Ratatat, Austin, TX; September 15, 2008.
Words by Elliot Cole & Photos by Victor Yiu
Ratatat’s logo, a futuristic, neo-Transformers-esque popped onto the backing screen of Stubb’s as a deep bass rolled through the speakers. That alone was enough to send the elbow-to-elbow, sold-out crowd into a flurry. No “Hello, Austin!” No “Are you ready to rock?” For the synth-heavy electronics of Ratatat words just get in the way.
But calling Ratatat a mere electronic band doesn’t do the New York duo (who performed as a trio at Stubb’s) justice. After all, the set didn’t feature a guy behind a laptop or a DJ with a tilted New Era cap. Instead, Ratatat broke out the six-strings and bass guitars and manifested an undeniably rock gravitas, one that most actual rock bands would kill for. Fans screamed, threw up the devil horns like they weren’t out of style, and actually crowd surfed (!) to the synth-heavy instrumental stylistics of the group. The sound was saturated with dense bass, allowing fans to bob in unison with swaying arms.
With a smokescreen blanketing the varied stage lighting, the entire performance resonated with this rock ‘n’ roll panache. A celebrity in the crowd (Drew Barrymore, who was shooting a film in town), a vehement, eclectic crowd (composed of normal dudes and dancing scenesters), and a varied visual aesthetic from their backing screen (which played, amongst other random visualizations, cuts from Predator) made you wonder if you were seeing Ratatat or The Strokes. The group rolled flawlessly through tracks off of their newest disc, LP3, including “Bird Priest” and “Mi Viejo”. But, as a true rock band put it, “The classics never go out of style”, and that theory was proven on Monday night. The audience lit up to every track off of Ratatat’s Classics, from the choppy guitars of “Lex” to the ever-building apex of “Gettysburg”. The greatest ovation, however, was reserved for “Wildcat”, which exploded with ear-rattling density and had the crowd bouncing, while providing the only “lyrics” the crowd could sing along with: the rowring of our ferocious feline friends.
After their set, the band didn’t have a chance to even taunt the crowd with the potential encore: it was a given, and they were back onstage in under a minute with a short set that included “Montana” and “Seventeen Years”, the track that helped launch the band. In fact, the only regrettable aspect of the night was how quickly it all ended. Besides the two capable openers (Panther and E*Rock) and a broad set from Ratatat, the show was over by 10:30, leaving most concert-goers to gaze at their watches and iphones in shock of how early the show got out (at least the bars got some extra business). But, like any true rock band, Ratatat gave everyone a reason to party…even if they aren’t really a rock band at all.
