Bent Knee 6/4/18 Cafe 9

Bent Knee is a group of Berklee School of Music hipsters that have been brought to New Haven by Manic Productions back when the free shows were at Bar. The sextet was violin/vocals, two guitars, drums, bass, and a frontwoman on Korg and vocals. I remember dinging this group for the abrasive vocals and complicated song structure. On this evening, I embraced these qualities and found a more enjoyable listen. The woman's vocals ranged from Adelle-ey pop to Yoko-esque treated caterwaul often in the same song. The scruffy lead guitarist pogoed his way through jump stop leads that offered some Zappa tones. The violinist shaded some prog/punk songs, one even veered into Sister Ray territory. These are music students (or recent grads), and it showed.