DEERHOOF @ Great American Music Hall 8/2/2009Talk about growing up fast. Deerhoof certainly strapped on their big-boy pants for a sock-rocking show at SF’s Great American Music Hall this Sunday.Gimmick and slight shock value may have been what paved the way for Deerhoof to rocket right out of the Bay Area and into the national spotlight. Rewind to the year 2000 (cue famous Conan skit theme song), Deerhoof is three members strong, daring to entertain punk kids at San Jose’s Channel One, a now belly-up vintage clothing store turned rock venue by night: Two things stand out even before the music commences. One, singer Satomi Matsuzaki is a dead ringer for Mad TV’s “Miss Swan” and drummer Greg Saunier will not stop twitching for the life of him. Xiu Xiu’s Jamie Stuart educates the adolescent show-goers that Saunier is not on drugs but has Tourette’s Syndrom as they all agree that a drummer with Tourette’s may be the most metal thing they’ve ever heard of. Matsuzaki adjusts the mic to her lacking stature and sings in a child’s voice the word “bunny” over and over again. And then in a second it’s over, leaving the punks confused and awestruck. That was then.  However, what has kept Deerhoof of interest are shows like Sunday’s. If you have not heard Deerhoof live for almost ten years, you will find yourself to be one proud papa to see such an awesome band grow and develop into one that can successfully cover The Ramones’ “Pinhead” while making it their own and doing it justice simultaneously. It’s no easy task. Deerhoof has kept what makes them unique, namely core members Matsuzaki with her eternally pigtailed vocals and Saunier with his cracked-out drumming. Their rock feel is authentic, channeling Doors-y riffs and incorporating them into insanely constructed meter all while not leaving the audience in the dust. While it’s no dance music, Deerhoof is still what you could call the standard 2009 rock show. They’ve come a long way from their 1994 inception and another 15 years is foreseeable.
For more information on Deerhoof visit http://myspace.com/deerhoof
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