This is what was going on New Year’s Eve in Chicago:

The Black Keys @ Aragon Ballroom
Local H @ Bottom Lounge
Lucky Boys Confusion @ Double Door
Cursive @ Subterranean
The Fold/Smoking Popes @ Reggie’s Rock Club
Pegboy @ The Abbey Pub
Yeasayer @ Metro
Tossers @ Beat Kitchen
Copyrights @ Fireside

With choices like these, how’s a girl to decide? Not to mention that 5/8 of those bands listed are local, it makes it that much harder.

In the end, though, the choice was clear. Pegboy.

I’ve seen Pegboy about once a year for the past three years. Last year, I was lucky to see them twice. Once at Riot Fest, and for New Year’s Eve 2010 at The Beat Kitchen. Smaller is always better when it comes to this band.

The night started out as a dud. There were hardly any people at Abbey Pub when we got there, and it wasn’t filling up anytime soon. Add to that, some very un-spectacular opening bands and I began to think that I had made the wrong choice.

White Mystery

First up was White Mystery. Sporting a pair of nearly identical red afros, they looked like they might be cool. They were surprisingly hard to swallow. The duo embodied awkwardness. This is cute and endearing in other bands but it just made me wish they were over. Other problems, such as the singer’s inability to carry a tune, seemed much worse as well. It seemed as though they were a new band, playing their first gig. The set picked up a little towards the end, as they played songs with which they seemed more comfortable, but by that point I was lost. I love to support Chicago music, but this is one I won’t take part in again.

Next, Sweet Cobra. Certainly didn’t live up to such an awesome name. While they were tolerable, more than I could say for White Mystery, they were also utterly boring. In fact, I have no recollection of anything about their set, musically. They did play with the lights practically out, making it impossible to get any decent picture of what was (not) happening on stage.

So, after such an anti-climactic start, I was certainly not looking forward to whatever disaster was coming up next. Even less, I was facing another hour before Pegboy even took the stage.

Then, there were Mannequin Men. They came out of the blue and completely saved the show. It was one of those sets where you wonder for the first song or two if they are so good because everyone else was so bad. But then it washes over you. They are just. That. GOOD. This was the first band that played that night that seemed like they knew what they were doing. And they did it well. The crowd responded, finally starting to move around and venue actually seemed to fill up. They ended their set by inviting everyone up to sing along. I was jealous that I didn’t know the words.

After a late countdown with cheap favors and even cheaper champagne, Pegboy!

Pegboy has got to be one of my favorite bands. They also played my favorite song (Witnessed) which didn’t hurt. Part resting, part connecting with the crowd, Larry spends half the time on the floor. The other half of the time he’s bitching about how tired and old he is. The could be obnoxious, but it’s actually very endearing. The crowd eats it up. I eat it up. Between all these theatrics, they play solid songs. Small, intimate shows work for them. It’s a maximum of energy from the fans. They are also fans that are sure to be there for this band. It’s the perfect mix.

Maybe I did spend my New Year’s well.

Sock Monkey Sound