Thursday, February 1st First up for Albany this weekend was The Last to Bloom, a four piece outfit that had a quite a unique blend of raw punk-rock mixed with melodic and heartfelt hooks. Channel followed with a very mathy intro to a very eclectic set. This 3 piece showed no fear of experimentation, combining very algebraic polyrhythms with a wide variation of sonic textures and melodies. Though a bit sloppy at some parts, for the most part this band transitioned fairly seamlessly into many odd and rarely used time and key signatures. Three Word Murder brought us all back down to earth with a more straight ahead approach to ass-kicking metal. The Colony, lightened the atmosphere with more melodic and down tempo indie set. Though their technical problems never let up, they played on regardless, and were definitely the favorites of the college-going members of the crowd. Phone Booth Romeo proved themselves to be the most experienced band of the night. I say this not because of their relative ages, but their technical skill. Though their music was a pretty straight-ahead rock/punk sound, they showed through their professionalism and technical profiency onstage that they are no strangers to the stage. Alliance closed out the evening with an impressive and crowd motivating rock-metal set. Friday, February 2nd Apperently the weirdos were coming out of the woodwork in Albany this weekend. I met this squirrely bunch of dudes a few days prior to the show and after talking for about a half hour about their music, I still had no idea what to expect. I have always had a real soft spot for bands who think way outside the box. And the further the better. But the problem with most experimental bands is that so many of them lose sight of what it is they are trying to do…namely make music that’s appealing to the ears. There is a fine line between eccentric brilliance and annoying random noise bands, and The Moby Strip showed that they can navigate these troubled and murky waters with a kind of sheepish confidence. What really sets this 6 piece apart from most other experimental indie bands is the addition of their percussionist. Straying away from the afro-cuban standbys of most perc-kits, these guys incorporated a full set of chamber bells housed in a homemade resonant enclosure, alongside a djembe drum, and a blue-man-esque array of PVC pipes, cut to length, and played with a set of foam-rubber pads duct taped to a pair of flip flops. Hellride 102 followed with a hard-rock set, displaying strong musicianship and vocal arrangements. Though usually performing as an 8 piece hip-hop/jazz fusion band, Funk 101 played this evening as a six piece instrumental band. Sporting a 2 piece horn section, a 2 piece rhythm section, and dueling guitar and keyboard players, this band not only wowed the crowd, but were also the favorites among most of the other musicians in the room. Though their vocalists were not able to perform with them, they easily pulled off their improvised, and solo oriented set as if that’s how it was originally conceived. Following that lead, Middle America took to the stage is if it were their own. This 3 piece blues-funk band were as natural onstage as anyone, and showed a knack for playing the crowd like a well tuned instrument. Making an easy segue, King’s Castle kept the show on a roll, with a more alternative rock sound. Showing their songwriting proficiency and comfortability on stage, this band proved to be one of the more experienced and harder working bands in Albany. The night ended with a high energy hardcore band called Without Regret. Saturday, February 3rd Again, starting with the most eclectic band of the evening, Sgt. Dunbar and the Hobo Banned, incorporated the widest range of instruments and non-instruments into their set than any other band I’ve seen at an Emergenza