I knew the Velvet Teen rocked, but I didn’t know the Velvet Teen ROCKED!!!! In fact, they rocked so hard during their show at the Rickshaw Stop that I stayed and missed the last BART home, and I wasn’t even angry. I was humming the tune to “Radiapathy” all the way home on the transbay bus.

There’s something special about the Velvet Teen that’s hard to put your finger on. There’s drummer Casey Deitz’s whirlwind of carefully complex beats, singer Judah Nagler’s baroque-style vocals hitting even the highest of notes, and guitarist Matthew Izen convulsing along with strangely melodic chord progressions from outer space. All three come together to form a triad of awesomeness with far too much energy to contain itself.

The minute Deitz’s glasses came off from wailing too hard on the drums in the second song of the set, I knew I was in for a ride. The band held nothing back, and all the intensity bottled up in Cum Laude, the band’s previous release, was brought with full force live. The entire place was moving in some way, and not even the hippest of the hipsters were able to deny the force. Without even blinking, I would much rather miss the last BART again then miss these guys the next time they come to town.

Hometown: Santa Rosa
Next local show: 11/10, Bimbo’s 365
Recent release: Cum Laude, 2006

Maybe you’ve heard of the Velvet Teen. On paper, it’s a small and independent band. But its name certainly gets around. Beyond obvious talent, it’s hard to say why. Coulda been the opening night performance at Noise Pop in 2002 that did it. Or maybe the collaboration with Death Cab for Cutie’s Chris Walla on VT’s debut full-length, 2002’s Out of the Fierce Parade. Or possibly just the band’s refusal to sit still stylistically; it’s moved from baroque pop to elegant IDM to messy rock to something that encompasses all three.

The Velvet Teen’s latest, Cum Laude, released this past July, falls squarely into the latter category. It’s the group’s greatest statement thus far, fearlessly toying with math rock and jazz structures as well as the aforementioned genres. The Velvet Teen seem hard-wired to innovate, and the replacement of original drummer Logan Whitehurst, who’s dealing with health issues, by Casey Deitz (of Chico group the Americas) seems only to reinforce that. His carefully spastic drumming pushes the group into almost experimental territory. Yet the Velvet Teen never loses its sense of songcraft, often burying emotional melodies beneath layers of raw noise much like the Promise Ring or early Thursday.

Cum Laude is a fearless effort that won’t make the band an instant success but should contribute significantly to the mysterious buzz surrounding its name. It’ll also certainly be a late-year addition to many best-of-2006 lists.

PRAY FOR MOJO:
-Velvet Teen founding member and local music vet Logan Whitehurst had to leave the band after being diagnosed with a brain tumor. Keep him in your thoughts.
-The new lineup includes founding member Judah Nagler (vocals/keyboard/guitar), Josh Staples (bass/vocals), and Deitz (drums/vocals).
-Cum Laude is the group’s third full-length, all of which have been with Portland-based indie Slowdance Records. Maybe this’ll be enough to land the group on a bigger label.