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Frog Eyes

Some songs sound weird until you listen to them more closely and realize that neither the words nor the music is all that interesting. Some songs sound sort of unremarkable until you find that the words are about something stranger than what you thought they were about or that the guitar part is trickier than you realized. And then there are some songs that start off sounding kind of weird and just get weirder, thornier, and more interesting the more you listen to them.

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British Columbia’s Frog Eyes specialize in that last category. Bandleader Carey Mercer apparently idolizes oddballs such as Scott Walker and Captain Beefheart but has a lot to say himself — Frog Eyes have released nine albums since 2002. Still, Mercer is apparently determined not to make it easy to tell what he’s going on about. He sings in a voice that alternates between quavering and keening, moping and whooping. His band — which includes wife Melanie Campbell, Megan Boddy, Michael Rak, and Ryan Beattie — starts with relatively straightforward roots-rock elements and pulls them in disorienting directions to keep up with Mercer. (Think Nick Cave, Tom Waits, or bands trying to keep up with a raving street lunatic.) Then there are Mercer’s lyrics, which are even more oblique than his song titles suggest — not an easy task when you write titles like “Caravan Breakers, They Prey on the Weak and the Old” and “The Fox Speaks to his Wife, Who Is Not Quite Sure.” So you know that digging into this stuff is not going to be easy, but if you’re up for it, you’ll find it rewarding.

Past Event

Frog Eyes

  • Thursday, May 27, 2010, 8:30 p.m.
  • Casbah, 2501 Kettner Boulevard, San Diego
  • $8 - $10
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Some songs sound weird until you listen to them more closely and realize that neither the words nor the music is all that interesting. Some songs sound sort of unremarkable until you find that the words are about something stranger than what you thought they were about or that the guitar part is trickier than you realized. And then there are some songs that start off sounding kind of weird and just get weirder, thornier, and more interesting the more you listen to them.

Sponsored
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British Columbia’s Frog Eyes specialize in that last category. Bandleader Carey Mercer apparently idolizes oddballs such as Scott Walker and Captain Beefheart but has a lot to say himself — Frog Eyes have released nine albums since 2002. Still, Mercer is apparently determined not to make it easy to tell what he’s going on about. He sings in a voice that alternates between quavering and keening, moping and whooping. His band — which includes wife Melanie Campbell, Megan Boddy, Michael Rak, and Ryan Beattie — starts with relatively straightforward roots-rock elements and pulls them in disorienting directions to keep up with Mercer. (Think Nick Cave, Tom Waits, or bands trying to keep up with a raving street lunatic.) Then there are Mercer’s lyrics, which are even more oblique than his song titles suggest — not an easy task when you write titles like “Caravan Breakers, They Prey on the Weak and the Old” and “The Fox Speaks to his Wife, Who Is Not Quite Sure.” So you know that digging into this stuff is not going to be easy, but if you’re up for it, you’ll find it rewarding.

Past Event

Frog Eyes

  • Thursday, May 27, 2010, 8:30 p.m.
  • Casbah, 2501 Kettner Boulevard, San Diego
  • $8 - $10
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4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
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