INDIE EAR MADNESS: First Round

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By Jim Shearer on 03/21/2008

Indie Ear Madness
First Round, South Region
March 21, 2008

1 R.E.M. vs. 16 Crystal Castles
Wow, R.E.M. playing like late 80's/early 90's R.E.M.! Crystal Castles had no chance.

8 MGMT vs. 9 Saul Williams
Saul Williams' rhyme delivery was perfect from the floor tonight. When Williams is on, he's very hard to beat.

5 PJ Harvey vs. 12 Xiu Xiu
Many times during this match-up it seemed like Xiu Xiu was just happy to be in the presence of PJ Harvey. No upsets here, Harvey glides through to round two.

4 Justice vs. 13 Eels
E from Eels carried the load, but couldn't compete with the massive dance hits Justice is churning out these days.

6 Kate Nash vs. 11 French Kicks
Close one. Kate Nash wins in a thriller--no bricks for her tonight.

3 Spoon vs. 14 Cool Kids
A lot of people thought Cool Kids were going to pull off the upset, but Britt Daniel played inspired, looking like Christian Laettner in his prime.

dan&pat.jpg

7 The Black Keys vs. 10 Tegan & Sara
The Black Keys' drummer, Patrick Carney brought three floor toms to this contest. Tegan & Sara didn't stand a chance--if they decided to start ex-Weezer member Matt Sharp on Moog, they might have.
(left: The Black Keys towel off in the locker room following their win over Tegan & Sara)

2 Mars Volta vs. 15 Jay Reatard
Are you kidding me?! The First Round shocker! Little-known garage-punk-rocker Jay Reatard takes out the #2 seed Mars Volta--who were probably one of the most technically skilled bands in the whole tournament. Mars Volta looked and sounded strong on their more pop-structured songs, but Jay Reatard gained momentum (and the attention of the audience) when Mars Volta began one of their many, and at times unnecessary, 15-minute free-from jazz jam-outs.