One night down, five to go. Now that Mission Creek has stretched it’s skinny, hipster arms (like antenna…) all the way in to the beginning of the week, the countdown starts to feel more significant. Rather than numbering off a long (really long the last couple years) weekend, we’re marking off SIX frakking days for this mother. And along with our first show comes the first of many recaps to make you jealous of what you missed.

Last night was a nice warm-up for the glut, the torrent about to be unleashed upon the musically and literarilly minded of Iowa City. Night-People label head, Shawn Reed put together a choice selection of DIY pop to get our week started off right.

Opening things up was Iowa City’s newest synth-pumping whiz, Alex Body (ex-Twelve Canons). Over the past few months, Body has moved from rickety, shambling synth spazzes into full-blown, wind-swept, dystopic barn-burners. Few people can make the hodge-podge of second-hand electronic gizmos Body has sound as epic and foreboding. Last night may have been his finest hour yet.

Jeff Witscher turned in the strongest performance I’ve seen under his new moniker: Rene Hell. Witscher churned out sheets of warm, almost glowing, hiss-laden analog drones. Maybe Hell benefits from all the medince he was popping to help get through some his flu symptoms.

Peaking Lights

While our backs were turned, Madison, Wisc’s Peaking Lights turned into a trunk-rattling duo. Last time we saw Peaking Lights they were dishing out playful blurbs of keyboard over jittery, programed drum loops. Last night the duo put out some serious jams. If Beach House became an indie-dance-pop act they’d be close to the show-stopping pulse Peaking put out.

Pocahaunted

LA’s Pocahaunted was a show stopper too…but not in that good way. This really wasn’t the group’s fault, technical problems were the name of the game for the quintet. If it wasn’t one mic it was another. The band had mercifully sound checked prior to doors so they were able get started pretty quickly once all three vocal microphones were functional. Pocahaunted has been loving the dub lately. Their show last night at Gabe’s was full a da riddim. With the addition of a full band, Pocahaunted has gained the one component which may have dogged their career at this point, they had the talent and rhythm to make funky music. No longer “outsider” funk from the group, now they turn it out like pros.

We’ll have more festival recaps throughout the week and more previews still to come, check out what’s come before here.