23 2012 at 9:16 AM

 

Taylor Hamby/OC Weekly

Black Rebel Motorcycle Club
The Troubadour
December 21, 2012

While you were busy checking your watch waiting to see if the world would end, 300-400 fans were immersed in the badassery that is Black Rebel Motorcycle Club's set on Friday. The San Francisco-bred and Los Angeles-based three-piece concluded a a tiny pre-album three-stop show string that began in San Francisco on Dec. 19, continued into Santa Cruz and concluded on Friday in Los Angeles. Their fifth album, Beat the Devil's Tattoo, shook crowds in 2010 beginning with their self-titled song and the record resonated on through the release of their sixth album.

Now we're on the heels of their sixth LP, set to release it March, and eagerly arrive to a tiny Troubadour to get a taste of that new album. And the three-piece obliged with an 18-song set filled with oldies and new goodies. 

I've never seen them in such a small capacity venue before--first at the House of Blues Anaheim and the second at the open-air Del Mar racing track concert series in 2011.

They kept the aloof stage presence I had come to known them for but honestly I had not expected a growing warmth in their stage presence (black and rebel is in their name, if you know what I mean). This is the second time I've seen them perform with drummer Leah Shapiro and banded on the cat calls from the audience, you'd swear that who anyone was there for ("I LOVE YOU, LEAH!!") She played in such perfect time you'd swear she was playing to a click.

Of course, Peter Hayes and Robert Been, the Black and the Rebel of this international, infamous motorcycle club were not to be outdone with their perfect harmonies and crisp vocals allotted to them by this intimate venue. If you'll ecusce the trite term, they were a trifecta of rock an roll, delivering a record-perfect rendition of their version of gritty rock and/or roll.

Taylor Hamby/OC Weekly

They kept it real in their set--there was no encore. Instead they gave you their all in the 18 songs they played and walked off the tiny Troubadour stage, giving you their all while not making you beg for more.

Reporter's Notebook

Critic's Bias: All crowd and no photo pit makes Taylor a dull boy. 

The Crowd: A darkly dress mass of packed sardines.

Overheard in the Crowd: To me for trying to get to the front of the crowd for pictures: "Are you fucking kidding me?! THERE'S NO ROOM!"

Random Notebook Dump: If I ever write a screenplay, "Devil's Waiting" is gonna be part if the score (even if they never play it live when I see them live).

Setlist:

Let the Day Begin (The Call cover)

Funny Games 

Beat the Devil's Tattoo

Berlin 

Conscience Killer 

Rifles 

Love Burns 

Screaming Gun 

Lullaby

Ain't No Easy Way 

Rival
Stop 

US Government 

Awake 

Red Eyes and Tears 

Six Barrel Shotgun 

Spread Your Love 

Lose Yourself