The enormous swarm of 15- to 16-year-olds gathered in front of the Vera Project two weeks ago should have been a hint that I was about to see something special. The night's show was the first from local dance quintet Natalie Portman's Shaved Head in six months, and their young fan base was more than fired up to see them back.
Walking down the stairs into the sold-out venue, I immediately felt a little bit out of place. It looked like a middle-school cafeteria, all energetic buzz, swelling voices, and sporadic movement. NPSH's goofy and ridiculously catchy songs about growing beards and the sexual frustrations of being a teenager seem to attract the youngest, most excited crowd of any band in the city. It takes a unique situation for me to start feeling old at 19, but this after-school special of a show was getting the job done.
As the lights went out and NPSH took the stage, it was like someone had just started a food fight—cafeteria chaos. It wasn't 15 seconds into the band's opener, an extended rock version of "Slow Motion Tag Team," before the crowd had knocked almost all of DJ Deathsquad's turntables and mixer setup onto the floor, to be trampled underfoot. Luckily, nothing was broken, but it set the tone for a raucous set.
NPSH are a far different band than they were when they left off half a year ago. They've undergone voice lessons to improve their range, and it shows. The last time I saw the band, keyboardist Claire England sang with an outrageous Riot Grrrl croon on her solo song "Sophisticated Sideways Ponytail." It wasn't pretty, but it felt genuine. Now, she and the rest of the band sound like polished pop cherubs. The set, like their forthcoming debut album, Glistening Pleasure (due out in July), sounded almost too good. Songs like "Staying Cool," which boasts the most brain-burning guitar melody I've ever heard, will get stuck in your head until you want to cry, but the whole show seemed just a tad over the top.
Of course, it's no problem if I think NPSH should have their own Disney Channel show, because that's exactly what they're going for. They set out to write a glimmering pop album, and when Glistening Pleasure drops this summer and the band take their act out on the road with CSS, I'm sure the kids will be flocking to them in droves. 
