Not that long ago, County Grind got obsessed with Miami R&B-jazz ensemble Ketchy Shuby's current aesthetic direction. This first took hold with "Broke Like My Soul," a throwback jam for dancing on backroom hardwood floors with hand-rolled cigar smoke curling in the air.
Now, the band takes an unlikely approach by covering Toronto synth-rock act Austra, which performs at Grand Central this evening. The track chosen is the churning and charming dance number "The Beat & the Pulse" for their December mixtape, titled . And judging by what appears to be next week's entry -- Nirvana's "Come as You Are" -- nothing's off-limits for these genre-bending groove riders, who open for Fishbone at Culture Room on Sunday.
One thing to be said for Ketchy Shuby's version of "The Beat & the Pulse" is its brevity. It clocks in at two-and-a-half minutes, while Austra takes six minutes to unpack its moody case. Really, there isn't much structural similarity between the original and the breakneck cover version -- aside from some lyrical crossover and a general intense feel. Both songs' tensions stretch to the repeated line "Feel it break" -- which is also the title of Austra's recent album -- and it's impossible to be numb to it.
Beat & The Pulse Single Ep by KETCHYSHUBY
Here's the Austra version, and there's some nudity in this video, so be advised.
Austra. With Grimes. 9 p.m. Wednesday, November 2, at Grand Central, 697 N. Miami Ave., Miami. Tickets cost $10, $15 at the door. Click here.
also
Ketchy Shuby. With Fishbone and Downtown Brown. Sunday, November 6, at Culture Room, 3045 N. Federal Highway, Fort Lauderdale. Tickets cost $13. Click here.
