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Born Ruffians
Imagine—if you dare, really—the tribalist/psychedelic antics, shrieking exuberance, and faux-twee naiveté of Animal Collective married to the Strokes' OCD, no-note-wasted-or-outta-place take on downtown muso NYC cool. Taken singly, each of these two flavors is delicious in unique, distinctive ways; taken together, the resulting compound would be enough to make almost anybody cringe. To say that Born Ruffians violently disagree would be a massive understatement. Take debut full-length Red, Yellow, & Blue. As multi-tracked guitarist/singer Luke Lalonde reels off lame fantasies and Rolling Stones lyrical lifts, this Canadian indie-rock threesome bangs together anal-retentive pop constructs so tight you'd swear they just rolled off of an assembly line. None of which is much fun to think about, let alone listen to; unlike their celebrated Warp labelmates Battles, Born Ruffians haven't figured out how to synthesize influences into something unique and amazing. Acid Mothers Temple headline. With Danava and Cadence Weapon.
Tue., April 1, 8 p.m., 2008