Tchotchke - Live at The Sultan Room
Tchotchke dropped their sophomore album Playin’ Dumb on September 5th, a release I’d been eagerly waiting for ever since falling in love with their debut back in 2022. Just a few days later, they surprised everyone by showing up as the secret guest opener for Pearl and the Oysters at The Sultan Room on September 8th. The crowd around me looked stunned, but I had clocked their merch at the table as soon as I walked in and immediately got hyped.
Like the D’Addario brothers who produced and contributed instrumentally to both Tchotchke records, Tchotchke wears their influences on their sleeve. But instead of leaning into tired imitation, they twist it with a self-aware blend of camp and freshness that keeps it novel in the present tense (unlike some other pastiche acts (looking at you, Greta Van Fleet)).
I think Playin’ Dumb works because there’s nothing dumb about it. For example, the band mentioned in interviews that they created personas while writing, which let them turn these jangly, nostalgia laden tracks into witty, meta commentaries on ’60s girl group tropes without losing any of the kitschy charm.
What blows my mind is that, as far as I know, Tchotchke is still fully independent outside of a PR relationship with Perfect Pitch. They’ve got the whole package: punchy girl-group charm, tons of replay value, a 60s mod aesthetic (similar to Kate Bollinger who had a breakout in the last two years), sharp production (analog recorded/mixed + Digitally mastered by Paul Millar at Bug Sound East), and an album cover that nails the vibe perfectly, creating something fun for fans to (literally) play with. I don’t think it’ll be long before more mainstream listeners catch on.
You can watch my Lo-Fi video taken with my 2007 Panasonic mini DVD camcorder here: