Review: Little Joy at the Wonder Bar

Little Joy's Fabrizio Moretti (Credit: Alex Biese)

For those who showed up ready to listen, Saturday night's set by Little Joy at the Wonder Bar in Asbury Park was like a fun night out with a few friends who happen to be supremely talented musicians. There were laughs, tender moments and times of happy revelation during the band's all too brief half-hour set of material from their recently-released self-titled debut (if you don't own it, you should).

However, the folks that did turn out to hear the sweet sounds of the Los Angeles-based band whose ranks include Fabrizio Moretti of the Strokes and Rodrigo Amarante of Brazilian band Los Hermanos did have a few obstacles to contend with, namely a summer-sized crowd at the beachfront thanks to four shows in town (Funktion 11 at the Stone Pony, Staind at Convention Hall and members of Yes at the Paramount Theater), rainy and generally dreary weather and a lack of parking in the waterfront area.

Once inside the Wonder Bar, fans were treated to three very cool but very different bands on the bill. Kicking off the proceedings were Asbury Park-based alt-rockers the Loose Roosters, who won over the early bird crowd with their high-energy sound that seemed to draw from grunge and British hard rock bluesmen. Their next gig is Friday (Nov. 21) at the Brighton Bar in Long Branch and if you love rock, there are a lot of worse places you could be.

Next up were Portland, Ore.-based band the Dead Trees, an ensemble so hip that they can (and do) wear sunglasses at night and get away with it. The band delivered a catchy set of indie rock that included a faithful cover of George Harrison's take on Bob Dylan's "If Not For You," and if they stick at what they're doing they really have the potential to be a buzz-worthy band in the near future.

Following two high-energy, crowd-pleasing sets, it was clear that Little Joy were looking to mellow out the proceedings when Morretti took the stage prior to the band's set and encouraged everyone to pull their chairs and bar stools in front of the stage, making for what may have been the first seated show at the bar in recent memory.

The tone of the evening was then solidified by the band's opening song, a solo rendition by Amarante of "Evaporar," the album's hushed, romantic Portuguese-language closing track.

From there on out, the band focused on the album's mellower moments, such as the quiet charmer "Unattainable" sung by co-founder Binki Shapiro. Buyt the show didn't lag with the quiet numbers, which all felt fleshed-out and more powerful thanks to the transition to the live stage and were joined by some of the album's more up-tempo, Strokes-like cuts for good measure, including the stellar "How to Hang a Warhol."

However, about 20 minutes into the band's set, during the noir-flavored "With Strangers," a new crowd, more than a few of whom were wearing Yes t-shirts and may have come from the show across the street, flooded the back portion of the bar and chatted as if there wasn't even a band on stage.

A couple of songs later, Amarante announced that the show's 10^th number, which turned out to be the rocker "Keep Me in Mind," would be the evening's last song. After the song came to an end, the band exited the stage, roadies began clearing away the band's gear and the audience members who had come to hear Little Joy realized the band hadn't been kidding.

While the band's set did feel too short and left those who came to listen wanting more, hopefully this project continues and the next Jersey crowd they get will be more attentive to their warm, intimate and very good sound.

Here's Little Joy's set list from Saturday night:

1. "Evaporar"
2. "Unattainable"
3. "Shoulder to Shoulder"
4. "Brand New Start"
5. "The Next Time Around"
6. "How to Hang a Warhol"
7. "With Strangers"
8. "Don't Watch Me Dancing"
9. "No One's Better Sake"
10. "Keep Me in Mind"