Concert Review: Aloha @ Knitting Factory, 3.18.08

For a band named after the Hawaiian word for "hello," Aloha seemed a little shy during their too-brief opening set for the Velvet Teen on Tuesday night. But the scrawny indie kids were confident about their musicianship, which was impressive indeed. The band played with a blend of Death Cab For Cutie's melodic sense and the Sea and Cake's jazzy virtuosity, with drummer Cale Parks unleashing a torrent of polyrhythms from his lightning-like hands. Aloha didn’t lean too heavily on their new material, only playing one song from last year’s Light Works EP, but the energetic set didn’t suffer for it. The young-ish crowd, likely there to see Velvet Teen (or Black Moth Super Rainbow across the hall on the main stage), was attentive and even supportive; it’s too bad the band had to cut things short. More photos after the jump.