popwreckoning

Mutemath has always struck me as overwhelmingly talented for how underwhelmingly popular they are.  They had that awesome backwards music video for “Typical” on MTV quite a few years ago; what happened after that? They seemed to fall off the map completely. Of course that’s according to the average music listener, and I would not consider myself to be the latter. The minute I saw that video I was hooked, and the minute I saw them perform at St. Louis’ Pointfest in September 2007 I was floored. I’ve kept tabs on them ever since and am always speechless after their shows.

Yeah, bands can sound great on their recorded albums, but when a band is better in a live setting… that’s how you know they’re truly talented. And can we talk about drummer Darren King, who quite literally Duct -tapes protective headphones on his ears before he begins a set? And quite literally crowdsurfs on his floor tom? And quite literally destroys his kit at the end of every set the band plays? But I digress. What I’m really trying to say is this: Mutemath is awesome and you should definitely buy this album and a ticket to a show the next time they’re in a city near you.

Mutemath seem to produce music at a slow and steady pace, with Mutemath coming out in 2006, Armistice in 2009, and finally Odd Soul in 2011. There are a couple EPs thrown into the mix, but for the most part the band takes their time. And with good reason, too. There is so much depth to every song they produce. With vocals, guitars, bass and drums, and handfuls of synthy beats and ethereal sounds, the attention to detail is warranted. Odd Soul, in typical Mutemath fashion, starts with heavy distortion, thick bass drum beats and Paul Meany’s screaming, soulful voice. I can imagine The Black Keys being a muse for this album; the bluesy vocals and dark, sexy bass lines are enough to make anyone shake their hips.

“Prytania” is an upbeat rocker repeating the words “loaded gun” and “Blood Pressure” repeats its title to the sounds of slide guitar. Next is “Heads Up.” Are you seeing the pattern here? Mutemath has something to prove with this album and they’re using strong words to do it. “All Or Nothing” showcases a softer side, with the talent of Meany’s haunting falsetto. With less distortion on his voice than usual, this song is a little bit sparse and shows the audience a stripped down, personal side. “Sunray,” an instrumental interlude, breaks the album in two, with the first half being a little more organic and the second more spacey and traditional to the band’s typical sound. “Quarantine” rages on for seven minutes before the album comes to a close at a lengthy fifty minutes with “In No Time.” Just as “Odd Soul” is the perfect opener, “In No Time” is the perfect closer. I’m a firm believer in listening to albums from start to finish, and start to finish only. Odd Soul is an excellent example of why – it fits so brilliantly together. Buy it, listen to it, soak it up, dance around and rock it hard.

http://mutemath.com/ - Be sure to check out the music video for “Blood Pressure.”

Pardon the horrendous pun there.

Friday was quite the evening, running from…well I guess there were only three venues, two of which were two doors down from each other. But regardless, it was definitely a night to remember.

It began at Backspace, where Drew Grow and the Pastor’s Wives started the lineup (which also included The Globes, P.S. I Love You and the Thermals). I would have stayed for the whole night at Backspace, but I’ve seen the Globes and the Thermals several times, and had no wish to see P.S. I Love You.

But Drew Grow and the Pastor’s Wives were perfect. This small venue (which is a cafe before anything else) filled comfortably while there was still some light in the sky. The stage was barely elevated, making the crowd literally face to face with the band, and much more intimate. I wish the set had been longer, because it felt like it was just getting to the really good part when they finished the set. But really, the whole set was the good part – the giant intense gospel-tinged folk rock. Don’t be fooled by the “gospel” and “folk” in that sentence though, Drew Grow and the Pastor’s Wives are still pretty darn heavy – so much so that you can feel it from your throat to the soles of your feet.

After their set, I looked at my schedule for the address to the next venue – the Someday Lounge. And lo and behold – I stepped out the door, looked to my left, and there it was two doors down from Backspace. I had to walk but maybe 50 feet. Maybe.

This place had a completely different energy – it was darker and more quiet, and a bit smellier. I’d gone there to see the Music Tapes, a.k.a. Julian Koster, of the Elephant 6 Collective (also see Neutral Milk Hotel, Olivia Tremor Control, the Apples in Stereo). I’d seen the Music Tapes as part of an Elephant 6 Collective show back in March at the Vera Project in Seattle, and he was by far the most memorable and more charismatic of the group (sadly Jeff Mangum didn’t show up to that). So I had to take advantage of the chance to see Julian Koster again.

I’ll just say this – he played a saw with a violin bow. And there was a 7-foot metronome. Enough said.

After the first half of the Music Tapes’ set, I had to skip out to make it across town to the Doug Fir, where I’d be spending the rest of my evening.

It’s not like it’s a long drive, but on Portland roads, if you get turned around or don’t find parking right away, it can take awhile.

I was hoping I’d make it for the last bit of Pickwick’s opening set, but I was too late, sad to say.

However, I did get a nice surprise.

I knew absolutely nothing about the next band to play, Lost Lander. So I used my trusty Google phone to dig up some dirt on this band. It turned out that it was a project of songwriter Matt Sheehy and none other than ex-Menomenaut Brent Knopf. So they had to be good.

I thought at first after reading about Lost Lander that Knopf was merely a producer and he worked on recording the album with Sheehy, but as I was standing up in front of the stage of the Doug Fir with some new friends, I look to my right and there is Brent Knopf. Naturally, I had a little bit of a fangirl moment. You see, I saw Menomena at last year’s Musicfest Northwest, and it was the greatest show of the festival – maybe of the year. When I found out that Knopf was leaving the band in January, I basically cried. So now that I was seeing Knopf again at Musicfest, I was overjoyed, even if it wasn’t with Menomena.

Lost Lander’s set was awesome, and not just because Knopf was in the back corner. It was one of my favorite shows of the whole festival.

After I was thoroughly pleased, AgesandAges took the stage for their exuberant set. Seriously, they were dancing all over the place, and I couldn’t help be dance and sing along, even though I didn’t really know any of their songs. The Portland natives certainly played to their hometown, because the whole crowd was rocking.

I enjoyed their set so much that I didn’t even care so much that they started 25 minutes late. But once they were done I realized that it was after midnight, when Givers were supposed to start at midnight. The time was starting to catch up with me.

But I didn’t care, because Givers was the band I’d been waiting to see all weekend, and the reason I’d stayed at the Doug Fir all night without switching venues. I wasn’t about to leave and come back, risking the venue filling up.

It was 12:40 by the time the Lafayette, Louisiana natives took the stage, and I loved every minute of it until 2 a.m. when guitarist Taylor Guarisco had to literally tell the crowd to shut up because the Doug Fir was kicking us all out.

I thought AgesandAges brought the energy. Pfft, they were good, but nothing compared to Givers. I don’t know where this band gets all their positive and joyful energy. It’s infectious, and with great songs like “Up Up Up” and “In My Eyes,” you can’t go wrong, even at 1 a.m.

Since I’d run into Guarisco at the Sasquatch Festival back in May, he recognized me at Musicfest as well, so we chatted a bit after the show, at 2:30 a.m., because sleep is overrated. It was nice making a reconnection with a band, and when it’s a band that charming, with that much talent, and that close to hitting it big, it made me feel that much better.

Well done guys, well done.

So I’d say Friday was a success, wouldn’t you? I mean, I don’t regret staying up until 3:00 a.m., and that says something.

For more photos from Friday, visit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/abbigshmail/sets/72157627636436068/