Music

It's hard for Tilly and the Wall not to come off as precious: They're young, obviously in love with rock 'n' roll, and have a tap dancer instead of a drummer.

JASON JANIK/Special Contributor

Nebraska-based Tilly and the Wall fused rock 'n' roll, punk and folk - visually as well as vocally - on Wednesday at the Granada Theater.

But the band from Omaha, Neb., proved Wednesday night at the Granada Theater that it may be hard, but not impossible. Animated by an enthusiasm hard to maintain on tour, they led the almost 400 fans on a high-energy tour of their catalog.

Bolstered by an actual drummer and an additional guitarist, they were as engaging visually as they were sonically.

First, you've got tap dancer Jamie Presnall on a raised platform behind the band. In front of her stood Neely Jenkins and Kianna Alarid, resplendent in thrift-store dresses and cool-girl haircuts, projecting a joie de rock unseen since the heyday of the B-52s. Guitarist Derek Presnall (Jamie's husband; sorry guys) pogoed about the stage. And, of course, Nick White on keyboard.

The band passed out balloons before the show, and used surprisingly sophisticated lighting. They even added sparkly confetti that cascaded from the rafters at the end of "Pot Kettle Black," the first single from their newest album, O.

As was expected, the March release dominated the playlist: "Alligator Skin," "Cacophony," "Tall Tall Grass" and the show-starting "Too Excited." Ms. Alarid and Ms. Jenkins announced the latter by holding up large cardboard cutouts of the words, yet another move that might have been too cutesy but was redeemed by their enthusiasm.

But they also went back farther than many bands bother to do, beginning with "The Ice Storm, Big Gust, and You." They also visited previous albums such as the name-making 2004 release Wild Like Children ("Reckless") and 2006's Bottoms of Barrels ("Bad Education," "Sing Songs Along").

By the time the group finished its raucous, three-song encore, Tilly and the Wall had fused punk, girl-group panache, folk and Spector-like rhythms into something that most bands wouldn't even imagine, much less attempt.

ARCHIVES: Search for more stories on this and other topics | Search Tips

SUBSCRIBE: Get The Dallas Morning News delivered to your home