tUnE-yArDs and Son Lux at Grand Central

By Christian Portilla

On Saturday night, tUnE-yArDs were at Grand Central with opening acts by Jude and Son Lux.  It was the first time for Son Lux and tUnE-yArDs in the magic city but I know it won’t be the last.

As I walked to my usual spot, I felt the first row on a super chill vibe, almost too chill where I wished the dancers would have made it to the front and they would have stayed in the back.

The lights dimmed and Son Lux made their way to the stage.

Son Lux is a tricultural trio made up of vocalist Ryan Lott, guitarist Rafiq Bhatia and drummer Ian Chang. All The Right Things is the first track I ever heard of theirs and I knew I was going to be a lifelong fan. The clever play on words, the drums, the incorporation of orchestrations and synths, is an audible roller coaster ride. It was the first time I had ever heard a combination like this and like a vegetarian eating a juicy burger for the first time, I was changed.

They played songs from the Alternate Worlds album and also their latest track from their March release Change Is Everything. Each member looked like they were feeling the music.

At one point, Lott reached his right hand out figuratively squeezing a heart in his hand leaving his left hand on his chest, Bhatia with closed eyes and intensity, slayed the guitar and Chang placed a towel on his head to catch sweat as he banged and beat his drums.

Each member brings individuality and lively stage presence, props to Bhatia for wearing a Biggie shirt and to Chang who was the only member who stayed after the show to meet fans and to sell and sign merch.

The band seemed really humbled to be opening for tUnE-yArDs and hyped the crowd for their set as they left the stage.

tUnE-yArDs band members are front woman Merrill Garbus who drums, plays the keys and ukulele and Nate Brenner on bass, synths and vocals and a variation of touring members. What captivated me when I first heard tUnE-yArDs was that I could not identify the sex of the vocalist.

The band sounds wild. They could best be described as afro-punk, but each song has a personality of its own. They also merge wacky screams and a touch of lyrical sass, feminism, activism and reggae.

Using a loop pedal on stage, they begin with a beat or sound and it keeps repeating as each instrument carefully inserts itself in the song.

The bands colorful costumes captured the eyes of the audience with bright reds, blues, oranges and afrocentric shapes and prints including unique crafty accessories. Garbus had blue face paint around her eyes, which enhanced her primitive look. tUnE-yArDs took to the stage and the party started.

During some songs, the background vocalists came to the front of the stage and contemporary danced to the music.

Garbus also mentioned that she passed by Miami before on a personal growth trip to Haiti and would be donating a dollar of the ticket sales to The Water Fountain charity, which was inspired by her trip and the droughts in her home state of California. They decided not to end with the usual encore the band kept playing until their last song, which Garbus said is “more fun” and left the audience craving for more.

As a self-proclaimed live music junkie and after many shows at Grand Central, I could definitely distinguish that the venue’s sound has improved incredibly. It could be the fact that the bands brought along their own sound engineers or maybe Grand Central has invested in better equipment, but the music was crisp and clear. I could hear every instrument and the vocals were not drowned in the music. It also helps that each band has incredible talented singers.

Overall, both bands in their respective genre brought a sense of original sounds that have not been experimented with before, which made it for an incredible, refreshing and unique concert.