Sonorous Gale Record Release Show

On March 21st Alicia and I ventured out to see Sonorous Gale play at Soundlab. I've seen them play several times before, they're one of my favorite local bands, with only the mighty Jack Topht above them. Their sound is one of thunderous bass and distortion, with heavy vocals over on alternately frantic riffs and painfully slow metal dirges. For a duo of a bassist/vocalist and drummer, they make one hell of a racket. Tonight was special because it was their album release party, so I could FINALLY get their songs in a form that could be listened to in the comfort of my own home.

The opening band was a guy with a huge beard playing soft songs on an acoustic guitar. That's really all I can say...it was some harmless forgettable folk music with a twist of uppity poet. The second act was a comedian, who despite trying his best, fell a bit flat with most of his set. I give him major credit for giving it a shot though, plus there was a small group of people that were enjoying it and chuckling along, so there you go.

Sonorous Gale was great, as always. They played their familiar set of songs, many of which I know pretty well after having seen them several times. Midway through the set they were joined by local female vocalist Cages, who I've often described as sounding a bit like Bjork having a mental breakdown/total freakout on stage. (That's meant as a major compliment, she's awesome.) She was a lot of fun to watch during their cover of "Army of Me" (validating my Bjork comparisons)as she writhed and convulsed to the music while belting out the vocals in her unique, tortured style.

AIDS Wolf at Soundlab

I missed them the last time they stopped in Buffalo, so I made sure to make my way out to Soundlab on March 8th to see AIDS Wolf. I was worried I'd be late, but when I arrived at 11 it was just in time to catch the end of the opening act, US Girls. Kind of like my noise moniker, this was a plural name representing one person.

The audience of roughly fifteen people stood around the front of the stage intently watching a shorthaired girl with massive hipster glasses and an over sized orange winter jacket as she hunched over an array of distortion pedals and sound gear. She would occasionally sing long, droning notes into a mic that would altering her voice while a wall of noise fought with looping guitar and piano samples. At first listen it sounded completely random, but soon I noticed the structure of the songs as she changed the loops and manipulated the gradually shifting tones being produced by her voice and equipment. It was pretty good stuff, right down my alley. I picked up her CD-R at the end of the show, mostly because I just like supporting artists that do this kind of thing...especially since I'm kind of attempting to make a name for myself by doing something very similar.

AIDS Wolf came out and proceeded to rock the house, decked in their matching brown shirts and slacks that resembled a repairman's uniform with a touch of the Ghostbuster getup. The lead singer, Claudia Deluxx, was decked out in a powerfully gaudy gem sweater and a flowing fluorescent green cape. The busted right into things, and played straight through their set, pausing only briefly between songs before exploding into the next one.

Their sound is an unclassifiable one...but I'm going to try anyway. If you take the ferocity of grind core, cross breed it with the focused and ungodly complicated atonal riffs of math metal, then blend the whole thing with a healthy dose of improvisational noise, you get pretty close to their sound. Throw in some warbling, indistinguishable vocals that sound like an oceanic siren having an aneurysm and you've got AIDS Wolf. To many, this is not something you'd listen to voluntarily. To me and the small group at Soundlab, it was a great show. It wasn't even the noisiest or harshest band performance I've seen, and I have to admit I was a tiny bit disappointed...I was expecting to be blown away by their insanity, yet they were a bit tamer than I had imagined.





It was interesting to watch the dual guitarists (the band has no bassist, two guitars plus drums and vocals) as they shredded away. The drummer was awesome, and as far as I've witnessed only Melt Banana's drummer rivals the intensity and speed that this guy had. They all had a very technical precision to their playing that resulted in the most discordant sound possible, just one of the reasons I admire them. The lead singer spent most of the show wandering through the audience as if entranced by her own howling, bumping into individuals and flailing in slow motion. With her hooded cape it almost looked like she was casting a long, complicated spell, as she waved her arms mysteriously and stared intently into the distance. Along with old school Boredoms (back when they were a straightup noise rock band) these guys are a favorite when it comes to ridiculous, noisy fun. I resisted the urge to buy any vinyl this time, but I did grab a $1 button. It's silver and black, with a drawing of a nerdy R.Crumb looking guy in thick glasses giving an unenthusiastic thumbs up. It's kind of awesome.

Good times.

Tonight I had bubblegum ice cream. For dinner. FUCK yeah.

Baltimore Round Robin

On October 7th I went to go check out the Baltimore Round Robin at the Tralf. Basically, this is a traveling variety show consisting of about 12 bands. The idea is that each band plays one song at a time, rotating around the room with the audience in the center. I arrived early, which gave me plenty of time to wander around and look at each of the different setups lining the perimeter of the venue. I was surprised to see only three drumsets, the rest of the bands seemed to be using combinations of old school analog electronics and laptops, as well as a healthy supply of effects pedals. I hadn't done much research into the groups that would be playing that night, so I had no idea what genre or style they would each be performing. All I knew is that it was themed towards dancing and moving around, as this was the "Feet Night" The previous day consisted of mostly acoustic and ambient artists that were meant to be watched calmly, so it was labelled "Eyes Night." This night was advertised as a mix of "Dance/Punk/Hardcore" and sounded like it was right down my alley.

It was pretty packed, filled with many of the usuals I see at dance parties and the various indie shows around town. When things started we all gathered close in a big huddle around the first guy to play, Dan Deacon, who was also the organizer of the event. He was this big friendly guy who just had a ton of energy and an odd sense of humor. Before he started playing he insisted that everyone "Find a stranger! Now I want you to get as close as you possibly can to their face and just stare at them! Now jog in place! But keep staring! Okay, everybody on the floor, get on your backs, but keep jogging! Now look at the people who aren't doing this with us!" Awesomely, almost everyone in the crowd went along with these activities, and only a few people sat out. It was a crazy enthusiastic group, and we were all more than happy to participate. He then instructed us to all get up, and the second we were back on our feet he busted into a super high energy dance song as the lights all went out and a green glowing plastic skull started strobing and the crowd went into a maniacal dance frenzy. It. Was. Nuts. And the show had only just begun.

I don't remember the exact order of the bands, but they coordinated so that while we were all facing one guy, the next band was getting into place and getting ready to play. So, the second a song ended, we'd hear music coming from behind us, and we all would turn around to watch the next band. The audience stayed wildly animated throughout the entire night, huddling close to each band and dancing like crazy. Some of the stand out artists were a guy who called himself Adventure, he played an upbeat chiptune style of dance music that sounds like the soundtrack to your favorite Nintendo games that don't exist. Nuclear Power Pants (I like that name...) played some punk flavored noise rock, but they all wore purple jumpsuits and giant foam green shark heads...except for the lead singers, who wore a conjoined twin business suit that fused them together at the sides. Everything was black lit around them as well, so it was like an eerie glowing mascot supergroup headed by a two headed punk rocker. Pretty fucking awesome. Future Islands were a favorite of mine, they played some really catchy new wave flavored dance rock, and the lead singer was this big chubby dude that kind of had a streak of that Jack Black "rock!" attitude, making grand gestures and singing his heart out.

It was a really surreal, schizophrenic, almost dreamlike experience at the time. You'd be enjoying a frantic old school techno track being played off of a laptop with projected visuals, then suddenly you turn around and there's a three piece hardcore band thrashing out a quick 2 minute anthem, you then turn to your right as you hear a bass line and now you're watching a girl with a microphone seductively crooning to a heavy slow distorted dance beat, and the second that ends there's an indie band rocking out and jumping around to your left. Each band played 3 songs, which was just the right amount. Every time it got back to Dan Deacon, he had another crazy activity for people to participate in. For the second song he made us get in a circle and have an aggressive dance off, you had to be as big and in your face as possible, then choose someone from the audience to take your place and bust some moves. After ten or so people showed their stuff, he beckoned us all in, and the music swelled to a fevered pitch as the strobe skull once again lit up the room and the crowd went wild. For his third song, he had people form pairs and hold hands while facing each other, then stand in a row to make a sort of tunnel. Does that make any sense? It's hard to describe....basically if you face someone, hold both of their hands, then hold your arms up together so that someone can crawl under the little bridge you've made. Each person would then crawl through, and when they get to the end, they formed another piece of the tunnel with the person who came out behind them, and so on. We were instructed to do this until the tunnel snaked out the exit doors, and all the way back in through the entrance. Dan Deacon exclaimed, "At some point, I should be completely alone in here!" We did it, it worked, he was, and it was awesome.

It was a really amazing show, and I've never been to anything quite like it.

I didn't have my camera, and I haven't found any photos of the Buffalo show, but here are a few awesome shots from the Baltimore performance.

_MG_1452, originally uploaded by pixelateit.

Future Islands, originally uploaded by pixelateit.

Gnomes & Indulgence

On September 3rd I went to see Mr. Gnome at Mohawk place, and I was literally the only person at the show. I'm not exaggerating. For the first two songs I was the lone audience member, standing all by myself. I made sure to cheer extra loud after each song, just to make sure they knew someone was out there, and maybe so they didn't feel like they were just practicing. Eventually, about 5 other people wandered over to watch, but I'm pretty sure they were in the other bands that had opened earlier that night. You can usually tell who these people are by their casual interest in what's going on. Anyone who came to the show with the intention of seeing the band is always front and center as soon as the sound check starts. As the set went on, the other observers slowly drifted away, once again leaving me as the sole observer. They're a two piece: female guitarist/vocalist and a guy playing the drums. It's a formula that's gotten popular recently, and I'm not complaining. I am a total sucker for a girl rocking out with a guitar, especially if it's in a low-fi duo where the music has been stripped down the barest elements and you're left with a raw mix of honesty and distortion. They put on a great show, and I have to say that I was really impressed by some of the crazy beats the drummer was hammering out, simultaneously super funky and precisely calculated. Like a drum machine with soul...I made sure to go chat with them both after the show, although I felt bad that I couldn't buy anything due to my severe lack of funds.

On September 19th I finally saw Mindless Self Indulgence live. They played a packed show at Town Ballroom, and all I have to say is this: Kids these days don't know how to cheer for an encore. The entire venue was packed to the brim, and it's a huge place, hundreds of people were there. The crowd went nuts the whole time, lots of great band/spectator interaction...however when they played their last song, instead of continuing to cheer and chant for an encore...everyone just stood there. I was baffled, I'd never seen anything like it...usually a crowd will either choose to disperse immediately, or more often they will chant wildly until the band comes out. I mean, that's just basic concert going 101, right? The band finishes, goes backstage, and will wait about five minutes to see if the crowd is up for another song. The road crew doesn't start breaking down the equipment yet, because it's expected that the band will come back out. I've often seen the crew and security encouraging the audience, gesturing for them to be as loud as possible, basically saying. "these guys are planning on coming out again, so your cheers will not be in vain." For whatever reason, everyone in the audience just stood silently and expectantly....then the road crew started breaking their shit down and people began to leave. I was pretty disappointed, but the rest of the show was great, so I can't complain.

Then, something happened that I really didn't expect. After 50% of the kids in the audience had left, and there were just a bunch of people like me sticking around for no reason...the band came out to hang out with the crowd. I was really impressed and it made me respect them quite a bit. Usually when a group gets to their level of fame, they stop giving a fuck about the fans and become bitter and jaded about their "unwanted celebrity status." However, I get the feeling that MSI knows who their audience is, and they appreciate them as much as they did when they were playing little venues for 30 people. The lead singer stuck around for a good 45 minutes, signing every single picture and ticket stub and taking pictures with anyone wanted one, giving big hugs and chatting away. It made me really happy, and of course I had to get in on it so I shook his hand. I've been a huge fan of these guys for the last 8 years now...they remain one of my favorite bands and I'm glad that seeing them live only cemented that fact.

I have to mention this too. There's this girl I went to high school with, Angel, who's in a local band that has a certain amount of fame. She was standing right up against the front of the stage, and at one point handed the lead singer a CD, her bands last album. He took it and said to the crowd, "Hey, cool! A demo CD! Big fucking mistake giving it to me though!' He then proceeded to bash it against the side of his head until the jewel case shattered into tiny shards, then took the actual CD and snapped it into about five little pieces. He held the broken fragments up to his ear while strutting back and forth on the stage, snapping his finger to the imaginary music coming from the obliterated album. "Wow, man, the way you guys merged thrash metal with a xylophone...genius!"

The photos below from the Buffalo show were shamelessly stolen from here.



There was also flurry of dance parties recently, and they've all blended together in my mind. None of them were really remarkable...it seems that I used to be able to write endless paragraphs about the nonsense that would occur, while now I just have nothing to say. I always have a ton of fun, but now that it's become a regular occurrence it's not as new and fascinating as it once was. I still see Natalie and Samantha routinely see at these things, and if I'm not there with anyone I'll usually dance with her crew. It's nice to know that there will be someone I know at these things, who don't mind that I'm always a drunk idiot. I constantly run into the spazzy kids as well. I'll try to "out spaz" them at least once at these events (an impossible task) They're like dance super heroes, seriously.

The Voidologists: Live at Squeaky Wheel (Saturday)

The Saturday show went well, although I ran into some technical difficulties and had to switch around my setup. My delay pedal wasn't working, so rather than try to figure it out, I opted to just perform without it. I also ended up going through the board instead of my amp, so the speakers I played through were missing a layer of distortion. The result was a much more controlled, cleaner performance with an emphasis on subtle sounds instead of the usual ferocity and clashing contrasts. I also intentionally played more "robot" style sounds for the benefit of Kendra and Lauren, who both showed up to see me and take some awesome photos. I lost track of time and accidentally rushed through my set, only playing about 13 minutes, but it was a solid 13 minutes so I suppose it's okay.

It was an amazing week. The next goal is to try to promote myself and see if I can get an actual gig somewhere in town. There are enough house shows and warehouse venues around here that if I work hard enough, I just might be able to play again. I've gotten a really positive reaction from both people who are into noise and others who aren't at all. Kendra actually insists that I should start classifying my music as "robotica" instead of noise...I just might, although I still have to stay true to my roots. I've been doing this for over ten years now, and I'm honestly really proud of it all. I'd like to think that all that time spent playing and practicing alone has led me to a sound that can be appreciated by more than just...well, myself.

(Also, I got an award!)

The Voidologists: Live at Squeaky Wheel (Wednesday)

Laura, Andy, my sister, and Kendra all came to see my show at Squeaky Wheel on Wednesday night. Stacey had made an amazing video of ridiculous distorted images, looped video, and some great retro 60's looking robots. I hadn't actually seen the whole thing, but I had total faith that it would be great. (and it was, there were many compliments on it after the show.)

I've always said that if even one person that I don't know shows up, I'll be ecstatic...and two people showed up! So I was double-happy. I was bonding with the one guy over Merzbow and noise in general, and the woman who showed up was actually one of the organizers of the Infringement Festival. She was excited to see my show, and we talked about how I do things and my passion behind all of this.

She even wrote a great review the next day on the Infringement blog:
"then over to Squeaky Wheel to see "The Voidologists" whom I had missed at the Noise Fest on Monday. I HAD to go see this act, which was described as a footnote on their promotional material as sounding "like a robot orgy in hell...gone wrong". I thought they deserved an audience just for their marketing acumen. "They" is a misnomer; "The Voidologists" are essentially one techy guy named Dave that puts it all together in his basement, backed by a video his sister made. That last sentence makes it sound like kid stuff; au contraire; this was the audiovisual equivalent of being run over by a tank, and enjoying the experience. I was thrilled. For those with an acquired taste, NOT to be missed. At Squeaky Wheel at 6pm on Saturday."

This entire experience continues to be surreal for me, it's just...amazing. Completely amazing.