DEATH SENTENCE: PANDA!
NUMBERS
The Knockout
July 19, 2007

I have to be honest: I kind of instantly fell in love with Death Sentence: PANDA! the moment they took the stage.

Let me explain: Two adorable boys in suits and one girl in a skirt suit who was also wearing a black hat with a lace veil. Three retro, kitschy, stylishly cute band members. I pulled myself together though because if the music that followed didn’t live up to their enchanting appearance my new band crush would wilt instantly.

It took my brain a moment to comprehend the fact that Death Sentence: PANDA! was pumping out a serious punk rock sound with nary a guitar in sight. The unusual lineup includes voice, clarinet, flute, drums, saxophone, and bamboo xylophone…oh yes. They seriously rocked my world, and mine was not the only world rocked that night; the entire room was pulsing with PANDA energy. When I’m scrunched up against a bunch of strangers, sweaty, sticky, and uncomfortable, yet I don’t want to escape for air because then I’ll miss even just a single minute of the rock, I know the band is special.

PANDA influences range from Korean folk music and New Orleans marching bands to jazz and hard-core punk. That’s the kind of eclectic range I like to see in a band. Their sound is new, adventurous, experimental, and unpretentious all at the same time. In other words, exactly what mind-blowing rock and roll should be. Plus I love a band that touts anti-humanist, pro animal-lovin’ stances in their lyrics, which happen to be sung amidst distorted woodwind instruments and unpredictable drum beats. The singer, Kim West, hypnotized me with her sweet, throaty whispers that abruptly switched to blood-curdling howls without warning. If you want to see an exciting local band that rocks hard, go! Go now! See Death Sentence: PANDA! They won’t disappoint.

I’ve been a Numbers fan for quite a while. I have their albums, but the only show I’ve seen them play was on The Bus, which is an experience all of it’s own.

Oh, The Bus, you magical vegetable-oil-run music machine. The Bus frequents unsuspecting street corners and pumps out pure rock and roll, live, raw, and uncut. It is pretty amazing.

The one time I saw Numbers I was pretty drunk, it having been on The Bus. Needless to say, I was pumped to see them again in a slightly more aware state. It seemed as though I wasn’t the only one waiting in anticipation, as old school Numbers fans were everywhere. Numbers sound mixes new wave, punk, garage and synth-pop into a fun, guttural sound.

Their set that evening was mostly from their new album, We’re Animals (KillRockStars; 2005). Numbers played solidly but unfortunately the vocals were way too loud, almost painfully so. The overly loud vocals detracted from my enjoyment and the band's musicianship. They seemed to lose the rest of the crowd as well, though maybe it was the immense heat and lack of airflow. Regrettably, they didn’t seem to connect with the audience as Death Sentence: PANDA! did.

 [Katie Kaapcke]


[STREAM] Numbers : "Black Crow Heart of Gold"

[STREAM] Death Sentence: PANDA!:  "Island of Sexual Violence"