Photo by Jorge Sanhueza-Lyon/KUTX
Thao & The Get Down Stay Down’s music accentuates odd angles like a funhouse mirror. The juxtapositions are pretty great: mandolin mixed with hip-hop beats, spiky guitar with Thao Nguyen’s wide-ranging voice. Every song sounds like a call-to-arms, and they often are. Thao can rail against misogyny and the economic inequality of San Francisco, sounding less like a preacher than a concerned citizen who’s lived it and had enough.
It makes perfect sense the band would team up with Merrill Garbus (a.k.a. tUnE-yArDs) for their latest album, A Man Alive, and as producer, she helps enhance their sandbox sound. The songs truly pop onstage, and today’s song of the day comes from the band’s live set at the Four Seasons. “Nobody Dies” is anxious but also a lot of fun. Listen to the song below and mark your calendar: Thao Nguyen is the guest DJ on My KUTX this Saturday (March 26) at 6 p.m.
–Art Levy
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