Dan Deacon gets a 'Round'

The Round Robin tour gets the party started, Baltimore-style

By Robert Jacobs

Special to Metromix
September 24, 2008

Dan Deacon gets a 'Round'
Dan Deacon: not the center of attention, for once (Credit: Ryan Muir/Metromix)
Photos:
Beach House Jana Hunter Lesser Gonzalez Alvarez Lexie Mountain Boys

Because he can't bring the world to Baltimore, Dan Deacon is bringing a slice of Baltimore to the world…in a caravan of vegetable-fueled buses. This October, the paunchy maestro of party-starting electro will bring 29 of Baltimore's best bands on the Round Robin tour of seven North American cities. Each destination on the tour features two distinct shows over two nights.

The first evening, called Eyes Night, revolves around a dreamy blend of noise, improvisation and cerebral theater designed to engorge the frontal lobes. This is the night to kick back and absorb the heady intellectual sounds of bands like Beach House and WZT Hearts. Other artists that will be performing on Eyes Night include Creepers, Ed Schrader, Jana Hunter, Nautical Almanac, Teeth Mountain, Lesser Gonzalez Alvarez and Lexie Mountain Boys.

The following night is the purely visceral Feet Night and features punk, hardcore, electronic and dance music. This, as the name suggests, is the night to get your proverbial groove on. Let's face it—you can only engage your intellect so much before you start getting diminishing returns, and when that happens the only thing to do is cut some rug and bang your head. Bands like Blood Baby, Double Dagger and The Death Set provide tunes to bang to, while Dan Deacon and Adventure supply electronic, danceable tunes. Nuclear Power Pants, Smartgrowth, Videohippos, Future Islands, DJ Dog Dick, Lizz King and Height also perform on Feet Night.

Here's where the Round Robin part comes in: at each show, bands simultaneously set up around the perimeter of the venue with the audience in the middle of the circle. Each band plays a song and then passes it to the next band in the circle, round and round, non-stop for the duration of the show. No one headlines, no one opens; there's no front row and no back of the auditorium. So prepare to be surrounded by the kind of aural assault only Baltimore's wildly creative music scene can provide.

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