On Saturday night at the Black Cat, Cibo Matto played a show filled with ’90s nostalgia to a crowd enthusiastically welcoming back this eclectic electronic band after a decade-long absence from the stage.
The two founding members of Cibo Matto, Yuka Honda and Miho Hatori, are Japanese expats living in New York. It’s been seventeen years since the release of their debut album, Viva! La Woman. It was weird and electronic and progressive for 1996, a thematic album with an unusual focus—food. While the band added additional members for their second album, 1999’s Stereo * Type A, their newest effort is the work of the original two members.
Hotel Valentine was released the night before their show at the Black Cat, giving fans little time to preview the band’s evolution—or lack thereof. If the neon, psychedelic video for “MFN,” released well before the album in December 2013, was any indication, Cibo Matto is just as weirdly avant-garde as it was in the 1990s. But it also left the obvious question intact—will their new music and live show hold up in 2014? Will the nostalgia for ’90s clubs be enough to keep them relevant today?
For the audience Saturday night, the resounding feelings seemed to be, in true ’90s fashion, “I don’t care.” The attire of the audience members certainly reflected ’90s sensibilities, from acid wash jeans to Doc Marten boots in full representation.
The show opened with Honda and Hatori on stage alone, lead singer Hatori looking serious in sunglasses and multi-instrumentalist Honda barely cracking a smile. Given the levity of their lyrics, their calm stage presence is remarkable. They started things off with “Sugar Water” off of Viva! La Woman, setting the tone for the rest of the night.
More than anything, the crowd was there to enjoy and let loose. In the tradition of other recent ’90s revivalists like Luscious Jackson, Dismemberment Plan, or Neutral Milk Hotel, there is an unusual element of excitement in seeing a band live that we thought had disbanded forever. That enthusiasm shown through here, with fans dancing their hearts out to “Beef Jerky” and shouting along with Hatori’s rapping on “Le Pain Perdue.”
By the time the additional band members came out four songs in, Honda and Hatori were more than ready to join the party, demonstrated by Hatori dramatically throwing off her sunglasses. With several crowd favorites out of the way, the remainder of the show leaned heavily on Hotel Valentine and only briefly acknowledged Stereo * Type A.
There is no question that the music on Hotel Valentine is by the same band as Viva! La Woman. At points during the show, listening for lyrics about food or hotel ghosts was the quickest way to distinguish between the new and old, with “Déjà Vu” one of the clearest examples. But there are also songs off of Hotel Valentine that show strong progression and sophistication. The last song of the set before the encore, “10th Floor Ghost Girl” sounded eclectic and modern with a lively dance beat that lifted the energy of the room. It is one of the strongest songs on the album, and translated well live.
Just an hour after they started, Cibo Matto ended the encore with “Birthday Cake,” giving fans one more opportunity to sing along to an old favorite. It was a quirky, nostalgic end to a quirky, nostalgic show—exactly as it should have been. Cibo Matto might not be as cutting edge today as they were in 1996, but given their ability to get crowds dancing and singing with them, I’m not sure it matters.
Opening for Cibo Matto was Brooklyn-based Salt Cathedral. Led by Juliana Ronderos’ smooth, echoing vocals, the band layers rich, percussive beats with guitar work to make music that is beautiful, complex, and endlessly listenable. Ronderos and guitarist Nicolas Losada hail from Columbia, adding a South American element that infiltrates their sound and provides a distinctiveness that many of their contemporaries lack.
With the Black Cat maybe half full during the set, those lucky enough to hear the opener were captivated. Salt Cathedral released their first self-titled EP last year; one can only hope that much more is yet to come.
SALT CATHEDRAL
