Sunday, March 14, 2010
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Afternoon Naps, PopFest 2008, Little Kings, 8/13/08

by Katie Miller
08/15/2008

Popfest is nothing if not a showcase of catchy, fun loving bands and Cleveland, Ohio-based Afternoon Naps proved they fit the bill perfectly. Playing the Wednesday, 4 o’clock slot, they managed to make even the normally too-cool-to-dance Athens crowd move. Afternoon Naps used a killer combination of infectious melodies and a driving beat to get the crowd into the mood and forced them to loosen up with an enthusiastic penchant for bad jokes. They did not seem to take themselves too seriously, yet worked the crowd in their twee popish way like nobody’s business.

Even when their equipment broke down halfway through the set, they shrugged it off with shouts of “Cleveland rocks!” and laughs while they quickly fixed the kinks in the system. It was this hidden sense of professionalism that made the band stand out. They were able to keep potential freak outs unrealized to the audience and instead write them off as yet another twist of fate and fun. This allowed them to maintain the same level of excitement that started off their set and thoroughly entrap their audience.

The set included a number of songs from Afternoon Naps’ 2007 LP Sunbeamed. Clocking in at under twenty-one minutes, the album’s songs are pure pop and center around dreamy, synthesizer heavy melodies. Highlights from their set include the album’s “Orange Paw”, a jangle pop tune full of hand claps and singer Leia’s fast paced crooning. Another stand out song was “Clean Bill of Health” which starts out with a “Lust for Life”-esque bass line and instantly started the crowd dancing.

Afternoon Naps brought energy and excitement with them to Athens and, luckily for the Popfest crowd, infused them with it too.