Siran BabayanWhat: The Kills
Where: Emo's, Austin, TX
When: March 17
The air inside Emo's main room went from warm to steaming once The Kills, playing the second of their third SXSW shows/parties, took the stage.
The Kills; Credit: photo by Siran Babayan
Forget the haircuts and supermodel fiance. If the American-Brit couple's gotten slammed, or overhyped, for being a haughty punk-blues duo (thanks in small part to singer Alison Mosshart's other gig with Jack White), it's mostly critic-talk meant to separate the regular listener from the hipster fan. Though the Velvet influences are apparent, The Kills are still just plain, old trashy rock 'n' roll.
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And there was no cooler-than-thou posturing on this night. They looked genuinely happy to be up there, playing mostly new material off their upcoming album, Blood Pressures, while the crowd lapped up the on-stage sexual chemistry between the two. Guitarist Hince gazed intently at the back of the room, while his spitfire cohort –alternating between mic and guitar — almost never stopped whipping her bed-hair. Mosshart doesn't just sing, she snarls into the microphone, especially on an older track, like the chugging “No Wow.” Even in nothing more than a black jacket and holed-in T-shirt, Mosshart is still all sex and swagger.
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