Live: Clinic @ Empty Bottle

ARTICLE BY MYCHELLE PETERSON
PHOTOS BY BOB MCCABE

MAY 12 | CHICAGO—There are two kinds of people in the world: Those who get Clinic, and those who don’t. Early on in the band’s career, I fell into the latter group. I snidely remarked about their surgical masks and figured the gimmick was to “mask” the fact that they had no talent. But then something crystallized for me a few years ago, and I realized their sound was an acquired taste. But an excellent one!

Back with a new album entitled Do It!, Clinic played not one but two packed shows at the Empty Bottle on Monday night with an impassioned intensity and focus that made you think you were watching very skilled craftsmen and not a bunch of British guys playing sexy rock music. While the crowd got worked up into a bit of a frenzy at times, Ade and the rest of his Hawaiian shirt-clad band kept their comments terse (but humorous) and their set tight, juxtaposing the raw sensuality of the beats with their, well, sterile appearance.

Instead of interspersing the new tracks with crowd favorites from albums past, Clinic opted to play two sets: the first consisted entirely of the stuff off of Do It!—including first single “Free Not Free”—and the second set was a collection of mostly fan favorites. Each time the crowd heard the opening notes of an older song—most evident on the band's closest approximation to a hit, “Walking With Thee”—someone in the crowd squealed with delight.

What Clinic has managed to do over the course of their career is craft a unique sound by blending the best of classics like the Beatles (and believe me, the influence cannot be missed) with modern arrangements and production. It is not going to be for everyone. Instead, the music of Clinic belongs to a passionate, yet restrained group of people who seem to like to keep “their” band a well-guarded secret.

For admission into this ultra-hip society, check out Clinic when they hit the Troubadour on May 20. Tickets are available now.

Clinic @ Troubadour, May 20

Comments

[**Leslie**]

Whoa, two completely different sets! I'm brimming with jealousy! :O

[mychelle]

Not for long, my dear.... not for long!