Plain and simple, Tom Vek totally killed it at the Tribeca Grand on Saturday night. Considering how high his debut We Have Sound sets the bar - it finally drops stateside on October 25 - the fact that his live show was up to par was a very pleasant surprise. Vek plays everything on his record, so I wasn't sure how it would translate live. Would his band be able to pull off the little details? (Yes.) Would they be tight? (Oh yes.) And what exactly would Vek play? (A mix of bass and guitar.)

They kicked things off with "C-C (You Set The Fire In Me)" (MP3), We Have Sound's stellar first track. With two basses, keys, and drums, Vek and his band were all about the groove and they nailed it. The drummer in particular was awesome, especially when he pulled off the song's stutter-glitch breakdown completely live. (He was also drenched in sweat about 10 minutes into the show.) They went on to play pretty much all of the album, and there wasn't a bad song in the mix. ("A Little Word In Your Ear" being my favorite, and "I Ain't Saying My Goodbyes" closing the set raucously.) I was consistently wowed by how well the songs translated to the stage. We Have Sound is a studio album with a fairly produced sound, but the songs didn't slip a bit when they lost the gloss live - they instead just sounded way more organic, and the band was totally at ease and incredibly tight. I almost find it hard to believe that they don't play on the record.

It helped that the crowd was super enthusiastic (free PBR will do the trick, plus we, um, all bought the import...) and the sound was about as good as I've ever heard it for a band at the Tribeca Grand. This was just Vek's second show in the US, but hopefully he'll be back again soon. If his gigs are always this good, he's got a very bright future in front of him.

JDH and Dave P did an excellent job spinning before and after Vek's set, as usual. Every time I hear them spin, I wonder why it takes a special guest to get me to their parties when they're more than enough reason on their own. And, as a special bonus, a DJ set from Mylo got added to the bill last week. What I heard of his set was pretty awesome - funky, catchy, banging, and the crowd was seriously digging it. I wouldn't hesitate to see him again. It was a little crowded, but all in all an excellent night.

Devil in the Details was also there, and a couple more shots are up on Flickr.