Barcelona makes concert debut in Richmond

Seattle-based band Barcelona made its first-ever visit to Richmond to perform at Alley Katz in Shockoe Slip to promote its first album, "Absolutes."

Only a few people showed up to watch, so the concert was pushed back an hour to 10:30 p.m. to wait for more fans to arrive. Tickets were $10 in advance and $12 at the door.

"We all got haircuts today," said Brian Fennell, the lead singer and keyboard player for Barcelona. "The man cutting my hair really shaved it all off, I feel like a new man. That was about the extent of our experience in Richmond."

Fennell, playing keyboard as the primary instrument, gives the group a different sound than other bands, said Chris Bristol, the guitar player. Barcelona's music is melodic and has an unfussy sound.

"We listen to a lot of pop music even though we're not a pop band," said Rhett Stonelake, the drummer.

Low vs. Diamond is sharing the tour headline with Barcelona to promote its self-titled album. Both groups are based on the West Coast and they take turns performing first at their shows. At Alley Katz, Low vs. Diamond opened the show.

Low vs. Diamond and Barcelona drove across the country in their respective vans, stopping in Nashville, Atlanta and Orlando before the performance in Richmond. The bands will be heading north up the East Coast and will eventually make their way back to their homes on the West Coast, after 30 tour dates. The bands left, from the concert in Richmond for Washington D.C to spend the night and then continued their journey to New York City for another tour stop.

Low vs. Diamond is another band to watch, according to many music magazines and critics. They have gottenmore recognition than Barcelona. The Rolling Stone, among others, recently included the band on its 2008 Artists to Watch list. Low vs. Diamond has also performed on "Jimmy Kimmel Live." Their music is reminiscent of bands such as U2 and The Killers. The band members are inspired by classic rock bands, lead singer and guitarist Lucas Field said. Their most popular song, "Don't Forget Sister," takes the chord progression from The Who's "Baba O'Riley."

Field, drummer Howie Diamond and keyboardist Tad Moore met at the University of Colorado. They were in a cover band that played versions of Phish and Grateful Dead songs. They eventually switched to a more progressive sound when the guitarist, Ben Pollock, left the group. Pollock's departure also gave the group a name. Low vs. Diamond refers to Diamond's constant fighting with Pollock's girlfriend, whose nickname is "Lo." Anthony Polcino, guitar and vocals, and Jon Pancoast, bass, complete the group.

The two bands joined forces to tour together partially by chance, Fennell said. Barcelona was scheduled to tour with another band, but the band was having complications and was not able to follow through with the plan. Barcelona then took submissions from other bands to tour with them and Low vs. Diamond was one of them.

"We love traveling and being able to see the country," Stonelake said.

What the band listens to in the van as they drive from tour stops always varies widely. They listen to a lot of The Beatles, Bon Iver and Sigur Ros, a musician from Iceland.

The members of Barcelona met at Seattle Pacific University. Fennell and Bristol lived across the hall from each other and were in the same music class. Barcelona was formerly made up of four members, but bass and strings player Brian Eichelberger left early in the group's career.

The group didn't have a name for themselves the night of their first performance, Fennell said.

"Barcelona was something I had thought of before," Fennell said. "So we all put our hands in a circle and I said it and we all agreed that it was a good name."

Contact staff writer Alexandra Varipapa at alexandra.varipapa@richmond.edu