Keeping True

Go away for a week and you've got a lot to make up for.

Stop one was the recently revamped Perly's, where I walked in to find a music-loving friend at the counter and sat down next to him.

Like me, he was fueling up before hitting Fall Line Fest shows tonight but we began by taking stock of the redone but still recognizable space.

Considering that it's mostly the same (the configuration), it's also very different in feel (a Jewish deli now).

I was particularly enamored of the paper place mats with the menu printed on them while he was impressed with the beer selection.

He was having a svelte corned beef sandwich (which was still pretty thick) but I swear my deli salad - chopped lettuce topped with chunks of pastrami, rolls of turkey and strips of salami, swiss, hard cooked eggs and a little too much Russian dressing- had more meat on it.

We'll call it a manly salad.

After dissecting the shows I'd missed and he'd seen at Fall Line Fest last night (Death, Matthew E. White), I left knowing I'd see him later at a show.

There was no way I was missing Potty Mouth, an all-girl punk pop band from Massachusetts, or the chance to see them with my cute friend at Gallery 5.

We stood right in front of the stage, waiting through bottled water being brought to the stage and drummer Victoria tying her shoes before the band could start.

After the first song, "Kids," singer Abby said, "I forgot to take out my ponytail. How can I have any fun like this?"

We all know punk requires flying hair, assuming you have it.

With that, she let down her long, blond hair, leaving it to hang in her face and move around as she sang and played guitar, not so different from Victoria's covering her face the whole time she drummed.

Some say you made a mistake
Well, you can taste my heartache
How does it taste?

Their set was high energy and I can only hope they were having as good a time as it looked like they were.

Inviting my friend to leave G5 for the National, her only request as that I drive.

When we stopped in front of Gallery 5 for the light, the girls of Potty Mouth were out front loading up their vehicle.

Never one to be shy, I called out to bassist Ally to tell her what a great show they'd put on, insisting they come back soon and play a longer set.

It never hurts to let one's admiration be known.

At the National, we were all kinds of surprised to find parking a snap, meaning not nearly enough people were inside.

After taking up residence in front of the sound booth, always my location at shows there, I saw a few friends, but not nearly as many as I'd expected.

Ditto the band, Sweden's Mary Onettes, which amounted to one guy instead of four.

"I was supposed to have my band withe me but they're busy wrestling ice bears in Sweden," singer/guitarist Philip explained.

I liked his sense of humor already.

But even if he hadn't had that, I'd still have been a sucker for the band's dream pop, which he performed using guitar and voice to recorded tracks by the rest of the band.

It may not have been ideal, but it still sounded great, echoing a lot of '80s bands' sounds I loved with songs such as "Everything, Everything," "God Knows I Had Plans" and the aching "Once I Was Pretty."

Everything I've ever done was a part of promising you and keeping true
Everything you've ever said is recorded in my heart.

Yep, I ate it all up with a spoon. I could have listened to them all night.

Instead, Philip introduced Amanda Mair, also from Sweden, who sang back-up for one Mary Onettes song and then did a set of her own of emotional piano ballads.

She reminded me a lot of '90s British songbird Lauren Christy, when my Perly's friend suddenly appeared right next to us, determined to hear her lovely voice from the best possible listening post in the room.

Why do you think this is my permanent position?

My friend got all excited when she saw that Potty Mouth had just tweeted about their set at Gallery 5, saying how friendly people in Richmond were.

"She's talking about you!" she insisted.  Good, maybe they'll come back like I asked.

Although the show was running a tad behind schedule, they almost made up for it with an unusually short break and then, hello!

Real Estate took the stage in their unassuming, so very un-Jersey-like way.

What they do very well is produce sunny songs with layers of guitar and vocals, making for the best kind of wistful nerd pop.

I'd been fortunate enough to see them their first time in Richmond, back in April 2012, at Strange Matter in a room that felt like a sauna and left me dripping wet after the show.

Not that it wasn't worth it.

Like last time, lead singer Martin isn't big on banter between songs, or even smiling much, but he was obviously putting his all into playing music with his long-time friends and band mates.

They began with the instrumental gem "Kinder Blumen," the ideal song to ease into their catalog, full of guitar interplay and catchy hooks and moved on to new stuff off their latest album, "Atlas."

Bassist Alex took over lead vocals for "Wonder Years," yet another catchy pop gem that was instantly memorable ("I'm not trying to be cool, I only wanna be kind, I know that I've pissed you off, Baby, better rewind").

Haven't we all had those moments in a relationship?

As if catchy tunes and longing lyrics weren't enough, the band was masterful at taking off with shimmering guitar jams and extended finishes that equaled pure pop heaven.

Before it was all over, they mentioned the hot tub backstage and invited us all to bring swimsuits and join them.

After a week away, I had a lot to make up for but not enough time for a soak.

It's enough that I tried a new restaurant, saw four stellar bands and told complete strangers what to do, from my car no less.

I can't do everything in one night.