I feel like this will be like the third time I've excused a lackluster show from Vivian Girls because I still really like them on record, but here we go. The Brooklyn dream punk trio's set yesterday evening on the Broad Street stage felt kind of flat—the sound was not great, the band kept having to swap guitars and retune, undercutting any attempt to build momentum or goodwill although providing the incidental comedy of trying to make out Kickball Katy's attempts at banter through a mic reverbed into pure echo. In general, the band's kind of shrugging charm seemed sort of lost on the big, outdoor crowd. Setlist highlights included older tracks "Wild Eyes" and "Tell the World," and new songs (from their fine forthcoming sophomore album Everything Goes Wrong) "Walking Alone at Night," "Can't Get Over You" (with guitarist Cassie Ramone's ridiculously underachieving anti-solo) and "The End." Honestly, though, I had a hard time trainspotting more than a few songs—either I'm fond but not obsessively familiar with the Girls' catalog, or all their songs sound kind of the same. Or maybe both. At their best, the band perfectly combines classic indie pop and garage rock reference points with low frills, wall of noise production values. But their ideal sound is already dialed in so intentionally close to cruddy—which sounds just right on record—that even the slightest bad mix immediately pushes them over the edge and into the red. (Which is not to say that they're incompetent musicians—Katy especially pulls some unshowy but agile bass lines.) Anyway, an off set, but I will still totally stan for this band, maybe just more on record than live.

Update: I forgot to mention, but extra points to Cassie Ramone for rocking a Spits t-shirt. That's all.

All things Bumbershoot on Line Out can be found here; the Stranger's Guide to Bumbershoot, featuring previews of everything happening at the festival and a customizable schedule, can be found here.)