If there is anyone in the world who’s never thought that maybe they’d like to be a musician, I would like to meet them, if for no other reason than to tell them that I think they’re lying. We’ve all had our rock star dreams, virtuoso fantasies, folky thoughts or MC desires at some point or another, and for most of us, beyond a high school band here and there, these ideas remain just that. Sometimes the itch comes back, however, and we hear a piece of music so good and so simple that we think “I can do that” and all the yearning of adolescence comes flooding back all at once.

To actualize such fantasies takes both talent (which is mysterious and seemingly arbitrarily assigned) and skill, but it also takes hard, grueling work and a really thick skin. The two bands on the bill at The Echo this past Wednesday, had both of the first two, although it seemed clear that where they differed was in the second two categories. The opening band, Highland Park’s own Random Patterns, certainly possessed the skills—this all-male five piece showed great versatility in their musical proficiency, with most of the members playing more than one instrument (they even had a saxophone!) to great effect, creating a kind of Fleet Foxes meet Vampire Weekend meet wall of sound kind of atmosphere. What they lacked, however, seemed to be experience, playing their extremely long songs loud and hard and with a kind of adolescent vigor that, although it can be compelling, tends to lean much further towards the side of chaos than coherence. It was almost as though each instrument was fighting to be heard against the others’ din, burying both the vocals and the saxophone alive.

Despite this seeming misstep of modulation, there is potential in Random Patterns,’ well, randomness. Each piece of the puzzle, when it stood out enough to be heard, was well executed and effective, and I do not doubt that with some more time, and more live shows under their belts, Random Pattern’s will find their groove.

The night’s headliner, Washington D.C. band Le Loup, began to set up just as the club began to fill with a surprising mix of people, from couples who seemed to be out on a first date to fedora and Navajo poncho-ed uber hipsters just out for their nightly culture injection. Shows in the middle of the week always provide for interesting people watching, both because one’s presence at them implies a certain laissez-fair with regards to your sleep schedule and a real commitment to going to a show, and this Wednesday night was certainly no exception.

Le Loup complimented the eclectic crowd, with band members padding onto the stage in moccasin boots, cut-off denim, and tie-dye. As they began to play, I suddenly realized that this was a band with everything just right. The warm combination of Sam Simkoff’s vocals and his band’s skilled instrumentation made this chilly weeknight feel more like one of those nights in summer that seems to go on for ever, and the crowd moved closer and began to sway as though they were watching a performance by the side of a bonfire. Although I thought it could go the way of super spaced out songs that feel like they’re going to go on for days, Le Loup’s dreamy performance stayed tight, and although free spirited, the songs remained simple and flawlessly executed.

Like Random Patterns, Le Loup was also performing as a five piece on Wednesday night. They began as Simkoff’s solo project though, way back in 2006. The fact that Le Loup began in a bedroom is clear—the intimate feel of the songs lends itself well the image of a solitary song writer—but what is also clear is that out of that simple beginning Simkoff saw the potential to do more. By adding more members to his project, Simkoff built a musical scaffolding on which to support his vocals, and support them it does. With melodies riding on drum beats and bass lines like a surfer riding a perfect break, Le Loup’s bedroom rock is transformed into a dream soundtrack, proving that talent is only the beginning—it’s figuring out the next step that’s the real challenge.

—Maud Deitch