On the surface it seems like he is just a little spun, but for regular attendees of the upstate New York festival Brownie is speaking truth. Simply put, it just wouldn’t Camp Bisco without mud, thunderstorm smoke sessions in the car, bikers keeping the nitrous mafia out, spunion wookies, and a lot of untz. For some it may be hard to understand the appeal of a  muddy festival held on land owned by bikers with some of the hardest partiers in the scene, but the attendees at camp know exactly what they are getting into and would not want it any other way. You won’t find many self-righteous hippies saving the world here; it’s just the best party of the summer with one of the best line-ups that can be seen, period.

Gift Of Gab

Camp Bisco has been steadily growing since it’s inception and in 2010 it has truly become one of the top festivals of the summer. With 15,000 in attendance and acts such as Ween, Wu Massacre, Gift of Gab, LCD Soundsystem, Thievery Corporation, and Talib Kweli on the bill this festival is hardly just for die-hard Biscuits fans. The diverse line-up with so many top-notch acts, and the addition of key elements such as the silent disco and a second stage on the main concert field pretty much ensure nonstop music from noon to sunrise. For fans of electronic music the dance tent bumps untz all weekend, leaving Camp Bisco with a feel of being both an eclectic festival and an electronic music festival rolled into one.

Long lines keep the crowds from getting too dense right up until the Disco Biscuits first set of the weekend. For those who are already in the grounds Blackalicious’ Gift of Gab throws down an immaculate set, teaching everyone in attendance why he is regarded as one of the best underground emcees to ever pick up a microphone. There are very few rappers in the world who have mastered lyrical technique like Gift of Gab and it’s truly unfortunate so many people are waiting in line during this set. After a brief Future Rock set the crowd begins to fill in and The Disco Biscuits take the stage for their sunset show. There is a definite sense of urgency on the stage, and the band clearly wants to set a high standard for the weekend. The set kicked off with House Dog Party Favor clocking in at just less than 20 minutes. The set peaks with an inverted Reactor and winds down with the ending of On Time. For those unfamiliar with the Biscuits, an inversion occurs when jamming into the ending of a song then proceeding with the beginning section.

LCD Soundsystem

The main stages finishes off on Thursday with sets from the immensely popular Pretty Lights and LCD Soundsystem. It is interesting to see the Disco Biscuits step back and take a secondary role on this night and allow these two acts the headlining roles at their own festival. Both bands deliver high-energy sets that have the crowd going wild, and it is the perfect lead in to the late night acts of the evening. Immediately following LCD is Two Fresh and Holy Fuck in the dance tent. The relaxed hip hop and jazzier stuff from two fresh segues nicely into the more experimental Holy Fuck. With Thursday’s music in the books and no Silent Disco until Friday people actually have the chance to sleep.

In typical music festival fashion, things don’t get going on Friday until late afternoon and specifically with Wu Massacre. Following a rather standard set from Big Gigantic, Wu Massacre takes the stage over an hour late and performs a set of Wu Tang greatest hits. Despite the being shortened by the delay Wu Massacre delivers one of the best sets of the weekend. Following Wu is a stellar set from Thievery Corporation, showcasing their eclectic and ethnic-infused music with a rotating cast of vocalists and supporting artists.

Pretty Lights

After night falls the Disco Biscuits take the stage for their second and arguably best set of the weekend. The music is high-energy and cleanly executed featuring nothing but crowd favorites. The highlight of the set is more or less impossible to determine at the time and the whole set is made all the better with a laser light show. Normally The Disco Biscuits do not get a lot of respect for their light show, but 2010 has seen an incredible increase in both Lighting Designer Johnny R. Goode’s creativity and financial backing from the band. The addition of Martin Mac III lighting modules, and now lasers has truly put The Disco Biscuits Light show on the same level as many of the elite bands in the jamband scene, if only for a short while.

Method Man of Wu Massacre

After a set break show from Bassnectar and a rather forgettable second Biscuits set The New Deal takes the stage in the Dance Tent for what is undeniably the best late night set of the weekend. The high-energy and extremely improv heavy livetronica pioneers absolutely destroy their set and have the entire tent thumping for the duration of their set. It is a shame this band does not tour more often, and it is always a treat to catch them live. Friday Night at Camp Bisco is no different. For those not ready for the party to end the Local Stage is transformed into the silent disco at night, where noise ordinances are no issue. The Silent Disco features two acts performing at the same time and the headphones give the listener ability to switch back and forth.  Many up-and-coming acts take the opportunity to play an additional set, and the watching people get down to silence at different tempos was perhaps the oddest thing that could be witnessed all weekend.

LCD Soundsystem

Saturday may very well be the best line-up ever conceived at Camp Bisco. With so many diverse and extremely talented acts going on all day on the main concert field there really isn’t much of a reason to leave that area. The Local Stage and Dance Tent both have plenty of acts to draw people away however. Things get going early with The Disco Biscuits day set, featuring a stellar rendition of Mr. Don as well as the extremely rare Pat and Dex. Following The Disco Biscuits set there is a bit of a mix up due to the late arrival of Talib Kweli, leading to the switch of set times with SOJA and the rumor that the emcee will not be featured in Break Science’s set. These rumors prove to be untrue and Kweli delivers a short buy rowdy set featuring songs exclusively off of the new Reflection Eternal album, Revolutions Per Minute.

Eric Hilton of Thievery Corporation

The Band with the most mixed reception of the weekend is a band that always receives mixed reactions, both because of their inconsistency as a live act and the general weirdness to the music. Ween takes the stage as the storm clouds begin come into view in the background and deliver one of the cleanest and most professional sets they are capable of full of fan favorites and old hidden gems. As good as the set is many people at camp just can’t handle the brown glory of Ween. The storm clouds settle in as the set ends and many people retreat to their cars to wait out the inevitable Camp Bisco monsoon. The storm never really materializes into very much rain and but the lightning more or less cancels Papadosio’s set on the Local stage, ends Brothers Past early, and turns the final 2 Biscuit sets into one extended set.

The Disco Biscuits

Laser rain is cutting thru the air as the Biscuits hit the peak of Munchkin Invasion and Camp Bisco is in its most idyllic state. Its is hard to explain why one would host a festival in the same spot annually when torrential downpours are almost as much of a sure thing as seeing someone carried out by medical personnel, but for those who have experienced the raw glory that is Camp Bisco there really is no better place for it, and it is the best time of the year.

Words By Jason Woodside

Photos By Matt Speck and Jason Woodside

If there is one thing everyone can agree upon about The Heartless Bastards show at Chicago’s Bottom Lounge, it is that it was a thoroughly sultry experience. Even with the AC on and the fans at full RPM the ambiance was decidedly sweaty. It was a July evening that called for cold beer, an occasional cup of ice, and some rock n’ roll.

The last two times the Heartless Bastards played Chicago was when they opened for Wolf Mother and then Lollapalooza, so it was nice to know that their fans would finally get to take them in without them being under the constraints and planning of others. The near capacity crowd was treated with a long set of near 2 hours that lasted into the morning hours. People left with wet shirts, but left happy.

In an atypical move the Heartless Bastards opened with a track from their first – and unquestionably most obscure – album, Done Got Old. Immediately they jump into their brand of stomping, swaggering blues based rock n’ roll, anchored by lead singer Erika’s powerfully resonant vocals and decorated with sharply honed guitar riffs. Immediately the heat-fueled tension in the crowd relaxes.

It takes one only a couple minutes to realize what exactly it is about this band’s live performances which entices people, and it’s the surprising robust – yet deeply emotive – vocals of Erika Wennerstromon. Yes they write really good, well varied, rock music and play it even better – but that’s not what your drawn to (even though it would be enough in most cases). The Heartless Bastards have the ear-catching ability of, while playing live, having the rhythm section sound album-like by being so succinctly in time, yet having the singing coming off so plainly & pleasantly live. The balance between sounding like your albums and decidedly live is a very tough line to walk for any band, lean one way and your song is sterile and vapid, lean the other the song loses meaning or becomes unprincipled. This line the Bastards walked well for this show.

Erika put her vocal talents on display most within their subdued, more western number, So Quiet. In this song (and a couple others) the lead guitarist becomes the fiddle player, Erika plays an acoustic and the drummer departs. And even when she sang in a hushed manner, and despite the fact that she has a short and small demeanor, when singing she commands the audience’s attention with a compelling, and somewhat intangible, force to be reckoned with.

Other highlights from the evening were The Mountain, when the bastards clearly demonstrate how one can incorporate a yowling steel guitar into an aggressive indie rock song, and Out at Sea, which the bastards played with an added emphasis on the swing-feeling within this song leaving the audience wondering if it should flash the devil horns or break out into the twist. Overall they played songs from all three of their albums and it would be a good bet to say very few – if any – of those attending left without hearing the songs they attended to hear.

It has been often said that a rock band will show their true talents in the slow songs, that anyone can be loud or fast. If this is the case then the Heartless Bastards will fair just fine, as their ability to play downtempo or all-out is equally great. But they also can claim to play everything else in between well also, the swing-rock song, the quasi-country number, the building rock song, the happy ones that make you want to dance. And all the while you have Erika there leading the way with a self-evident, Napaleon-like, musical momentum. Who wouldn’t follow along? These guys are for real.

By Sean Brna

Sean.brna@ourvinyl.com

Black Mountain brings to the table a sort of catchy, and at times funky, psychedelic rock n’ roll. And while they at times anchor their sound in the blues, unlike many other “traditional” psych bands, they gladly will replace that with a more funky and/or progressive sound. They seem to like the challenge, which they usually conquer, of morphing psych-rock playfully with other genres. And while they use development and evolution in their songs, they are usually progress leisurely, in what amounts to a deceptively natural manner.

On this night they played a fairly even mix of material from their first two albums, Black Mountain and In The Future, and unreleased material to was new to the audience. They were at their best sounding when they played powerful and direct, yet with a subtle overall sound. This reflects their philosophy well because they often mix and match their male and female vocalists, and always employ a lot of detailed sounds in their compositions. In fact, they have the ability to overlap their two opposite sexed vocalists most perfectly, creating a delightful new and singular voice. It really stood out in their live show. It was on such tracks such as “Queens Will Play” and “Druganaught” in which they exemplified these first-rate attributes and created for some of the best musical moments of this Thursday evening.

Yet, while they delivered a night filled with high level of musicianship and displayed that which has allowed them to create two solid albums, there was something about their performance on this evening that led me to think this band’s talent may lie more so in creating albums as opposed to playing live shows. At times the singing came off as preachy and at other times one found themselves being slightly fatigued by these songs, which isn’t what happens when listened from off their record. It was on such songs as, “Don’t Run Our Hearts Around”, a rich & building stompy rock song, which positively leaps off the record when played at home, but somehow was just slightly vapid live.

But that being said, their live show not living up to their albums is only a valid observation because their two released albums really are extraordinary. They are delicate, fun-loving, yet truly unyielding psychedelic rock expressions. And this being the first time this author has taken in their talents live, one has to give them a benefit of the doubt, anyone can have an off night. Either way though, I can’t wait until that new material I heard comes out in album form…

By Sean Brna

The Sleepy Sun are a six-piece band that plays a very interesting style of psychedelic blues-rock. It is entirely, and unabashedly, based on the fundamentals of hallucinatory rock established in San Francisco in the 1960’s. And yet they are of today’s indie movement. It’s not easy to pinpoint down how-or-why that is, but this author finds that while their music is rooted wholly in the past – they way they move (and at time jump) through their music is entirely contemporary.

The Sleepy Sun commenced their show with Marina, off of their second – as well recently released – album, “Fever.” Immediately their male + female vocals stand out as a central, and powerful, live musical tool. By having a fierce, yet wispily angelic, female vocalist – in addition to the guitar wielding male lead-singer – is how this band creates “their sound.” Her microphone was laden with heavy & wide reverb, as well as being incredibly sensitive (this was evident between songs when any noise made near this mic would echoe out into the audience). So by altering how close she sang to the mic, or how on-axis her voice was to the front of the mic; she could control with great minutia how her “verby voice” sounded. It was marvelous to watch her swing her head, and change her distance from the microphone, and hear how it would change the sound of even sustained-echo-wails.

The Sleepy Sun also put on display their ability to present quite loud rock n’ roll that was utterly crisp and also so much an apparent product of honed teamwork. They employ a multitude of quick, at time sudden, transitions between energy, tempo and sometimes genre altogether. Even when these movements happen abruptly, they played through them so calmly and with such little notice, that you become numb to the musical talent being displayed in front of you. In fact the band members often had their eyes closed, or would stare off into nothing, needing not to eye each other whatsoever as they played through their elaborate psychedelic expressions.

The Sleepy Sun, while just having released a new LP, played a few new unreleased tracks. Yet they were best on this night on their 9 min song Sandstorm Woman, which they ended with. Simply put, they played this bewildering blues rock number – that consists of what feels like 4 distinct “movements” of sorts – absolutely sensationally. It’s how they end their album, “Fever” and it was a solid show ender as well.

They played only 9 songs, and while their songs are longer than the average, this author was left wanting much more music; a bittersweet feeling to leave an audience member with. More focus could have been given to the male lead singer, his vocals often being drowned out – which was the sole aspect of the performance that felt unbalanced. So while maybe one of those opening bands could have been sacrificed for more Sleepy Sun time, it was overall a thoroughly satisfying rock experience for all who attended. The Sleepy Sun have a latter-day haight-ashbury attitude, and channel it through potent & dominant blues-rock; and seeing them live assures you it’s a sincere and awesome amalgam from this San-Francisco band. Can’t wait to catch them again.

By Sean Brna

sean.brna@ourvinyl.com

Lincoln Hall warmed up by Quarter III. Even the beleaguered door guys who kept too many people from going outside to smoke showed a few smirks. It was clear by the end of thisquarter that there might be reasons why certain songs haven’t been played in about a decade. But the votes came in and the band put what they had into these songs regardless. This was also the set where they were could simply play their music like Umphrey’s McGee, especially during “All Things Ninja” and a good chunk of “Der Bluten Kat.”

The dub “Wife Soup” didn’t stray too far from the original song. Cinninger took advantage of the format to add warbling echoes through the first half the song, along with the downbeat rhythm. During the middle, Stasik’s rumbling bass lines paved a path for a scratching and punchy call and response between Bayliss and Cinninger. The full build at the end, led by ringing chords by Cummins on the B3, dissolved to the warm vocal harmony at the end.

“We hope you recognize it, and we understand if you don’t,” Bayliss said before they began “Muff II: The Revenge.”

A lot of faces read that people couldn’t quite figure out what the band was playing when they began the shitkicker tune. With a straight eight-note driven drum line, percussive guitars, Cinninger making his electric sound like a pedal steel and jumpy organ, “Muff II” was a fun three and a half minutes of foot stomp.

“Ninja” is one of a handful of songs that’s built on a wide range from the band’s bag of tricks: snaky prog syncopation, bright melody-driven crescendos and dirty funk. Dance and funk developed into a returning theme for parts of the next two sets. During “Ninja,” Stasik ran through droning tones while holding down a pattern, which possibly was either a nod to Claypool or it had a pinch of “Tommy the Cat.” Toward the end, Cinninger and Myers got into a swing duo, with Cinninger playing what sounded like a walking bass line along with chords, just before Myers soloed right up to the ending.

“Disco Red Room” really could be called “Power Ballad Red Room” once past the wahwah Blacksploitation film beginning.

“Here’s another one where it’s been a long, long, long time since we played it,” Cummins said before the next song. “Maybe 10 years.”

“Muffburger Sandwich” started with a simple mix of straight beat funk, slightly metal riffs, harmonics trickery and warbling keys. The middle leaned on the metal side until a slap bass and guitar blend that led into the chant-ready chorus, full of falsettos. While it felt like both “Muff” and “Muff II” were both over rather quickly, the band put a ton of energy into each tune.

The funk version of “Der Bluten Kat” started at low-volume with the guitar riff only, and then drums bass and keys joined the strutting feel. Restraint and focus on keeping the early written sections of the songs to the beat held until hitting the end of the first ‘act’ of the song. Crackling sixteenth notes by Myers got the next third of the song going at a swifter and straight ahead progression, into a near-Latin and dancehall version of their nod to Mozart’s Symphony number 40 in G minor.

Delayed guitars wails, synth rumble and straight funk came next to build “Girlfriend Is Better.” Talking Heads covers, though rare, have often been a strong suit of the band. And this was no different. The band put their own twists on the various robot sounds from the original, along with Myers and Bayliss making an odd composite of Byrne’s tweaked vocals.

In barely a blink, the band went right back into “DBK” at high speed. Shortly in, the band went to a dance beat with Myers using the e-drums over Bayliss teasing “Girlfriend,” which then led to going back into that song’s music, but then only to return to the “DBK” theme a few bars before cutting out again to a soft jazzy section. That last bit reads like a run-on sentence doesn’t it? But if you ask me, that’s what it was like at the show. It was a great flexing of the Umphrey’s ADD abilities.

The band then seemed to play around with a bouncing funk and a few key changes, before jumping back into the final fast and heavy act of “DBK.”  The engine was firing on all cylinders and a reserve turbo with each musician going mad right up to the end.

But before closing it out, they dropped right back down to the funk style they started with for the very last bit of the song.

Set List: Wife Soup&, Muff II: The Revenge, All Things Ninja, Red Room Disco*, Muffburger Sandwich, Der Bluten Kat&& > Girlfriend Is Better** > Der Bluten Kat%

& “dub” version

&& “funk” version

* first time played, original

** first time played, Talking Heads

% with Girlfriend Is Better teases

Photos by Joel Berk

It’s always a boisterous bunch that attends a Chicago show by The Brian Jonestown Massacre. This last one at the Metro, on the Sunday night of Memorial Day weekend, was no exception. BJM plays to a niche audience indeed, but within that niche they can reach demigod-like status that surprises those unfamiliar with the group.

For the most part BJM brings to the table – and has for about 15 years – a brand of edgy, yet mostly traditional, psychedelic rock that has its roots in the mind-altered attitude & energy of the 60’s. Yet the following they have received is not “hippy’ish” in anyway, the people at BJM shows come to rock n’ roll, not to celebrate love. There was a heightened enthusiasm in the crowd that was hard not to feed off of. (Luckily that energy didn’t spill over into an intense fight between spectators, which occurred the last time they played Chicago.)

BJM mostly stuck to that which they have become very well known for, actually steering clear of all the music from their last album (more on this later). They opened with “Super Sonic”, letting the crowd get very used to a dreamy drone-like guitar tone produced by Antwon, the lead singer, continually strumming on 3 guitar strings. Then the swift beat, vocals, tambourine, bass and multiple guitars all surface – but the drone does not cease. BJM leaned heavy upon these hallucinatory whirrs, giving their music a heavy surreal base – upon which they gladly build wonderful rock songs. Yet this technique is not one to be suggested to many bands, for it usually results poorly. But like some sort of weird batting stance that you let slide because the guy can hit – BJM is repeatedly successful in this trippy musical technique.

The Massacre played a lot of their material off of “Strung out in Heaven” and “Give it Back.” Those songs showcase BJM’s ability to create music with ever-present wailing guitars that are put aside a strutting rock n’ roll rhythm section, that sometimes emerges from or into hallucinatory effects. They really shinned on their song “Got my Eye on You”, where their energy really hit a crescendo, and the background talking added by tambourine player Joel Gion created for an kick-ass sonic effect which was verified by an immediate spike in the excitement of the audience. “Not if you were the last Dandy on earth” was another quickly paced song in which BJM really seemed to click and delivered the goods like the weathered pros that they are.

One thing that was conspicuously absent from this show was songs off of BJMs latest album, “Who Killed Sgt Pepper?” – which was a detour of sorts in that it is comprised of mostly electronically-influenced, “rave’ier”, pysch music. Yet it was also a stunning album with a number of stirring songs. True, the full band present on stage may not have been involved in all the recordings of that album, but some of them were… Needless to say it was perplexing and disappointing not to hear how those songs, different as they may be for the band, would have been played and sounded this evening at the Metro. It also marks the first time I have witnessed a band disregard their latest material in a large live show. But then again – it is BJM, and I shouldn’t be surprised at being surprised by them, by now.

Notwithstanding that absence of their freshest material, this show was still a triumph of psychedelic rock n’ roll. The Brian Jonestown Massacre has a way of being unpredictably consistent that few bands can pull off. The sincerity of their rock n’ roll aura, the depth of their desire for a mind-altered state, is tangible when you absorb their live show. It’s why they are one of the most-respected and followed bands – that most haven’t heard of.

By Sean Brna

Sean.Brna@ourvinyl.com

JaJunk funk, Tool & Jackson 5, Tribute to Lady Madonna, Bowie Here Comes the Mantis, Cemetery Walk This Way, Bathtub Gin & Juice, Jimmy Page Against the Machine, Ocean Billy Jean

The Stew Art, as well as Umphrey’s taste for live mash-ups since last year, seems to be a mutant maturing of their ADD style along with a Midwest-bred clusterfuck of influences, from Slayer and King Crimson to Michael Jackson and Snoop Dog. Seeing and hearing the endurance feat of the band dividing their hive mind into two distinct songs happening at the same time was an exciting feat.

The results were at times hilarious, such as singing sugary Jackson 5 over the grinding guitars of Tool’s “Sober.” The Long Beach thug life tribute “Gin and Juice” sung by Budweiser swilling white boys would be amusing enough, but on top of Phish’s “Bathtub Gin,” the band brought it to a whole new yuks level. The over the top highlight was the finale: Jimmy Page Against the Machine. “Ten Years Gone” as the music, with Kris Myers doing his best Zach de la Rocha and yelling “CHICAGO MOTHAFUCKA!” A great moment in music geek history.

Part II: Numbers, colors and shapes:

2×2 & One by Metallica, Mr. Blue Echo Sky, Square Wolf in London, electronic Kitchen, Search 4 the Crooked One, Rocket Man lyrical stew, 13 Days in the Life

“Get crazy people, get crazy,” Joel said before the next section began.

Starting with an eerily dead on blend of the sweet warmth of “2×2” with the grinding of “One,” the band was again literally split in half.  After some upbeat touches to “Blue Echo” the band fell into an e-drums-laden version of “Werewolf of London.”  The combination of “Search 4 and The Crooked One” with a lot of plinking 8-bit Nintendo sounds coming from the guitars and keys had some cohesiveness that other combos were lacking. Bayliss’ deadpan spoken “Rocketman” in front of a country-tinged ballad was a welcome return to the comical before the smooth strut of “Day in the Life” lyrics over “13 days” music to close out the section.

Part III: Make us laugh

Dick in a Box, Bears O-Line, Folk Prince of Bel Air, Chinese vocal jam, reggae titties & beer, Jessica Pace proposal

Within in minutes of the porn-esque opening to “Dick” came a sudden muted-riff and pounding-drums metal for “Bears O-Line.” But in between someone making fart sounds, Bayliss apologized because the band thought the message said “D-Line”…hence the ferocity.  Umphrey’s couldn’t quite escape the funk to add folk to the “Bel Air” theme, but the band stillnailed a few verses from Will Smith’s rhyme. Little can be said about Vocal Jam in Chinese other than Stasik repeating “Mee how,” but the highlight followed. With Cinninger and Bayliss doing their best Rasta voices and praising the wonders of boobs and brew on top of an echoy dub jam, a guy proposed to his girlfriend Jessica. Romance at its finest.

Written by:
Benji Feldheim

Photos by:
Joel Berk

To read what happened in Quarter 1, Click here.

The performance commenced with great style. It’s not often that lights and audio begin prior to a band’s appearance, but that’s how Metric took to the stage at Chicago’s Vic Theater. As blue lights pulsed and white ones danced the members of Metric took the slow building hallucinogenic sounds that were already being played and transitioned it into their song “twilight galaxy.” This was a solid show starter that was part electro-psych, part pop/rock, but all class.

Metric is a band that continually attempts to walk the line between rave and rock n’ roll. Of course, their version of rock n’ roll is highly supplemented by the contemporarily popular electrification of indie rock. Their crowd on this spring evening also reflected that balance; it was a very crowded event full of fist-pumping, quasi-dancing “ravers” as well as the more stoic, devil-finger flashing, “rockers.”

Metric then went into 3 of their well-liked numbers from their album; Satellite Mind, Front Row and Help I’m Alive. During these numbers Metric really showed off the capability of their lighting scheme. For being within a mid-size venue it really was top notch, both is the manner the lights were emotionally in-sync with the music and with the way they employed strobes and light curtains to keep their audience intrigued. This greatly added to the atmosphere of their show and definitely helped edge the audience into a heightened level of participation.

Yet musically, these anticipated songs came off slightly sterile. I enjoyed Emily Haines’ voice the most when she sang in a manner that was, for lack of a better term “noticeably live.” Only during Front Row did her voice seem to deviate even slightly from what’s heard on the album. And while this can be viewed as a feat by the vocalist, which it is, it just came off slightly as slightly vapid (though this could have also been due to their being at the end of their American tour, or that the show started considerably early in the evening).

But they also killed. For this author, Metric was at their best when they walked the line between rock and rave completely balanced, or leaned slightly into their rock side. Now don’t misunderstand; because Metric employs swift, strict-in-time, dance-friendly beats in most all of their songs (indeed, it’s what they are known for). Yet they have quite a knack for constructing catchy rock-riffs that interact with the dancing beats in such a frolic-friendly manner, it’s when they are most gripping.

For this reason it was on such songs as Gimme Sympathy, Gold Guns Girls, Stadium Love and a new song (name unknown, was the 5^th one of their set) in which they unleashed their most potent batch of live musical entertainment onto the Chicago crowd. These songs focused more on the guitar and usage of song progression, it addition to incorporating some psychedelic sounds.  On these songs was when Metric stimulated and connected with their audience the most – or at least this particular audience.

Metric does not have an easy job; they are a Canadian indie rock band that plays music which is of similar character to stadium-friendly pop music. They walk that line well, bringing together people of different ages and genre loyalties together in Chicago for a raucously good time. Yet should they discover that sounding sheik can quickly lead to sterility, and that their at their best when they honor their rock side, this is a band that has the talent and the know-how to ride the current wave of interests in glamorously electrified indie music for some time.

By Sean Brna

Sean.Brna@ourvinyl.com

What comes first, the audience or the band?

If a band hasn’t totally succumbed to mutant raging ego trips a’la The Black Crowes or Oasis, then chances are on some level they appreciate their fans. As they should, and yet how far do bands really go to show gratitude? More specifically, how much will a band and crew inconvenience themselves to say thanks?

The first UM Bowl was a fan appreciation dream where the band let the audience decide all that was played. Umphrey’s McGee crammed their sizeable stage set up into the fairly intimate Lincoln Hall for the performance, with a capacity just over 500.

Some might say, “Fan appreciation, for $100 a ticket?” Sure. But other Chicago area shows played by the band over the last several years have been in venues with plenty more room, like The Vic can fit about 1300 attendees while there’s about 4,500 capacity at the Aragon Ballroom. If a ticket costs roughly $25 to $30 for such shows, the band could have probably made more money elsewhere, even with the cost of UM Bowl admission.

But enough of the business. UM Bowl was four quarters: fan-chosen electric and acoustic sets voted on before the show, a Stew Art set where attendees text different potential music themes and the band creates a jam based off the themes and a set where fans decide the direction the set will take next by texting in decisions posted up on a screen (such as ‘metal jam’ or actual song choices from their catalogue).

Throughout this week and next, we will feature a review of each quarter posted separately to cover the event.*

Quarter 1: Fan-voted acoustic set

Omen (n) def: an occurrence or phenomenon believed to portend a future event

This event had hype. A ton of it. While only a few hundred attendees were ticketed in, it was broadcast on iClips for hundreds, possibly thousands, of others to see and hear.

So when the power went out for the guitars and keyboards barely a few minutes into the “Front Porch/Resolution” opener of one of the most ambitious and strenuous undertakings the band has taken on in some time, it easily could have set the tone. But as far as I know, the only time this band quit was when some Napoleon-esque cop thought they were too loud at a Niles, Mich. Show in 2003 (http://www.umphreys.com/home/setlists.php?year=2003#show_id_663)
As crew members Bob Ston and Robbie Williams got to business restoring power for guitarists Brendan Bayliss and Jake Cinninger, as well as keyboardist Joel Cummins, the rest of the band moved forward.

Drummer Kris Myers, percussionist Andy Farag and bassist Ryan Stasik kept the many eyes and ears occupied with some undulating funk. Bayliss took the open musical space to sing “We don’t need no lines/we don’t need no electricity/ we got enough with our strings/but it’d be nice”

Once all engines were firing, the band continued with the bright reggae feel that was built out of the power drop, before returning to the sing along of “Porch.”

“It wouldn’t be an acoustic set without electricity,” Bayliss said a split second before the band launched into their first ever acoustic “Hurt Bird Bath.”

A song known for its sheer force, HBB didn’t lose a single bit of intensity or intricacy in its translation to acoustic guitars. With a medium level of tension and energy built from the initial jam, the band used the song’s middle and closing theme to dissolve into another first-ever play; the backwoods-appropriate clapper “Bron-A-Yur Stomp” oddly written by a bunch of Brits called Led Zeppelin.

With Myers leading the band on a quick speed-up, colored by a deep synth rumble from Cummins, “Hurt Bird Bath” returned for a fierce ending. It sounded as if the band picked up at an eerily similar dynamic point from when they veered off into “Bron-A-Yur.” After some minor flubbing, the syncopated hits in the middle were followed by a dark low-volume sound mélange, with Cinninger taking advantage of the Babicz guitar’s spoke-style bridge to make plinking sounds. The band then blazed forward raising the energy all the way to the end through the panning effect created by the guitars and keys mirroring each other. Cinniger and Bayliss pushed a lot of sound out of their guitars, and the drums and bass ever gradually pressed further down on the gas to the end.

“I think I know why you wanted us to play that on acoustic,” Bayliss said through a smile afterward. “Because that is a bitch of a fucking song to play on an acoustic guitar.”

Many have been waiting for “The Weight Around” to appear at a full on Umphrey’s show, since the gut-wrenching guitar and voice tune about trudging forward after heartbreak appeared on 2006’s Safety In Numbers. Given the pain that likely led to it being penned, it’s no surprise why it took a release of control like UM Bowl for it to be played. True to every subtle nuance on the album, down to the twanged slide guitar by Cinniger, the song was another reminder of Umphrey’s depth as musicians and songwriters beyond their electric trickery.

Stone Temple Pilots “Interstate Love Song,” just as true to the recording, and the first Umphrey’s song ever written, “Divisions” closed out the first quarter.
Photos by Joel Berk, for more photos from UMBOWL click here.

Front Porch > “Jimmy Stewart”^ > Front Porch, Hurt Bird Bath > Bron-Y-Aur Stomp$ > Hurt Bird Bath > The Weight Around*, Interstate Love Song$$ > Divisions

^ with lyrics; Brendan, Jake, and Joel lost power
$ first time played, Led Zeppelin
* first time played, original
$$ first time played, Stone Temple Pilots

The 2nd, and a bit more surprising addition, came in the form of established jam rock guitarist Chris Michetti, of the band RAQ.  This was an unexpected addition for two reasons.  One being that he’s taking the 2nd lead guitar in a band that generally only had one and the other being that, honestly, there isn’t an incredible amount of fan crossover between the two bands.  Michetti did not fail to disappoint and found his niche quite quickly.

Fast forward to April 16th.  With several shows under the new lineup’s belt and with the return of Gutwillig, albeit in a guitar-less, limited capacity, the newly expanded sextet made their return to Richmond to play a two night run at The National.  Richmond has always proven to be a great scene for the Biscuits and the whole sub genre of live electronic music based jambands, which is bolstered by the work of locally based EQ Productions, who provided the late night festivities for the run.  Stepping into the first night of the run, it seemed like business as usual with the same faces and atmosphere that have followed the band since their mid 90’s inception to the scene.  As John Lee and the J.L.E. played through their opening set the attendees waited in anxious anticipation to see just how up to par the new incarnation was going to be.

Now, no one can deny that the Disco Biscuits fan base is one of the most faithful ever seen, but they are very critical, sometimes to a fault, of their favorite band.  Change is not something this scene adopts to very quickly, as seen by the recent divisive force caused by the release of their new cross over album Planet Anthem.  Fan’s were split amongst those resistant to the band’s new electro pop and hip hop influenced sound and those that accepted the band’s changes as necessary growth in a scene that, by most accounts, needed it.   Regardless of which side fans were on, they made it to the live show, which is were this band undoubtedly shines.  As the band finally took the crowded stage they were met with a gracious pop.  With no introduction (and none necessary ) the band slowly eased it’s way into a Flash Mob opener.  It’s become some what of a common thing these days for the Disco Biscuits to open up shows with one, or more often two, of it’s newer songs.  Although it sometimes leads to a slower start to the shows it’s an excellent maneuver on the bands part to get fans used to these new songs.  This was an uncannily good Flash Mob however and got the band into it’s groove quickly.  Hammilton’s lead chops in the composed sections proved that not too much had changed, with even his tone sounding eerily similar to Barber.

Where the changes did start to become evident is during the outro segue into Mirrors.  Now, personally, I am a fan of large band arrangements but I am weary of two lead guitarist stepping on each others toes.  Michetti and Hamilton pulled it off beautifully I thought, playing their space  very well.  One guitarist, usually played a more rock tinged style that would take a simple 4 measure theme that would be constantly built upon. The other guitarist would generally accentuate whatever the other guitarist was doing with a trance inducing, more rhythmic style that played nicely off of Arron Magner’s dance heavy melodic accompaniment.  Somewhere in this mix of sound lies Jon Gutwillig, provided tastefully understated fills in the right position with the help of his MIDI controller.

Next up came Kamaole Sands, a much older songs whose juxtaposition with the newer songs came as a welcome return to that which felt comfortable.  Marc Brownstein bopped along to the happy composed sections as Hammilton was given his first run at a big solo.  Hamilton  did a great job but it became painfully obvious that the band changes were not going to be without their hiccups as the band faltered in several noticeable places to keep it together.  But this is the Disco Biscuits and given the immense amount of time that improvisation takes up in any one of the places some bumps along the road are to be expected.  The composed section soon gave way to a great funk based jam, with Michetti stepping up a bit more and proving his worth with him and Hammilton weaving in an out of each other.  The funk continued till the tempo slowed down a bit as the band segued into Air Song, one of the most accepted of the new tunes and a song that has show excellent potential for improvisation.

Here, Magner starts to shine as he proves he has some of the busiest hands in the scene, providing several overlapping tones to the delight of spunions and any robots that happen to be in attendance.  As Magner took the reigns he slowly morphed into Humuhumunukunukuapua in one of the patient and seemless transitions that this band is known for.  The band took a quick departure from the light, airy jams that dominated the beginning of the show and start working into their darker sound in the 2nd half of Humu, to many fans delight.  Drummer Allen Aucion seems to come alive in this section, providing a dance laden beat that would work it’s way through several phases before Hammilton slowly reintroduces the main Kamaole theme with the rest of the band
following behind.  As Kamaole reached it’s peak I once again felt that this is where the Biscuits are going to hurt the most.  Not to downplay Hammiltons work but the peaks just don’t get to the places they can when Barber is donning his axe.

Next up came a melodic and completely unnecessary Magellan reprise.  I will never understand  the placement of this song as it tends to suck the energy out of a room quicker than an EMP blast in the middle of New York.  At least it fell on the end of a set, giving attendees a quick jump on the bathroom and bar
lines. The next set started off with a song from Planet Anthem entitled Big Wrecking Ball.  This song has received very mixed reviews from the fans and it seemed like the same could be said for the crowd at The National as it did not seem to be that greatly accepted.  Again though, this is the best placement for introducing new songs that fans need to get used to.  Clocking in at under four minutes the confused looks on the fans faces turned to jubilation as the keyboard intro to M.E.M.P.H.I.S.  graced the Bisco faithful’s ears.  Barber showed he doesn’t need a guitar to have stage presence as he sauntered around the stage providing the vocals and enjoying being the Plant as opposed to Page for a change.  The MEMPHIS jam was more of the same, but executed with a bit more precision.  Michetti’s work in this song reminded me very much of a Brendan Bayliss (guitarist and front man for long time Bisco friend’s Umphrey’s McGee) with a heavy arpegiated guitar groundwork given life with use of pedals and quick, frantic fills.

It was obvious that the band on stage felt quite comfortable as they surprised many of the Disco Biscuits fans by moving slowly into Basis for a Day.  Now for those not familiar with the Biscuits repretoire, playing Basis for a Day without Jon Gutwillig is tantamount to the Allman Brother’s playing Blue Sky without Dickey Betts.  It’s something that shouldn’t be done often, but if it is done, you better be on your a game.  I wish I could walk away from this saying my mind was changed but it’s not.  The complicated composed sections of this song just didn’t sound nearly as good without Barber.  I’m all for taking chances but you don’t pull a flea flicker with your second string quarterback at the helm.  As they moved away from the composed sections and into the next song, Catalyst, things started sounding great again with the energy really picking up about halfway through his near 20 minute dance odyssey.  As the energy continued to build it was noticeably working towards something.  That something slowly became the Great Abyss, an intense energy driven piece that tends to always whip the
kids into a dance party frenzy.

The band rode this energy right back into the 2nd half of Basis for a Day.  Again, however, the band fell apart and could not be saved by the funky slap bass of one Marc Brownstein.  The absence of Barber’s phsycedellic flurry of notes that seem reminiscent of an evil carousel anthem just can not be pulled off as well when done with a keyboard.  All was not lost though as the band moved into another improvisational section, providing the dark, evil funk jams that this song provides time after time.  Brownstein lays down some serious funk throughout the entire jam and helped the twin guitar assault, backed by some serious Aucion action, roll into the best peak of the entire night.

The band left the stage after the Basis conclusion to thunderous applause.  It wouldn’t be long till the band came back out on stage to play one of the best encores I have seen from this band.  Generally, I am an anti encore kinda guy.  I feel as if the energy gets lost in the time and the band usually spits out one or two uninspired, short, tunes.  I said, this encore was great though.  It started off with On Time, one of the most well received of the Planet Anthem songs.  Magner’s vocoder laced vocals help provide this potential club anthem with a welcome poppy feel.  Clocking in at just under 10 minutes it seemed as if that were all but Brownie provided the signature laugh that provides the intro for The Gorrilaz “Feel Good Inc”.  This was only the 2nd time the band tackled this cover and they pull it off quite well.  Plus, any song that let’s Brownie rap has automatic entertainment potential.

The general consensus after the show seemed to be one of a pleasant surprise.  Expectations seemed to be exceeded for the most part with the only noticeable faults coming in the peaks and the intense composed sections.  The Disco Biscuits proved that they can roll with the punches (no pun intended) but I think Barber’s return will be quite the welcome one.  Kudo’s to Michetti and Hamilton though.  They took on quite the daunting task and came out smelling like roses and with a few more fans in tow.

Written By:
Chasen Murray