One time, and one time only, I met a guy name “Dunce” at a Seattle open mic who managed to turn the whole basement of hipster-haven bar Cha Cha’s into a floor clearing, break-dance circle. I’m fairly certain that hasn’t happened again, but Dan Deacon managed to pull the closest thing I’ve seen to that at Seattle’s Neptune Theater last night. The eclectic, ever-entertaining electronic composer finished up a series of West Coast live dates with a Seattle performance filled with the sort of unconventional show antics that made the evening much less of a concert and far more of a dance party.
Seattle electronic duo USF opened for Deacon, offering a much calmer, tranquil introduction for the evening. XLR8R vividly described USF as “the aural equivalent of a bright afternoon spent alone on a white-sand beach, throwing a colorful beach ball into the surf and watching it bob up and down in the warm water as you swim towards it lazily—completely content in the day’s relaxing simplicity”, which I found to be quite accurate. Their ambient textures and tropical atmospheres were certainly euphonious and pleasant, yet they layered upon backing soundscapes with danceable hooks that were suitable for a Deacon Dance Party prelude.
Dan Deacon “Spring” by Carpark Records
Deacon himself established the dance party atmosphere from the get go with his trademark move of setting his gear up within the crowd. Flashing lights, strobes, lit skulls and the works helped carry that mood. And within three songs, Deacon had the entire crowd circled around the venue before having two crowd sides battle it out in a mano-y-mano dance-off. Kudos to Deacon for shaking any cobwebs of hesitancy the Seattle crowd might have originally had. Deacon will be playing one last date is his home locale of Maryland before heading abroad for an extensive tour. Dates below.
12-16 Baltimore, MD – Ottobar #
12-30 Marion Bay, Australia – Falls Festival #
12-31 Lorne, Australia – Falls Festival #
01-06 Adelaide, Australia – Space Theater #
01-08 Busselton, Australia – Southbound Festival #
01-12 Brisbane, Australia – Woodland #
01-13 Melbourne, Australia – Mistleton Fright Night #
01-21 Hong Kong, China – XXX Gallery *
01-23 Tokyo, Japan – Dommune *
01-24 Osaka, Japan – Sansui *
01-25 Tokyo, Japan – Shibuya O-Nest *
01-27 Busan, South Korea – Interplay *
01-28 Seoul, South Korea – Rolling Hall *
02-03 Auckland, New Zealand – Whammy #
02-04 Wellington, New Zealand – San Fran Bath House #
02-05 Nelson, New Zealand – Playhouse Cafe #
02-06 Christchurch, New Zealand – Dux Live #
02-07 Dunedin, New Zealand – Chicks Hotel #
* solo performance
# Dan Deacon Ensemble