OK, so I did not list the date in the blog post title because, heh, this show happened a little bit ago. Oops. But hey, that happens. Sometimes I work 60-70 hours during the week and bloggin’ takes a back seat, at least until The Decibel Tolls can yell “fuck you pay me” at the Internet. One day.

Anyway, this was another fine rock and roll extravaganza from the good doctors at Shark Productions. Bloomington’s Stagnant Pools, a recent Polyvynyl acquisition, opened up the show. This was my first experience seeing the duo, and I can say that while the live show left a lot to be desired, the songs themselves were quite striking. Delicately loud is probably the most accurate description. With more road time under their belt, Stagnant Pools could be gale force. School of Seven Bells‘ hour and a half performance offered an exercise in less-is-more: simple LED lights to summon space disco visuals and streamlined dream pop melodies that billowed out of the room and over the roof of Zanzabar.  In a live setting, much more than on record, School of Seven Bells channeled strongly the raw, ghostly shoegaze approach of Alejandra Deheza’s previous (and excellent) vehicle On! Air! Library!. An thoroughly enjoyable show throughout, keeping the old school 4AD sound alive and well.