Late January deep in Bushwick, Trans Pecos rattled with youth power and reverb. Sourdoe opened the show with an avant, life affirming performance, crooning out an ultra-feminine variety of lyrically ambitious, melodically soulful alt-folk. Followed up was Shadow Year, energetic disciples of soft edge post-punk, Angel Olsen, and Blondie. They championed the stage weaving in between jumpy beats with shrieking vocals and doleful/delightful bass-heavy ballads. 

Sean Henry and his band of skinny boys with Beatles cuts were arguably the most anticipated act of the night. Henry dispensed upbeat lo-fi pop tunes with catchy riffs and a grunge bent. On his latest release, A Jump from the High Dive, easy listens take it back to 90’s grooves, with uncontroversial head nods to the likes of diet Teenage Fanclub or The Presidents of The United States of America-lite. Live, his gospel of droning anthems was cut in with both a self-deprecating humor and a self-reassuring attitude, and had the audience totally vibing. Crowd pleasing “Surf Song” got everyone pumped up, but once he closed out, the venue all but emptied.

Folks who stuck around for headlining act, Water From Your Eyes, were savvy enough to know they were doing themselves a favor. Playing live, the band managed to draw out a more interactive sound from their already weird studio album. Fans who remained were the most spirited of dancers, jumping and flailing to Water’s eccentric, electric take on pop-punk. When the set ended, there was a wave of confusion from the dancers who seemed to think the grooving would never stop. Lead singer Rachel Brown gasped out little thank-yous after every song ended, so understandably it was hard to know when they were serious on drawing the line. Then again, that could be a subtle plug – their solo project is cutely titled thanks for coming, after all. And sure, they were grateful, we were grateful… but it would have been cool for an encore song to close off the show! Keep it in mind if you’re considering hitting up Water From Your Eyes’ next show: the people can’t get enough.