Sunday 2 August 2015

2015 Northside Music Review

This was a collaborative post on Free Williamsburg orignally posted HERE.

ex hex
The seventh Northside festival wrapped up on the 14th of June, with over 100,000 people spending time indulging either music, innovation, film, or a combination of the three. Free Williamsburg staff spent time at various shows from metal to pop acts, among thousands or sometimes only a dozen likeminded souls. The best sets and the ones that got away all feature below.

Best Set
Chris Quartly: Two sets spring to mind during this years Northside, the reunited Luna, who played a truly fantastic show on a humid evening in McCarren Park. Guitarists Dave Wareham and Sean Eden traded splitting guitar solos at will but the band also rolled out understated Velvet Underground-influenced tunes that can't help but induce a lazy sway in the gripping heat; they smashed my expectations. However, I've got to give the honour to Ex Hex, who blew away all the cobwebs and were a real shot of adrenaline. After revisiting their record, Rips, I took the risk of missing my beloved Chileans, The Holydrug Couple, and thankfully the band justified that choice. Every song on the record sounds like it should be a hit single, and the trio bring all the high-kicks and rock poses they can muster. It was almost as if the more experienced musicians wanted to show the kids how it is done. Having said that, Ireland's Girl Band have been a prior recommendation of mine and they absolutely delivered the goods supporting Viet Cong (who would have been a highlight, had their call-and-response guitars not been lost in a bad sound mix, unlike their show at Mercury Lounge earlier in the year), Girl Band played an uncompromisingly aggressive and creatively cacophonous set and I would urge everyone to catch them at Rough Trade on the 25th
Honourable mention: Built to Spill
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QSXZe1C6kw8
Peter Rittweger: On Saturday night I was pretty torn between Blonde Redhead at the Warsaw, Ukiah Drag at Shea Stadium and Bell Witch at Saint Vitus, until a last minute announcement tipped the scales: "The special guest at Pitchfork's Show No Mercy showcase is Prurient."
Vitus it was, and my favorite set at this year's Northside festival ended up being one that wasn't even advertised. And how appropriate; the centerpiece of Dominick Fernow's latest caustic magnum opus under the Prurient moniker, Frozen Niagara Falls, is a ten minute rumination on suicide called "Greenpoint." I should have seen it coming.
Fernow is a figure who needs no introduction to any fans of extreme or experimental music. He's almost peerless in stature in the contemporary scene; a notion that's even more evident in a live setting. Noise is expressive and off-putting by nature. It exists to challenge our conceptions of music, so a noise show should also challenge our conceptions of what a concert should be. Sometimes it works and sometimes it feels like some dude frozen behind a folding table, twisting knobs for no apparent reason. Fortunately, Fernow is a showman whose stage presence is every bit as commanding as the music he makes as Prurient. He used the entire stage, throwing his body from left to right, collapsing over himself; almost as if the primal sounds he was pumping out of the amps were too much for him to handle. I didn't see any other musician this this past weekend exude such tangible emotion.
https://youtu.be/mseqFqoamVw
Honorable mentions: Ed Schrader's Music Beat, Cayetana, Mannequin Pussy
Coleman Bentley: Just who and what Ed Schrader's Music Beat are isn't easy to put into words. Bass/drum duo? Vaudevillian comedy show? Fraiser-obssesed garage rock savants? Whatever you want to call them, the Baltimore twosome have always come off as something off a novelty act--good for a change of pace and a laugh--but Thursday night at Palisades did a great deal to change that. Tearing through a headlining set of past, present, and future tunes, Ed Schrader and his partner in petty crime, Devin Rice, had the crowd in on not the only the joke, but their dirtiest little secret: The fact they are actually one hell of a band. From the opening cries of "When I'm In A Car" to the final manic moments of "Rats", Ed Schrader had the entire placing laughing, moshing, and buying up Florida swampland by the hectacre with a truly infectious (seriously, I can't stop scratching) performance. Needless to say, the next time these dudes are in town, go see them.
Honorable Mentions: Bell Witch, Bell Witch, Prurient, did I say Bell Witch?
Best showcase
Chris Quartly: This particular Northside wasn't so much about showcases for me as opposed to trying to get around and see as much as I could, as mentioned in our preview, the most enticing lineup was put together by locals Ad Hoc and Sacred Bones at Alphaville, for The Holydrug Couple and Hubble, but The Deli really excelled themselves this year with numerous showcases for new bands across multiple venues. I would like to add a special mention to Music Hall Williamsburg though, no venue could match their lineups over the four days: Viet CongEx HexLower DensGirl BandSannhet, TEENSpider Bags and more.
Peter Rittweger: As good as the aforementioned show at Saint Vitus was, I gotta give a shootout to the dudes down at Palisades for their Thursday night showcase. It was just all over the goddamn place in the best possible. It felt like an oddball Wednesday night show you'd stumble onto at Death By Audio. The night began with a very inebriated set from PC Worship, who were bordering on Frigid Stars territory at certain points. I could have sworn they cranked things up at least a few BPMs higher in previous performances. Slowcore on a hot, sticky night is a tough sell especially when there's cheap beer. It worked, but it may have lulled some of crowd to sleep. Fortunately, Guerrilla Toss woke everyone up with a bouncy (literally) set complete with trippy Winamp Plugin-wave visuals, a small trampoline and an audio playbook chock full of Boredoms and Melt Banana hits.
https://soundcloud.com/edschradersmusicbeat/rats
Closing out the night was drum (literally, DRUM) and bass punk duo Ed Schrader's Music Beat, who I've seen probably about a dozen times before, but HOLY SHIT have they come into their own. Their set is always one part punk show and one part stand-up, but man, they were ON. The jokes about Upstate New York and acapella sing-a-longs of Lion King tracks were certainly appreciated but their songs never sounded so good. Schrader's smooth, Vegas lounge-quality baritone and his knife-edged yelps both sounded better than ever, whipping the crowd into the kind of frenzy usually reserved for his big bro Dan Deacon. They played a bunch of new tracks where the bassist played high up on the fret-board that were just outstanding; the faux-guitar added another dimension to their barebones setup. I've always had a soft spot for Ed Schrader, but before Thursday night they were sorta just a "fun" band to see whenever it was convenient. Now I'm comfortable calling ESMB a can't miss act.
Honorable Mentions: Alberich, Prurient, Akitsa and Bell Witch at Saint Vitus, Cayetana, Mitski and Against Me! at McCarren Park
Coleman Bentley: Given my usual beat around these parts, it probably comes as little surprise that I was already prepared to grant Pitchfork's Bell Witch/Akitsa/Alberich throwdown best showcase honors three weeks ago. Then I woke up Saturday morning to find Prurient occupying the special guest slot, and it was all over except for the mostly proverbial crying. Thankfully everything panned out and the show--a shape-shifting synthesis of blackened punk, high-decibel tantrums, and grave-rattling funeral doom--lived up to its massive (and diverse) billing, leaving little decision-making tennis left to be played. From a standpoint of musicianship, experimentation, and locale (Saint Vitus shout out!), there was simply nothing better.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tf6InMJ80bA
Honorable Mentions: Wharf Cat Records Showcase at Shea Stadium, featuring Ukiah Drag, Ancient Sky, Gun Outfit, and more
The One That Got Away
Chris Quartly: It's almost criminal that I missed The Holydrug Couple during their stay here, I'd just seen the band at Austin Psych Fest the month before, and as much as I love the band, I decided this was a chance to see some bands I'd never seen before. Still, in a perfect world I'd have gotten my fix of Chilean psych rock. I hope their sets at Alphaville and Baby's All Right were well attended. I was also more than a little bummed out to duck out of Best Coast's set before the end and presumably miss them play Boyfriend (say what you want about the rest of their output, that is a great pop song), but I wanted to get over to Warsaw in time for some pierogies and Blonde Redhead!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ne83qkJzdGU
Peter Rittweger: I didn't have steam left to hoof it to the Warsaw after Bell Witch's doom metal made me feel all existentially reflective on Saturday night, and I had family in town Sunday, so I missed out on both Blanck Mass sets. Hopefully these sets aren't a one-time deal...
Coleman Bentley: The nature of any festival worth its salt, is that you will miss as much as you see, and such was the case with Northside this year. Blanking on Ex Hex (especially following Chris's glowing feedback) and Viet Cong/Sannhet (the latter of which turned in one of our favorite LPs of the year thus far) certainly stung, but you move on and live your life, maybe even get married and settle down, trying all the while to not dwell on what could have been.
https://soundcloud.com/flenserrecords/sannhet-revisionist
Final Thoughts
Chris Quartly: I always have fun at Northside and I think they strike a perfect balance between the larger acts and showcases with the DIY scene , which is no mean feat when you consider how far apart the scale can be, from artistic vision to work ethic. At least in terms of the shows I went to, everything was organised fairly well with things running on schedule (some McCarren Park logistics aside), which makes showhopping all the more easier. It always seems to mark the start of summer and I'm already looking forward to next year. Perhaps there weren't any new acts that jumped out at me (that I hadn't heard of before at least), but the festival feels like more a case Brooklyn condensed than anything else.
Peter Rittweger: With the exception of last year (I was at a wedding) I've been to every edition of the Northside Festival and it's always one of my favorite times of the year. It seemed like the Northside brand was trending upwards over the last couple of years, but this edition seemed to scale things back a bit. I sorta like it that way. I don't want to see Northside lose its focus and become SXSW junior. Of course, they DO have the film and interactive portions, but they still take a backseat to the music. SXSW has basically become a tech conference for startup geeks and venture capitalists, partially for survival purposes, so my big takeaway from the whole thing is: I hope Northside sticks around for a good long time and maintains its vision. Big tent festivals have become big business lifestyle brands and conference-style festivals for journalists like SXSW and CMJ have become less vital in the streaming age. Northside is a breath of fresh air. It's a festival by and for us. It celebrates the eroding independent North Brooklyn music scene. Local businesses support it, local bands play it and local curators bring touring acts to Williamsburg, Greenpoint and Bushwick for our enjoyment. Brooklyn wouldn't be the same without it anymore.
Coleman Bentley: Organized by locals, as opposed to faceless minions in DIY-gobbling office parks, and booked for music fans, not tag-alongs hoping to dump the maximum dosage of recreational chemicals into their systems before the next white-washed mega-band takes the porta-stage, Northside has always been my pick of the rapidly growing NYC fest litter. All is not well in Williamsburg in 2015, however, and some of that transitory tension seemingly rubbed off on the festival's overall experience this year. Gone are the neighborhood's gritty, pot-stirring venues, replaced instead by agreeable places for agreeable bands. Missing are the best-kept-secret vibes, replaced by Urban Outfitter's stages and 5,000 capacity "concerts". What's left--and, funnily enough, what we unconsciously attended--is scattered to Bed Stuy in the south and the precipice of Queens to the north, a formless vapor of what was once highly-condensed wrecking ball of Williamsburg rad. Now, if this sounds like the typical fuck-gentrification "think"piece you've read half of one thousand times before, I'm sorry. I'm tired of that too. Unfortunately, the facts only serve to deepen my ambivalence: This weekend I saw two of the best shows I've seen all year, and Northside Festival, like the whole of Brooklyn around it, is changing faster than I can.
Additional photos
bestcoastBest Coast
blonderedhead
Blonde Redhead
builttospillBuilt to Spill
cayetana
Cayetana
girlband
Girl Band
Luna
Luna
Viet Cong
Viet Cong
yvetteYvette
All photos by Chris Quartly

Tuesday 2 June 2015

Live review: Follakzoid played Rough Trade

Originally posted on Free Williamsburg HERE.

Follakzoid1
Chilean psych heavyweights Föllakzoid played my favourite show of the year at Rough Trade on Saturday night, and I will be amazed if anyone beats it. There is no better scene than Santiago right now, and the band pulled off a masterclass of cosmic proportions.
SQURL
Support act SQÜRL feature director Jim Jarmusch on guitar and vocals, which has definitely brought a few extra faces through the door. I thought they were great, the songs have a slowcore influence to them, along the lines of Codeine and Low. The sound fills the room and they are definitely a good fit for tonight's bill.
https://soundcloud.com/squrlworld/the-boat-of-love
I had a chance to speak to Föllakzoid bass player Juan Pablo Rodrigues before the show and ask if he has anything from Blow Your Mind Records on him. I feel a bit like an addict in search of the next fix when he says he has to check his case and will be back in a few minutes, I leave more than happy with the latest albums from VuelvetelocaThe Ganjas and the reissued Tsunamis self-titled record.
Follakzoid3
The band leap into Electric, the opening track from new album, III, which is out now in the US on Sacred Bones, and straight away they settle into a groove that doesn't let up.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=coBQQMxJlSo
When Follakzoid and their fellow Chilean/BYM friends The Holydrug Couple played in New York in 2013, it was my favourite show of the year (out of 150+), and if anything the band have gone up a gear. The new material on III is completely and utterly mesmerising in the strictest sense of the word, even moreso live as you can see the songs shift and build. The band are puppet-masters, controlling the audience with their sound, you can't help but get pulled around and swept away in the trance.
Follakzoid4
When the band want or need to, the guitars and drums can really crash through your senses, there is much more power to the live sound than on record. This is best shown when they play 99, from the band's second album, II. Guitarist Domingo Garcia-Huidobro gets pretty animated while the rest of the band mould the rhythm, speaking of Garcia-Huidobro, as I mentioned last week, you can see his film, Patir to Live, at Nitehawk cinema tonight with a live score from the man himself.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yIxX6vFNioc
Watching Föllakzoid play is the best high, a true transformative experience, while I was watching them all life's anxieties went away, and everything felt good. Some bands reach for the stars, but Föllakzoid bring them to you.

Live review: Kaki King played Rough Trade

Originally posted on Free Williamsburg HERE.

Kaki King Rough Trade
Kaki King performed The Neck is a Bridge to the Body at Rough Trade last Thursday; it is a show where the guitar is the main focus in more ways than one. Aside from Kaki's always captivating style, the guitar itself acts as a screen and forms the narrative of the show.
Glockabelle
Support act Glockabelle was a breath of fresh air, her casiotone keyboard and frantic yet expert playing gives her music an intense video-game quality. Drummer Ruben Sindo Acosta also has a bit of a cartoonish vibe to him in a leopard onesie and steampunk goggles. They really are a potent duo. We're also treated to some glockenspiel played with thimbles just to make things extra niche.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tyqcJWKNN9w
Kaki enters the stage and meticulously sets herself at the guitar, which is suspended from two stands so the projection is precise. Someone from the crowd takes a picture of Kaki on their smartphone which lights up the room, provoking a "wtf?!" reaction from her, it comes across as humorous and fortunately didn't derail anything. The visuals are a big deal with this piece, but special mention also has to go to Kaki's playing, who displays all her customary picking, scratching, tapping and percussive skills over the course of the night. I don't think I've seen anyone who seems part of the guitar as much as her.
About halfway through the set, Glockabelle makes a cameo to add some more thimble-played glockenspiel.
Kaki King Rough Trade 2
Some of the visuals have changed since I saw the piece last year, and if I were being harsh I'd probably say the visual side of things was more stimulating the last time. But it also shows that this is a performance piece by both Kaki and the visual artist and there is space for change. Sometimes Kaki is driving the visuals and sometimes the visuals are dictating the music. There is an interlude of sorts with a humorous film about the life of the guitar growing up, which gives a lighthearted break from what is a show you really have to dedicate yourself to get the most from (you can watch it here, but I didn't want to embed it directly as I think it works best as part of the show rather than independently).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ziPD16xCBBg
The Neck is a Bridge to the Body is a unique show, and it's heartening to see this kind of creative process get its due in terms of attendances and given a platform, ventures such as this need to be supported and I think Kaki has created something breathtaking.
For the encore, we get a piece inspired by the Philae Landerwhich is just one of the most staggering achievements science has made: a 4 billion (yes, billion) mile, 10-year journey, to land on a comet. Speaking of breathtaking, she ends the show with Playing with Pink Noise
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=shYdqbJgQdc

Live review: Courtney Barnett played Bowery Ballroom

Originally posted on Free Williamsburg HERE.

Courtney Barnett
It's probably fair to say that Courtney Barnett was the hottest ticket in town this week, and she duly delivered when I saw her at the Bowery on Tuesday.
Darren Hanlon
Opener Darren Hanlon performed a sometimes humorous and often sweet folk set, his bio says he lived in Oxford for a year in 2005 and I have a nagging feeling I've seen him play before. Songs like I Wish That I Was Beautiful For You snuggled alongside tunes about public transport woes.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=15&v=jhygmCs967g
Chastity Belt
Seattle's Chastity Belt followed shortly after and played a fairly relaxed set that got everyone swaying. It came across a little more politely than what I was expecting, which I think was mostly down to drummer Gretchen Grimm's delicate style, that ended up as a plus point as the band warmed up.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EB2oPAZzAsI
Courtney Barnett 4
These shows had been sold out for some time and there seemed to be excitement and curiosity building in equal amounts among the crowd. I've been enjoying her record, Sometimes I Sit And Think, Sometimes I Just Sit, but the songs come into their own when performed live. While the band may have somewhat of a slacker demeanor to them, the trio are a tight unit and play with more power than their recorded counterparts. Drummer Dave Mudie and bassist Bones Sloane offer backing vocals and are an integral part of the show, though most eyes in the house are on Barnett, this is a power trio in action.
Courtney Barnett 5
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o-nr1nNC3ds
The audience are more than appreciative but perhaps a little quiet, which seems to take the band by surprise at times, but mention it's better than hearing people talking in the audience (I concur!). Whether performing rockers like Elevator Operator or the singer/songwriter Depreston,  there's a certain magnetism in the air.
Courtney Barnett 6
Courtney plays the first song of the encore solo, performing a cover of one of my favourite Lemonheads songs, Being Around. In fact Courtney's music is probably fairly described as somewhere between that song and the other cover of the night, The Breeders' Cannonball. 
Courtney Barnett 2
If anyone was there simply to see what the fuss was about, they surely left converted. After 3 sold out nights at the Bowery, Courtney is making the step up (in terms of capacity anyway) to Terminal 5 with a show in July, which also features Speedy Ortiz and Torres. Tickets are on sale now.
Courtney Barnett 3

Friday 22 May 2015

Live review: Mac McCaughan played Baby's All Right

Originally posted on Free Williamsburg HERE.

MAc1
While Mac McCaughan's debut album is called, Non-Believers, he made the stage at Baby's All Right his pulpit and very much preached to the converted on Saturday night. Mixing new tunes with discography classics and a few covers thrown in for good measure, the crowd lapped up every note.
And the Kids
I was won over by And the Kids pretty quickly. The Massachusets trio is fronted by guitarist/vocalist Hannah Mohan, whose voice belts out across the venue, it's an impressive performance, and even more so as it comes across as if maybe she doesn't realise just how good her voice is. The songs are catchy and there is some extra endearing quality to the band that is hard to put into words.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fXryr5Kh1jM
Flesh Wounds
Flesh Wounds played a 70s-influenced British Punk set that at times almost felt like a tribute act, as if the band could rip into a Chelsea tune at any moment. Their set gave little room to pause, when singer Montgomery Morris wasn't hunched over the mic he was bouncing around the stage.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lcx8SNHCjPA
We'd see Flesh Wounds again pretty swiftly as they are Mac's backing band on this tour, and that tightness helps with what must be pretty fresh material for everyone involved.
With two guitars, bass and drums, some songs need substantial reworking for the live band. Only Do  is filled with synths on the record, to pick one example. While some of the nuance is lost, it's nice to hear the band getting creative with the melodies. With its Yoda-like chorus of there is no try, there is only do, it's one of the many catchy hooks peppered across the album.
Mac2
Mac gave his band a rest and played about 1/3 of the set on his own, there's an art to playing solo-electric and not everyone can do it well but he really pulls it off with aplomb. Superchunk favourites such as Driveway to Driveway get the crowd whopping and hollering with glee. Superchunk fans are nothing if not enthusiastic, and there's definitely a lot of adulation in the room.
The rest of the band come back on stage to finish up the show, including the single from the record, Box Batteries.
https://soundcloud.com/mergerecords/mac-mccaughan-box-batteries-single-version
Earlier in the set someone from the crowd called out for Noisy Night, and the Portastatic "cover" (it's hard to call it a cover, given that it's Mac's other solo project!) duly ended the set.
An encore of covers including The Undertones' Teenage Kicks ticks over nicely, but it's their choice of closer that really goes down a treat, with Toy Love's Pull Down the Shades getting Mac amped up enough to go into the crowd and bop around. It shouldn't be surprising to hear him cover this tune, given that Merge Records release a bunch of those classic New Zealand artists.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=24mURY8v4uU
There's a bit of a chaotic scrum for the merch table afterwards but I eventually leave clutching a copy of Non-Believers, and you know what, all the best music is actually made by heathens. 
Setlist
Josephine
Lost Again
Only Do
White Wave
Angels of Sleep
Come Upstairs
Driveway to Driveway
Breaking Down
Jackie
Popular Music
Home at Dawn
Detroit
Naked Pilseners
Drill Me
Box Batteries
Noisy Night
//
Teenage Kicks
San Andreas
Pull Down the Shades

Live review: Mikal Cronin played Bowery Ballroom

Originally posted on Free Williamsburg HERE.

MikalCronin
Mikal Cronin celebrated the release of his third solo record with a packed Bowery Ballroom on Tuesday night. The new album (helpfully titled MCIII) has a fuller, more lush sound than its predecessor, with strings and keyboards more prominent, while his ear for a pop hook is still on top form.
EZTV
Openers EZTV play a laidback, almost horizontal blend of twee indie pop, deliberately never getting out of second gear. It's endearing and the twin guitars work well with each other. The band have recently signed to Captured Tracks and are set to release a debut 7".
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NGepGoQxpqc
William Tyler
Up next was William Tyler, who is probably best known for his work in Lambchop, but the minute he started playing his acoustic guitar, the noisey chatter that had been present until this point stopped immediately. For the opening two numbers, Tyler mesmerised the audience with his virtuoso guitar playing. It almost seemed a shame when he switched to electric afterwards, crafting soundscapes and loops while reminiscing of how The Eagles' Hotel California produces a Clockwork Orange-like response in him. I know I have to fend off the urge to vomit every time I hear that song, too. If ever there was a beacon of mediocrity, it's Hotel California. Tyler definitely had the crowd's attention and I'm sure made many new fans.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LMSykIpLqEM
Mikal Cronin has a different band behind him since I saw him last, but there didn't seem to be any early-tour jitters or looseness about them, fresh from a performance on Conan, the band played a large part of the latest record, with a healthy sprinkling of earlier material.
MikalCronin2
The latest promotional video for the record, Turn Around, parodies Natalie Imbruglia's Torn, and it has already been met with approval from the Aussie herself, much to the delight of Cronin.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qVtAteilk8s&feature=youtu.be
The sound at Bowery is usually pretty reliable, but there's a bit too much boom echoing around the room tonight, belying the record's bright and shiny production. The band give it their all, and Cronin breaks one of his 12-strings during the first song (last time I saw him at Webster Hall he ended the show with only 2 left).
A well deserved encore sees the band race through Change from MCII and it seems like a race to the merch table ensues to pick up his latest effort. With an impressive growing discography and performances like this, you start to wonder just how far he can go, it seems as though the sky is the limit.
MikalCronin3
Mikal is back in New York for the 4 Knots festival in July (further details here), full tour dates are below. MCIII is out now on Merge Records.
05/28/15 Barcelona Spain Primavera Sound
05/29/15 Nimes France This Is Not A Love Song Festival
05/31/15 Paris France Maroquinerie
06/01/15 London United Kingdom 100 Club
06/02/15 Brussels Belgium Botanique
06/05/15 Ravenna Italy Beaches Brew Festival
06/06/15 Athens Greece Plissken Festival
06/08/15 Berlin Germany Lido
06/09/15 Cologne Germany Gebäude
06/10/15 Amsterdam Netherlands Bitterzoet
06/20/15 Chicago, IL Subterranean
06/21/15 Chicago, IL Wicker Park's Green Music Fest
07/11/15 New York, NY 4 Knots Festival Add to google calendar
07/12/15 Los Angeles, CA Hollywood Bowl w/ Death Cab For Cutie, Tune Yards Add
08/22/15 Los Angeles, CA FYF Fest
09/05/15 Seattle, WA Bumbershoot Sep 5-7
09/16/15 Montreal, QC Pop Montreal

Sunday 3 May 2015

Live Review: The Mountain Goats played Webster Hall

Originally on FreeWilliamsburg HERE.

mountain goats
The Mountain Goats had to scale heady heights to battle the noise coming from another show downstairs at Webster Hall on Thursday night, but the sold out crowd would not be deterred either. The band were celebrating the release of their 15th studio album, Beat the Champ, which came out on Merge Records on the 7th of April.
holy sons
Holy Sons opened the show, replacing Ides of Gemini at short notice due to an injury to drummer Kelly Johnston. I enjoyed the band's Crazy Horse-esque set, guitarist Emil Amos plays with a great tone and has a good voice to match.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9X5I4thDth4
The Mountain Goats started things off with Southwestern Territory, the opening track from Beat the ChampIt made for a bit of a low-key start, but the segue from Slow West Vultures (from 2004's We Shall All Be Healed) into The Legend of Chavo Guerrero seemed like an inspired combo.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4lqy7KBuO7Y
Whatever show was going on downstairs was threatening to ruin the more intimate moments, particularly when John Darnielle played solo; lyrics like "I think I'll stay here, til I feel whole again, I don't know when..." don't have the same effect when the floor is rumbling and  the sound is bleeding through.
mountain goats 2
Downstairs became less of an issue during the second half of the show, which was mostly upbeat rockers. We were also treated to some additional brass musicians, which John said would just be for tonight. They certainly helped round out the sound on Foreign Object.
Mountain Goats fans are certainly enthusiastic, and every song turns into a singalong. even the obscure unreleased songs. Over the course of the night, seven of the thirteen tracks from Beat the Champ get an airing. While lyrically the album centres around professional wrestling, some of the lyrics and themes come across as universal.
There's something perfect about ending a set with 1000 people screaming I am gonna make it through this year, if it kills me, as the band end with This Year from 2005's The Sunset Tree. One of the more passionate calls for an encore I've heard in New York causes not one, but two encores.
Twenty-two songs, two encores, blood, sweat and tears, and all done by 10:30pm. But for the unwanted emo remix from the other room, the show was fantastic. With the strength of the band's discography there will always be songs you'd like to hear that don't get played, but their aren't many acts that can trot out unreleased obscurities and still have the whole room singing.
Mountain Goats are on tour through June (current dates).
Setlist
Southwestern Territory
Slow West Vultures
The Legend of Chavo Guerrero
Game Shows Touch Our Lives
The Young Thousands
Get Lonely
Stabbed to Death Outside San Juan
Poltergeist
From TG&Y
Until I Am Whole
Luna
Love Love Love
Never Quite Free
Werewolf Gimmick
Up the Wolves
Foreign Object
This Year
Encore:
Amy AKA Spent Gladiator 1
The Ballad of Bull Ramos
Cry for Judas
Second Encore:
The Best Ever Death Metal Band in Denton
Blood Capsules