Like so many young rock 'n' rollers before them, indie darlings The Futureheads and Tapes 'n Tapes immersed themselves in Las Vegas' storied gaming tradition on their first visit to town. They went bowling.
The headlining Brits and supporting Minnesotans spent Friday afternoon tearing up the lanes Downtown at Jillian's, some 20 yards from the upstairs stage on which they would entertain a small but dedicated hipster crowd later that night. The bands didn't compete head-to-head, "because we British always kick their ass," The Futureheads' soundman boasted after the show, grinning proudly as if there were no finer method for determining comparative national standing.
Well, two can play at that game, and judging strictly from the music produced by each outfit, the good ol' U.S. of A. administered a beatdown on its jolly progenitor that would have made Cornwallis wince. Not that The Futureheads' high-strung hyperactivity failed to keep folks hopping under the venue's strobing disco ball. But coming after the expansive unpredictability of Tapes 'n Tapes, the Sunderlanders sounded confined and unadventurous. Or, in the parlance of music snobbery, they were sooo 2004.
Tapes 'n Tapes filled their 45 minutes with sudden rhythmic and metric fluctuations, Beach Boys-inspired three-part harmonies, a baritone horn and even an accidental drum solo (the only acceptable sort) during a brief guitar breakdown. "10 Gallon Ascots," a cut off excellent debut album The Loon, epitomized the band's approach, ambling along pleasantly before jarring dance-floor sashayers with noisy choruses.
Though The Futureheads' second album, News and Tributes, expanded their musical boundaries somewhat, Friday's hour-long set felt more like one repeated song than 19 distinct numbers. A cover of Kate Bush's "Hounds of Love" and the uber-catchy "Skip to the End" stood out to an extent, but only shimmering ballad "Thursday" truly escaped the quartet's danceable punk wheelhouse.
During the encore, guitarist Ross Millard announced the two bands' intentions to go out and "lose money playing games we have no idea how to play" afterward. Perhaps shuffleboard?