Tokyo Police Club @ CMW 2006

Hometown: Toronto, ON

Background/Composition: Post-punk art rock for indie kids and adults alike.

Grade: 92

Comment: These nerdy Toronto art kids blast out short, loud, jerky dance rock songs and are the kind of band whose merch table is completely raided once their show is over. You can't help but develop a small crush on the band.

Achievement of Rock 'n' Roll Expectations
80-100: Exceeds skill and knowledge expectations, i.e. rocked us so hard we peed our pants.
70-79: Achieves required skills and knowledge. Meets rock 'n' roll standard.
60-69: Demonstrates some skills. Approaches rock 'n' roll standard.
50-59: Demonstrates some required skills and knowledge in a limited way.
00-50: Has not demonstrated required skills or knowledge.

Learning Skills: E=Excellent, G=Good, S=Satisfactory, N=Sad Really

Oral And Visual Communication
Eye Contact: E
Pronounciation: G
Stage Presence: E
Stage Banter: G
Image: G
Appearance: G
Use Of Stage: E
Strengths/Weaknesses/NextStep:  Tokyo Police Club opened their show by flashing three big signs with each word of their moniker on them. They audience were rowdy right off the bat with applause and enthusiasm. Lead singer David Monks has a Julian Casablanca thing about him that you can't take your eyes off. The whole band are so young that you feel happy/proud/excited to be watching such budding talent. They also look to be having so much fun that you badly want to be part of the dance party. They are confident, but not overly, and their only downfall is the sometimes forced punk attitude.

Musical Analysis
Level Of Participation: E
Problem Solving: E
Teamwork: E
Work Habits: E
Organization:E
Audience Participation: E
Sound: E
Composition: G
Songs: E
Strengths/Weaknesses/NextStep:  These young lads make greatly layered art rock. Jumping from fast to slow in a blink of an eye, their sound involves a lot of hand clapping, hot rhythms and lovely sounding keyboard melodies. If the Strokes all had little brothers, this is what their band would sound like.

Other Skills And Areas Of Interest
Charisma: E
Problem Solving: G
Teamwork: E
Sexiness: E
Haircut: G
Indie Rock Footwear: E
Nods To Disposible Fashion: N
Cool Equipment: S
Level Of Inebriation: N
Actual Ability: E
Strengths/Weaknesses/NextStep:  To add to the simplicity and skill of their rock 'n' roll dance party, TPC waved a big red flag around the stage and then passed it into the audience. At one point, a hoard of sparklers were given to the audience and lit up while balloons floated off band members' equipment. A few people in the audience repeatedly screamed, "You guys are gonna be huge!" and while the youngsters didn't seem to really hear them, they kept solid grins on their faces for the entire show. The band just come off as a really nice bunch of guys who know how to play original rock music. Hilariously, their merch included small pillows with TPC printed on them.