DIRTY BEACHES The Silver Dollar, 1am. NXNE. Rating: NN
One-man band Alex Zhang Hungtai inhabits ‘50s greaser rock’n’roll iconography with hypnotic drum loops, agitated guitar playing and swampy blues inflections to create a ghostly nostalgic mood on record and on stage.
During his short, late-night Dirty Beaches set, an attentive crowd looked on as he jittered about, wrestled his white Fender Stratocaster as if possessed and crooned into a vintage mic.
He’s a striking figure, but too much of a wallflower to translate his throwback aesthetics into a convincing stage character.