latitude festival pregame

hello mammoth fans! tearknee here, just returned from a glorious field in suffolk (england), slightly sunburnt and in need of a shower. have just finished a weekend (and a bit) of musical hedonism at latitude festival and will now be contributing for the first time to this fine fine blog...

dubbed by the british press and comedians as the "pretentious" festival, latitude was indeed full of those eating humous and chomping on organic fruit, whilst watching poetry, shakespeare, literature, comedy, cabaret, film, and a brilliant line up of some of the best music of the year. however, as one slam poet majestically and hilariously put it...it is great to not be ashamed to 'embrace the wank' and celebrate intellectual masturbation on many levels.

each and every single one of the hundreds and hundreds of artists over the weekend were edgy (with the exception of jarvis cocker - eurgh), although often a little strange (e.g. an interpretive dance of h.g. wells' war of the worlds - enacted by a frolicking lady dressed in white with a big hat). pretention aside, the festival had a really relaxed feel with a hugely varied audience and has been described as "everything glastonbury once was." so without further ado, let me thank mr. mammoth for letting me unashamedly revel in the brilliance of this weekend by re-living it in detail over the blogosphere....

some multicolored sheep!

this is the obelisk arena, a.k.a. the main stage this is my tent!
this is the sunrise arena, where i saw final fantasy!

over the next few days, i'd like to post on the many unknown (to me) bands that surprised me, bands i know and love that thrilled me and bands that disappointed me a wee bit. so stay tuned for my reports over the coming week!

a week in EPs day #2: gogol bordello - east infection

i'll admit that i only had four EPs in mind when i decided to write "a week in EPs," a not-so-risky proposition, i had thought. after all, i have many EPs, and i thought finding another one to write about would not be a problem. but i placed so many restrictions on myself that i soon found myself seriously, categorically assessing my music library for a worthy extended play album. major restriction: it couldn't be a fleshed-out single; that automatically dumped caribou's yeti, radiohead's my iron lung, the decemberists' billy liar, the dismemberment plan's the ice of boston, and all of my sigur ros EPs. i still had some really solid contenders for today's slot, with the yeah yeah yeahs putting up a good show with their breakout self-titled EP, which is one of my all-time favorites, but i had forgotten about east infection. and then i remembered about it, so that's the story behind today's EP. i've got the next three days planned out (but i can't tell, it's a surprise), so no more ambiguity, just the rock solid criticism you've come to expect.

i fucking love east infection. as an EP, i think it's pretty damn close to perfect; it made me hunger for more more more from the punks on the lower east side. no need to pretend you've got balkan rhythms here, because everyone in gogol bordello is actually from the balkans (quick bit of trivia: oren kaplan, half of balkan beat box, mixed several songs on this EP). lead singer eugene hutz has, by now, become ensconced in indie lore for his ludicrous self-presentation and supporting role in the film adaptation of jonathan safran foer's everything is illuminated, with good reason. hutz is fucking crazy.

gogol bordello is hutz's band. his charisma and exuberance are evident from the very beginning of east infection, gogol bordello's third release. you don't even need to listen to the album to get a sense of what he's all about - just look at the cover. there is no possible way a man like that will make bad music. this cover says one thing to me, and one thing only: FOR GOD'S SAKE, PLAY ME, AND LOUDLY! it's better not to argue.
east infection kicks off with a song of the same name, appropriately enough. it takes a few listens to decipher to words hutz spews through his pronounced accent (or possibly drunkenness), but the words are pretty much inconsequential. at 2:20, the song doesn't have the time to say much, and if GB is trying to get a message across, they basically fail. but, honestly, who gives a fuck? the accordion is boisterous, the drums are relentless, the fiddle is practically spastic with energy, the guitars are both tireless and nuanced, proving that gogol bordello lacks for neither talent nor style. the song is marked by periods of manic intensity, with hutz wailing at the top of his lungs about god knows what and the band plowing through their parts as if whoever finishes first gets a prize, alternating with pin-drop moments of absolute silence, like the calm before a storm. hutz's tourette-esque singing visually reminds me of roger rabbit - tongue-flapping, face-twitching spasms that start at the mouth and spread to the entire body in seconds - an aurally-induced seizure. they say sex is the best exercise, but a gogol bordello experience is probably a close second.

the rest of east infection is less spastic, though no less energetic. the EP has two obvious standouts, "mala vida" (which is actually a manu chao cover) and "copycat." apparently, hutz is also fluent in spanish, though he sings so quickly that trying to understand anything is an exercise in futility. i really love how much gogol bordello emphasizes their accordion, an oft-undervalued instrument. in "mala vida," the accordion gets to take the melody, giving manu chao's world sound a distinctly balkan bent, though hutz's heavily accented spanish adds to the eastern flavor - even in this wonderfully lyrical and rolling language, he still sounds like he's spewing consonant-flavored spittle all over the microphone. this version of "mala vida" is sweaty and filthy, spurred on by almost-unnoticeable handclaps, a chorus of voices behind hutz rowdier than a drunk frat party, and the constant churning of an electric guitar propelling the song ever forward (and on the beat). the high energy of "mala vida" is followed by a deep bass rumble which marks the opening of "copycat," a sneer anthem against imitation with some of hutz's most understandable lyrics (meaning, of course, that you can recognize about a third of them, most of which are curses). this song is stripped down in terms of instrumentation, gogol bordello having left the accordion, violin, and acoustic guitar at home. the song mostly consists of hutz singing "copy-copy-copy-copy-copy cat" over and over, though it has a special spot in my heart because of his acapella lines at the end: "copycat steals the towels / from your girlfriend's parents' house," delivered in his trademark accent.

only one song from east infection is repeated on gypsy punks underdog world strike, "ave. b," though the versions are somewhat different. but we're here to talk about the EP, so we will. "ave. b" is east infection's most laid-back tune, with delicate finger-picked guitars and a complacent accordion (woo!), as suits a song about sitting in a bathhouse. the song appropriately picks up when hutz sings about arguments bathing members have, like selling weapons to chechnyan rebels, and there's a kickass accordion solo in the middle, but this is the closest gogol bordello gets to a ballad on this album, and thank god for it. "strange uncles from abroad" is another excellent tune, with more of the stomp that we've come to expect from hutz, and a prominent violin line as well. the only song on east infection that doesn't do anything for me is gogol bordello's take on a roumanian folk song, "tu jésty fáta." it's slow, it's somewhat tedious, and it doesn't sound all that balkan, if you ignore hutz's unmistakable balkan-ness. anyway, it's at the end of the EP, so it's pretty easy to gloss over.the funny thing is, i didn't like gypsy punks very much. this EP is just bursting at the seams with quality and excitement and fun and sweat, and gypsy punks underdog world strike just didn't do it for me. so, as with beirut (and all the EPs this week), east infection symbolizes the way i wish gogol bordello had gone, instead of the way they went.

gogol bordello - "east infection" "mala vida"

buy east infection here.

photo appears in the phoenix review of gogol bordello.

land of talk @ soundfix, 7/15/07

land of talk two times in two days! a dream come true. after hearing my fave new distortion rockers at citysol on saturday, i found out about their instore appearance at soundfix, so i hustled on over there to see them again (why not, eh?). though the sound was not so good this time around, one can't really complain - after all, the bar/soundfix lounge probably wasn't built for bands with the kind of big sound that LoT has. however, land of talk amazed and pleased me again, and i'm now doubly anxious for their full-length, which has no announced details yet (with all their touring, i doubt they've even hit the studio yet). the set was shorter than at citysol, with fewer "hits" (i.e. songs off applause cheer boo hiss, which fucking rocks) and more new songs. i was a little sad not to get another kick-ass rendition of "all my friends," but we got what i believe is a rare performance of "street wheels," in addition to "yuppie flu" and "young bridge," like the day previous. a special treat was the set closer, "death by fire," the b-side to their recently released 7", and guaranteed to be on their next album. unfortunately, my camera died just as "death by fire" started, so there are no movies of that to share, but i've uploaded a version from the lullabyes show for your listening pleasure. i did get some movies, which i'm in the process of uploading to my youtube account, and i've put "breaxxbaxx" below for your viewing pleasure. as always, your pleasure is our foremost concern, here at mammoth HQ.

i got a chance to talk (read: ask for autographs) from the band after the show, and i learned that the present drummer, eric, only joined LoT some three months ago, but that he's here to stay. for my part, i thought eric was an excellent drummer, and really led the band in being a little more relaxed and organic at the soundfix show, laughing and changing beats mid-song, mindful of the heat and the just-there-for-a-good-time crowd. both land of talk performances have been great, and i won't get tired of their music anytime soon.

land of talk - "death by fire." it's a live version, so there's some (understandable) dead air at the end of the track, but don't let that deter you.

land of talk - "breaxxbaxx." buy applause cheer boo hiss here.

npr for the streets

one thing i didn't do last week - which upsets me every time i think about it - is miss diplo at the apple store. even until recently, i knew of diplo more by reputation than by his music - things like his production of m.i.a.'s first album or discovery of bonde do role - but any regular reader of mr. mammoth will know that to pass on free music fills me with shame and sadness. these feelings have only been exacerbated since i found out about the mad decent podcast, which i havent been able to stop listening to. this monthly podcast is made up mostly of just live diplo mixes, though he occasionally hands the decks to mad decent signees and other guests. while this month's 'cast hasn't come out yet, june's was from tel aviv, and is ridiculous, clocking in at just over 30 minutes. my favorite one so far is february's mix, from darwin, australia, which is nearly an hour long, and jam packed with the illest beats and samples, including balkan beat box, bonde do role, and smashing pumpkins (how's that for a curveball?) anyway, you're only fucking yourself if you don't check this out.

mad decent. diplo.

a week in EPs day #1: beirut - lon gisland

i have always had a love affair with EPs - i believe they most often capture the best an artist has to offer, instead of thinking of them as a placeholder between albums. EPs, simply by virtue of the fact that they are not LPs, have to stuff an inordinate amount of quality into less than thirty minutes, to assure that they are purchased. while some EPs are dreary and tedious, mere precursors of what to expect on the artist's next full-length, the best are works in their own right, perhaps a time for a band to go in some new directions or experiment with different sounds. even when EPs are not adventurous, however, they can often contain an artist's best works. so, for a change of pace from all the concert reviews lately (and those still to come), i have selected this week to be my week in EPs, where i will re-review some (five) choice EPs that i really like. some are new-ish, some are old, but they're all excellent.

today's EP is lon gisland by beirut.

i remember being really excited about gulag orkestar before even listening to it last year, when it came out - the glowing review in pitchfork and subsequent inundation of beirut news left me with the impression that zach condon had practically recruited a roving band of hairy gypsies as accompanists to his balkan-influenced music. how disappointed was i, then, to hear the thin and repetitive sounds of "postcards from italy," or any of the other songs on that album. where was the furious fiddling? or the devil-may-care attitude? this was no gypsy music. and i'd be damned if any eastern europeans played such stripped down folk - the tendency is to use as many instruments as possible. so it was with skepticism and trepidation that i even gave lon gisland a spin on my radio show, playing "my family's role in the world revolution" merely because i liked the name so much. and was i rewarded. this new beirut seemed positively raucous compared to the straitlaced sounds of gulag orkestar, even going so far as to fuck around while taping. and the rhythms were new too, driven by a piano and trumpet with nary a guitar to be heard. this track was the first that i had heard that could warrant the "balkan stomp" label that pitchfork had so thoughtlessly awarded to gulag orkestar, smacking of vitality and energy as it did. when i finally sat down and gave the whole EP a listen, i was very pleased.

the EPs' opener, "elephant gun," is obviously the most mature song condon has written to date, seamlessly layering the simple ukulele line, first under the accordion, and then the full line of brass, to say nothing of what he has learned about vocal production. no longer is he the solo vocalist; he uses the voices of the rest of his band to flesh out his own, rather nasal, voice, giving "elephant gun" a lilting and epic feel. and, of course, the best part is the false ending, when the melody we've heard throughout the song dies out, only to be immediately replaced by another, propelled by double accordions and sprinkled with treble trumpet notes, bolstered by a tuba or trombone. i played "elephant gun" on the air before i had listened to it, and the false ending totally threw me for a loop. i had to apologize to my listeners on air.

the rest of the EP doesn't disappoint, though the other three songs are not as outstanding as the first two. "the long island sound" is a more sturdy version of "elephant gun"'s false ending, and "scenic world (version)" starts off sounding like a busker at a french amusement park (which is definitely not a bad thing). "scenic world" also has a nice bit of violin, and, in what was clearly a moment of sheer genius, bongos. the hand drumming new level of sophistication to the beirut sound, which is also evident in "carousels," the last song of the EP. that song begins with a rousing downbeat and a cute half-hidden piano part playing peek-a-boo with the snare, placed at the forefront for this song. partway through the song, all of the instruments, save the piano, drop out, while the whole cast of beirut add their voices to condon's. "carousels" is really indicative of the changes lon gisland has wrought for this band - a maturation of sound from a rather boring, stripped down pseudo-balkan folk band into a fleshed-out, true orkestra, that assembles its sounds in a charismatic way, layering brass upon string upon bellows (accordion), provoking a re-evaluation of a band once written off. though beirut still doesn't sound balkan to me in the slightest (i get more of a french street band feel), i hope lon gisland will represent where they're going, instead of just being an experiment.

beirut - "elephant gun," "my family's role in the world revolution"

buy lon gisland here.

citysol @ stuyvesant cove park, 7/14/07

first off, citysol itself was a really great time. it was a beautiful day (as o'death's greg jamie commented about three or four times) and solarone (the sponsoring organization) had set up some cool things. there was this really neat semi-enclosed food/beer space which seemed to be made solely of prefabricated wood pieces and zipties, an art exhibit (maybe?) with lots of white shirts flapping in the wind, lots of earth friendly retailers, including a lady who only made bicycle art that i wanted to buy but was too expensive, and an action booth where you could sign petitions and write letters to your assemblyperson about congestion pricing.

by the way, if you're reading this and it isn't july 16 yet, and you live in new york, please please please call your local representative and urge them to vote for congestion pricing. it is a super critical issue, especially for those of us who bike, and will bring a lot of needed tax dollars to new york, as well as cut out a lot of the smog. if you have an email address that ends with an .edu, you can sign up to read the new york times for free online, and read this article by ken livingstone, mayor of london, who imposed congestion pricing on an unwilling public some years ago, and now the measure is supported by over 2/3 of all londoners. here is a link to a photo of the flyer transportation alternatives is handing out, with all the benefits of congestion pricing, and the phone number of sheldon silver, speaker of the new york state assembly, is (212) 312-1420. i sincerely urge everyone to call him to urge him to vote for congestion pricing. thanks.

back to citysol. just a quick disclaimer - if you're looking for a les savy fav review, i can't help you. i arrived just as OCDJ was ending, so i can't tell you much about his set, except that he wore some strange muppet-esque mask over his face. but o'death - o'death was fucking awesome. i'd been waiting to see them again after the art brut show they opened, and they've only gotten better since then. frontman greg jamie told us they had just returned from europe (where one assumes they did fairly well), and they had a brand new bunch of stompers for us. now, i'll be honest - i haven't bought head home yet, but it's not because o'death doesn't kick ass - i think the production is really lousy, so i'll stick with seeing them live until their next album. as a result, i don't know most of the song titles, beyond what i've been able to glean from the hype machine. but names are neither here nor there, especially because you can hardly understand a word from greg jamie's lips. the songs are straight-up country stomp/appalachian death blues, and all of o'death looks the part, from drummer davd rb's wild eyed devil glare (especially with chain wrapped around his neck) to bassist newman's proudly displayed beer belly and armpit tattoo ("rats get fat while brave men die"). everyone has some bit of facial hair, and every one looks as if they could be carted into town to be hanged for some egregious offense when the sheriff comes to town. i was in west virginia once, when i was younger, and i was actually rather disappointed that all of its inhabitants didn't look one lick like o'death. maybe i was in the wrong (or right) part of town.
o'death's sound, so tame on the album, is blistering live. all five band members turn red in the face as they all yell into whatever microphone is nearby and kick their heels up in the middle of songs. a cup of whiskey was being passed around, which no doubt aided their performance. their entire set was outstanding. what was ostensibly their set closer, "nathaniel," started off as a slow dirge, jamie's vocals fleshed out by four riotous others bellowing sounds that weren't quite words, yet the song quickly sped up into a rampaging anthem that would not have sounded out of place in 1933 campfires, sung by men preparing to shoot it out with g-men. each and every o'death song is like having a bottle broken on your face, or feeling the white-hotness of a bullet in your side, or some human sacrificial ceremony, a raw, unblinking look at the grim actualities of life, where the first person to blinks loses. o'death is raw, desperate - they call their own sound "blackgrass" - the sound of men who have nothing to lose, singing about the things they've lost.

each time i've seen o'death, i've been struck by the simple, yet potent, d.i.y. punk aesthetic they proudly wear. greg jamie's guitar is 100% acoustic (you can see the mic cord running into it in the photo), fiddler bob pycior's bow was in tatters before the set ended, and drummer dave's kit consisted of a bass drum, two floor toms, a plastic bucket, and a ragged, jagged cymbal with pieces carved out of it. on more than one song, he used a chain to coax the right sounds out of his drums. greg jamie did not wear shoes at all during the set.

o'death's sound is one of carefully calculated anxiety - playing in minor keys; quick, nervous fiddle parts; arbitrary wails, as from a dying man, inserted in the middle of songs - the speed of their songs alone would create a deep feeling of unease in anyone, except that they are all so joyful in their performing. on songs like "adelita," they all stood up for a mid-song stompfest onstage, to bellow with equal parts of joy an sorrow for what has been and what could have been. the real set closer was an acapella rendition of a folk hymn, the name of which i (stupidly) neglected to write down. i know, shame on me. anyway, during said folk hymn, the four in the front - jamie, newman, pycior, and banjo/ukelele-ist gabe darling - dropped their instruments to caterwaul around the stage and belt out the lyrics at the top of their voices. however loud they were, it would not surprise me to learn that the only member of the band to lose his voice yesterday was davd rb, the drummer, who let out more than intermittent woops, as was most noticeable in "down to rest." o'death played one of the new songs from their daytrotter session (still untitled, as far as i know), and you can download all four songs here, and i would definitely recommend that you do.

in short, an o'death performance is not to be missed, no matter what. fortunately, they have some shows coming up, including an in-store at soundfix a week from today (the 22nd) and they're playing spiegeltent for the second year in a row on august 29. you can buy head home from ernest jennings here. there's also a video of "only daughter" below, and all of my videos from yesterday here.

the besnard lakes sucked. i don't like their music at all. what kind of band actually NEEDS three guitarists? also, it was like 4 times too loud. let's move on.

land of talk. good god, i've been waiting to see land of talk pretty much since brooklynvegan called applause cheer boo hiss, their 2006 ep, one of his favorites of the year. i just found out that they are playing soundfix later today (3pm), so i'm gonna put the pedal to the metal, so to speak, and kick the ass out of this post so i can make it down there.

land of talk fucking rocks. until i saw a video for "sea foam" they recorded for aol last week, i had no idea they were only three people - they sound much louder than that. they lived up to everything i had hoped for yesterday, and with only a seven song ep to their name, they played all my favorites (check the video for "all my friends" below and five (jeez) others at my youtube page). writing about land of talk reminds me that i may have spoken too soon in my built to spill post about the death of distortion, because land of talk has it in spades.

frontwoman/guitarist elizabeth powell masterminds every song, skillfully alternating between burrowing heavy chords and sharp individual notes, all while singing huskily into the mic. what sets land of talk apart from all the other canadian bands (seriously, they're like a plague!) is how fucking hard they rock (that, and they don't have 12-15 members). powell's voice is dynamic, able to sound entreating, commanding, naive, and ancient all at once. but in addition to powell's obvious singing/lyricist skills, she is quite the songwriter. no land of talk song is complete without jarring, frantic chords played against quick bursts of needled melodies, or off-tempo crashes followed by darting notes.
in addition to basically every song from applause cheer boo hiss, land of talk favored us with some new songs, which you can download at lullabyes. the new "some are lakes" was, as powell disclosed, was virtually written by her father, with the lyrics taken from a letter he had written to her mother. "yuppie flu" was another strong new one, as was "young bridges," a song about misheard lyrics. and speaking of misheard lyrics, i was able to clearly hear some in "speak to me bones" that had been mixing me up - a slight mistake, to confuse "stop spitting on girls you love" with "stop hitting on girls you love," especially because they're sung back-to-back, but i was pleased to hear the difference at last.

land of talk are studious performers, as is evinced from powell's fastidious tuning between each song, and it paid off. their energy was high and their personal enjoyment was obvious. powell seemed to go into a trance when she played, her eyes focused on some point in the distance, and when land of talk gathered in front of the drum kit during instrumental sections, she rarely turned towards the audience, but i don't think it's stage fright. it seems more like that miss powell gets into the zone when she plays, and nothing is going to take her away from that special place she goes to. land of talk's set was rock-solid, and i'm thrilled as fuck that i have another chance to see them today. i encourage you all to go out and see them (again) at soundfix at 3, and pick up a copy of applause cheer boo hiss while you're there. i bought my copy last night.

land of talk's sound is a descendant of dinosaur jr. or sleater-kinney, but powell adds a new level of dynamism that neither of those bands (love them as i do) have. land of talk are simply master songwriters who know their sound dynamics, the power of abrupt changes in sound levels, though they certainly know a thing or three about the importance of tempo and key versatility - in short, all the elements of songwriting that keeps music alive and fresh even after listening to it for month after month. having learned much from punk and grunge, land of talk has improved on it. their future will be bright, and, hopefully, i will be standing in the front of the crowd to see as much of it as possible.

buy applause cheer boo hiss, released by the rebel group, here.

o'death - "only daughter"


land of talk - "all my friends"

menomena - south street seaport - 7/13/07

were i a superstitious mammoth, i might not have gone to this show tonight. but, thankfully, i do not suffer from paraskavedekatriaphobia (stump your friends! amaze your enemies! define that word!). the show tonight, simply put, was AWESOME. rarely have i been to any show, free or not, that has matched their acts with such foresight and aural appreciation. i have gone, in the span of a few mere hours, from not knowing beat the devil in the slightest to cursing myself for not being in the country for their july 26 show at the cake shop - that's how good they were.

this week's show was infinitely better than last week's, on basically every level. i made sure to arrive early, as i was super psyched to see menomena live for the first time, and i was sure it would be crowded (it was. menomena themselves declared it was the largest crowd they had ever played to). though there was some jostling and repositioning from behind annoyingly tall people, by and large, it was a comfortable show, physically. when i was younger, i had the conceit that, no matter what gig i went to, i would know someone there. well, i gave that idea up ages ago, though it still sticks in my mind every time i go to a big/free show (i.e., last week's bts, any river to river gig), and, wonder of wonders, i ended up knowing a girl standing directly behind me. will wonders never cease. anyway, enough chit chat. on to beat the devil.

from the moment singer shilpa ray took the stage with a large snow shovel in her hand, i figured we were in for something good. my excitement only mounted as bassist mishka shubaly marched through the crowd with what is presumably beat the devil's mascot - a marching bass drum with beelzebub's unholy gob painted on it, beating the thing with maracas, no less. despite the song's lack of a melody, or anything besides ray's voice, her snow shovel, and mitchell key's drums, it spoke volumes about the potential for beat the devil's set - potential they lived up to and surpassed.

beat the devil's sound reminded me most of the dresden dolls (albeit with a serious blues bent), and was driven by ray, who did double duty as vocalist and harmonium player. unfamiliar with a harmonium as i was (i only learned its name from the press on beat the devil's site), i can only say that it looks like an accordion, cut in half, and lain down on a table (is lain the correct past participle of lay?). she pumped away on the harmonium throughout the show, creating a sound that seems repetitive at first - a regular drone, very similar to the sound of an accordion - that would give beat the devil an almost folky sound, were it not for the regularly scheduled breakdowns that make their live show a hit. ray's voice alternates between raw vocal chords-inducing screaming and dark bluesy suggestiveness with total unpredictability, especially for one unfamiliar with the beat the devil sound. though key and shubaly are important to the band, it is obviously ray who drives it, whether endlessly pumping the harmonium, screaming herself hoarse, or dancing around on stage. the best song came in the middle of the set, blissfully heavy, that had two kids in the audience raising the traditional metal salute in honor and rocking out. ray thrashed about, her hair a virtual halo from the movement, all while keeping her left hand pumping the harmonium's bellows and her right pressing the keys, a study in musical multitasking.

beat the devil was a perfect precursor to menomena, as both bands take great joy in their vitality and the importance of musical surprises. though beat the devil operated with far fewer instruments than menomena, they kept their sound fresh throughout the set by taking each song in a different direction. i wish i could see them again on the 26th - it will definitely be worth it. i'm going to stay tuned to beat the devil, because whatever they do next will be worth paying attention to.

ah, menomena. how i was looking forward to your set, and how was i rewarded. i'm going to list my grievances now, and get them out of the way. 1. why was there no "airaid"? what the fuck, menomena. that's like the 2nd or 3rd best song off friend and foe - how could you have overlooked it? 2. where the fuck was the encore? it wasn't river to river's fault - fujiya & miyagi went until 10 last week, and your set ended at 9.30. are you like tool, do you not play encores? cuz that's fucked up. everyone wanted to hear more songs - i would've liked "airaid" (obviously) or "running." i disapprove, especially because you mentioned how much you liked this crowd several times, and new york. new york would've liked you more, had you encored.

that being said, new york liked you pretty fucking plenty - you played a great set, menomena. i can't remember what you opened with, but your second song was "the pelican," the first song i liked off friend and foe, the song that made me think that my initial disapproval was selling you short. and, man, did you guys nail it! i had no idea all three of you were vocalists, and when danny seim started singing, while pounding on his drum kit, i was totally shocked. but it made perfect sense - i had always assumed the full, strong vocals on the record were a result of great production, when it should have been obvious that other people were singing along with you, justin harris. brent knopf's guitar was just as jarring and angular as i had hoped, and the vocals were much richer in a live setting.

menomena, you played songs from i am the fun blame monster as well as friend and foe, bringing a new depth to all of them. i was more familiar with your friend and foe material, but "strongest man in the world," with its a.d.d. instrumental beginning, captured (in a nutshell) the essence of menomena, a restlessness that clearly comes through with the spastic drums, the abrupt fade-ins and -outs, the lazy arrogance of the guitar lines, the determined and resolute piano. no two menomena songs sound the same, because you can barely hear the connections within one song - it's almost as each section of the song is cut and pasted from an arbitrary elsewhere. i know a lot of fuss has been made about your "deeler," the digital looping recorder that you yourselves invented, but i couldn't really tell which parts were looped and which weren't, except, of course, when none of you were playing. your instrumental versatility - justin, how you switched seamlessly between bass, guitar, and baritone sax, and brent, how you would play keyboards with your guitar swung around your back. your set, though not as long as some would have preferred, was jam-packed with everything that makes you my favorite band of the moment, and that has kept friend and foe on constant rotation since march. "rotten hell" was superb, "my my" was great. "the monkey's back," the set closer, was amazing. but what made me happiest was "evil bee," my standout favorite off friend and foe. how touchingly did brent sing "oh, to be a machine / oh, to be wanted, to be useful" - i taped it, and you can see the video below, along with another for "strongest man in the world." you can see all of my videos from the show here, including two from beat the devil and two others from menomena.

in short, menomena was outstanding live. danny seim especially impressed me the whole set through with his energy and enthusiasm on the drums, but the whole band was fantastic. i can't wait to see them again, and maybe with an encore this time?

buy friend and foe here.

menomena - "evil bee"



menomena - "strongest man in the world"