Versus, a quartet from New York City, is revered in some circles for its relatively straightforward guitar rock, a genre that, in and of itself, is nothing special. Is Versus loud? Sometimes. Are the songs buzz-saw fast? Not really. Are there any ska-tinged undercurrents that the band exploits? Nope. Versus’ distinct lack of gimmicks is an anomaly in this age of multi-hyphenated sub-genres. What the band has to offer instead is a bundle of pop hooks that recall the golden age of so-called “college rock.”
Versus’ latest album “Two Cents Plus Tax” doesn’t deviate radically from the group’s past work, but it’s still the band’s most melodic and mature work to date. At the Metro Thursday night, Versus mostly stuck to the tried and true combination of biting guitars and bitter lyrics. “Atomic Kid” and “Dumb Fun” sent some fans into a pogo tizzy, fueled by drummer Patrick Ramos and the fraternal guitar team of Richard and James Baluyut. Bassist Fontaine Toups’ first solo turn was the reserved and very pretty “Never Be OK,” and the rest of the evening found her adding cooing harmonies to Richard Baluyut’s tense vocals.
New songs such as “Morning Glory” mingled freely and inconspicuously with old songs like “Thera,” demonstrating the band’s remarkable consistency. It was only when Versus enlisted a drum machine for “Jack and Jill,” an uncharacteristic foray into Afro-Caribbean territory, that the band hinted that there’s more to Versus than just guitars and feedback.
Playing before Versus was Quasi, a duo from Portland, Ore. Quasi, comprised of singer/guitarist/keyboard player Sam Coomes and drummer Janet Weiss, is as notable for its queasy inter-band history as it is for its stunningly tuneful songs. Coomes and Weiss were once married, and when Coomes croons in his sweet falsetto “I never want to see you again” there’s the ironic implication that, in some roundabout way, he may be addressing his current bandmate.
But Coomes doesn’t just take his aggression out on some anonymous pronoun; it’s his keyboard that takes a real beating. Throughout Quasi’s set Coomes tortured his instrument, a distorted electric harpsichord called a Roxichord, by stomping up and down on the keys, pummeling it with his fists, and ultimately leaping off its wobbly chassis. Weiss, who also plays in the acclaimed punk outfit Sleater-Kinney, matched Coomes antics’ with a series of impressive fills and chaotic, Keith Moon-like breakdowns. Songs like “Our Happiness is Guaranteed,” “The Poisoned Well” and “California” are steeped in the wit and quirky flourishes of the Kinks and the Beatles, but the presentation was closer to a great garage band having a ball.
Opening was Flin Flon, the latest band from former Unrest frontman Mark Robinson. The trio’s geeky self-consciousness and hyper-rhythmic playing was reminiscent of early ’80s new wave music, though the songs lacked the icy precision and gluttonous riffs of that fertile time.
