Song of the Week

The Magnetic Fields are responsible for some of the most achingly beautiful songs of the last couple decades and some of the snarkiest. Their newest release, Realism, finds them in fine form and still coming up with zingers like, "You can't go around just saying stuff because it's pretty. And I no longer drink enough to think you're witty." Ouch!

3 Brand New Thome Yorke Songs!

Right Here!

Grapevine

With talk already running rampant that Radiohead may release a new album this year, things have gotten even more exciting with the prospects of new records by both M.I.A. (who started the rumor on her own Twitter account) and The Walkmen (who may in fact be working on an ambitious double album). We're really beginning to like this year.

Under The Influence

Each month we pick an influential band or musician that you might not know so well and tell you how they have influenced those you do. This month we are looking at the crazy-ass, Casper-the-Ghost loving, singer/songwriter, Daniel Johnston. Johnston, a diagnosed schizophrenic, has often led a life that has overshadowed his music. That life was brought to focus a few years ago in the terrific documentary, The Devil and Daniel Johnston, where we learned about his long list of inappropriate (to say the least) behavior. We learned, for instance, that Johnston once tried to crash a plane his father was flying on purpose because he thought he was already a ghost and also how Johnston once scared an elderly woman so much (believing that she was Satan) that she jumped out of an apartment window (a few stories up) to escape (she lived). But all that would be relatively uninteresting if it wasn't for the other thing that Johnston does - make heartbreakingly sad and sincere pop tunes. Although Johnston is far from a talented musician technically speaking, he has an uncanny knack for melody and the type of touching lyrics that only a self absorbed, clinically insane person could get away with. Much like the late Vic Chestnutt, it's Johnston's limits as a musician that emphasize how much he needs it in his life to express himself, elevating what could be written off as sloppy musicianship to a rare form of high-art. But don't just take my word for it. Here, a list of music-makers who cite Johnston as a major influence.

Kurt Cobain
Often seen wearing a t-shirt that depicted the front cover of Johnston's album, Hi How Are You? Cobain was both a huge fan and deeply influenced by Johnston's work, which can be heard in a song like "Pennyroyal Tea."

Sparklehorse
Mark Linkous, the brains behind Sparklehorse, is basically what Daniel Johnston would be if he were a fully functioning human being that didn't go around trying to kill devils all the time. Linkous has gone on to produce a tribute album for Johnston and his music is heavily influenced by the troubled singer in the best possible way. The two artists' parents have even become friends over the years!

Beck
While you might not hear it in a spazzed-out, electro-funk anthem like "Where It's At," take a listen to Mutations or even Sea Change to hear the super honest, lost-in-the-world-without-you tunes that Johnston does so well. Not sold? Beck also appeared on the tribute album, The Late Great Daniel Johnston and when you hear him do the song, you hear how easily it could have been one of his own.

Bright Eyes
Daniel Johnston has had such an impact on Conor Oberst that it's really hard to imagine Bright Eyes existing if there were no DJ. Oberst has, in fact, taken Johnston's song, "Devil Town" and made it into a crowd-favorite staple of his own live shows.

Sonic Youth
Though they cite him as an influence, frankly I don't hear it (unless you count the sheer dissonance in their music that for them is experimentation and for Johnston is, well, just how he plays). But there is no denying that they have great affection for him (and incredible patience) as is on display in the movie The Devil and Daniel Johnston.

All About the Benjamin$

Did you know that you can support your local blogger simply by clicking the ads on their page? It cost you absolutely nothing, yet due to the magic of Google, said blogger can make money to support their blogging endeavors by doing such things as purchasing merchandise like shirts and stickers, as well as having the means to buy albums and go to concerts in order to provide you with the best news, reviews and coverage (you know, if it's a music blog). Oh Look! There are ads on the right side of this page! Very interesting...

Song of the Week (Soul-full edition)

Recently I have been getting a lot of requests to cover a wider variety of music. While theoretically this is an excellent idea, my musical knowledge is at its peak when I'm talking about rock. While I would love to post a review of the newest Sade album, truth be told, I haven't had the time (or money) to give it a listen. When faced with the decision of whether or not I'm going to purchase said Sade record or the newest by the Magnetic Fields, the scales weigh heavily in favor of the latter. This is, at this point, unmistakably a blog that follows rock music and even more specifically the underground/independent variety. We do however welcome written submissions of ALL genre's of music if you fancy yourself a critic. All that said, a little soul music never hurt anyone and here is song and video that a friend introduced me to about a week ago by Anthony Hamilton, featuring Monique. I found it both fantastic and hilarious. Hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

See Lion (Get It?)

This afternoon I will be in College Park watching the Maryland v. Georgia Tech game and right after that, attending a birthday party, but if the timing is right, I will also be at the Red and the Black checking out Daddy Lion. Daddy Lion makes wonderfully fuzzy guitar rock in the vein of The Replacements, Husker Du, and (older/better) Modest Mouse created in a bedroom by Jeremy Whitman and brought to life with a full band that has been gigging regularly in the past few months.

The band has gotten national press recently when their song "Morning" was picked as NPR's Song of the Day and recently released a self-titled EP that you can download for free right here.

So if you're not too busy tonight for some terrific hometown rock then you should cough up the measly $8 (well worth it my friend) and check out Daddy Lion (Saturday, February 20th) at The Red and the Black - hopefully I will join you there.

School of Rock

Each month we take a look at a specific type of music or musical movement and tell you what it's all about. This month's lecture is on "Math Rock."

Math Rock - adjective, origin - The American Midwest, circa - late 1980's

The term Math Rock was first coined in the late 1980's to describe a sound that was taking shape out of the post rock scene with some bands in the Midwest. The sound is a mix of odd time signatures (such as 7/8, 11/8/, 13/8 as opposed to the traditional 4/4) and start and stop rhythms. Math rock bands are generally led by guitars and drums plugging away at difficult rhythms that often change abruptly throughout the coarse of a song to different time signatures. The music usually focuses on the instrumentation while the vocals are moved to the background or used as another instrument. This brand of complex songwriting is why the sound has been dubbed Math Rock - though, like all labels, most groups reject actually calling themselves a Math Rock band.

The earliest influences of math rock can be traced to 1970's 'progressive' bands like Rush, Yes, Frank Zappa and even Pink Floyd. While the origins of Math Rock began in Chicago with bands like Breadwinner and Big Black the sound has spread to both coasts and became especially big in San Diego (Rocket from the Crypt, No Knife) and Washington, DC (Q and not U, Shudder to Think, Jawbox). Most recently the genre has been rekindled by neo math rockers Battles, whose album Atlas was chosen as the best record of 2007 by a slew of music critics.

Class dismissed.

Video of the Day

Thomas Grogan is a Baltimore musician who most recently relocated from San Francisco. He is currently in residency at the Fondo Del Sol Visual Arts Center where he creates art under the nom de plum 'Grogan Social Scene.' Check out this video he made that incorporates footage from the area's very recent Snowmageddon.

a mid-atlantic post-apacolyptic whirlwind from Thomas Grogan on Vimeo.

Here Grogan explains his process of making the video:

"Basically I had an experience during this blizzard to bond with strangers and essentially lay the foundations for what will be new friendships. When I returned home in the evening, I was reminded that throughout my life, I have met many people i have come to know and love. For whatever circumstances, many of these relationships 'ebb and flow.' This is a better analogy then come and go; people trying to put a defined limit on these things that are intangible such as a bond between two or more people is somewhat silly. This was released to my friends on Valentine's Day. As contrast to the singularity that Valentine's imposes on love, this is meant to celebrate the plurality."

You can download Grogan's digital content for free at his website www.grogansocialscene.com.
Also, he says to feel free to contact him with any questions, suggestions, concerns, or anger at grogansocialscene@gmail.com

Song of the Week (Where Have I Been? Edition)

So just wondering, how many of you have ever heard of a band called The Microphones? Apparently they are incredibly influential and important and have been for ten years but somehow I am just now discovering their existence (thank you Pandora.com). Based out of Olympia, Washington, The Microphones came on the scene in 1999 but made some serious noise in the underground scene with their highly ambitious and wonderful The Glow Part 2. Not an easy album to describe - a little Neutral Milk Hotel, a little art project gone terribly (wonderfully) wrong, the album bounces back and forth between gorgeous low-fi acoustic sing-alongs and sonic terrorscapes. Below you can hear the lovely, "I Felt Your Shape," (nevermind the stupid fan-made video) but make sure you check out some of their other tunes before commiting to buying The Glow Part 2 as other parts of this album sound dramatically different from this song. Anyway, it's always awesome to find a new band to love but it makes me wonder what the hell else I've been missing?!

A Tale of Two Cities

Without a doubt the two most anticipated events in Washington, DC yesterday were the DC Record Fair and the Our City Film Festival. Only a couple Metro stops away, I decided to visit both. One man, two events - let's do this.

The DC Record Fair

What: Billed as the premiere record collecting event of the year, The DC Record Fair brought together all of the cities top record stores as well as many personal sellers and vendors.

The Experience: After being carded at the door (for what?) and charged $2 to get in (again, for what?) I was allowed to enter the fair. Inside I found a mix of hoodie-wearing hipsters and forty-something basement dwellers waiting in long lines to get to see the record crates that were all around the edge of the club. The lighting was so dark that I often had to squint to read the very few labels hung up around the room advertising the record stores on hand and the "music" in the background was numbed-out ambient noise being made by two DJ's who couldn't be bothered to actually do anything other than stare out at the crowd through their emo haircuts (I guess that's where my $2 went). I eventually found my way into one of the lines and after waiting about 15 minutes was rewarded by being able to sift through a record crate full of reject albums like Charlie Rich, lesser Art Garfunkle and a bunch of shit that absolutely no one has ever heard of. Graced with the decision to either wait in another line having no idea what picked-over crap I would find at the end or walking outside into the freezing cold, I chose to head toward the exit door. Fail!

What I Left With: A red stamp on my hand that gave off the impression that I was dying of some sort of incurable skin disease.

Our City Film Festival

What: The third annual film festival featuring documentaries made about Washington, DC (sans monuments, presidents, spies, etc.) with all proceeds going to Yachad, a non-profit organization that renovates houses in low-income neighborhoods to combat gentrification.

The Experience: $12 at the door gets you access to about two-hours worth of local films about things you didn't know about, things you didn't know you wanted to know about but find out that you did, and a few that you could have lived without. A little more cash gets you an all-day pass but what's the point when you've already wasted half your day at the DC Record Fair? Most of the movies were pretty awesome and featured subjects like the 9th & S checker's club, organic movement pioneer and restaurateur, Nora, and a history of Washington, DC's kick ass Go-Go music scene. After the movies, viewers were allowed a Q&A with the film-makers and were then treated to free organic food from local farmers, allowed to witness a checker's match (way more exciting than it sounds) and meeting members of the Go-Go scene. A couple films were laughable or over-long but for the most part the experience was very enjoyable and well worth it.

What I Left With: A lot of new insights into Washington, DC, the knowledge that my money had gone to support a great cause and some free organic apples.

-Travis Hare

Monumental Music

Every time I start to think that maybe our commander in chief could be doing a better job, I remind myself that we could be dealing with this and then I feel better. In honor of President's Day, here's a mix to Barack-out with your... okay, I'm not going there. Anyway, here's the mix.

Death Cab For Cutie - "President of What?"

Billy Bragg & Wilco - "Christ for President"

Sufjan Stevens - "Jacksonville"

Rainer Maria - "The Contents of Lincoln's Pockets"

Hope of the States - "George Washington"

Dead Prez - "Know Your Enemy"

Young Jeezy - "My President is Black"

James Brown - "Funky President"

Magnetic Fields - "Washington DC"

They Might Be Giants - "Tippecanoe and Tyler too"

Song of The Day

With no further ado.

Extra Extra

All the music news you need to know this weekend.

Dr Dre is suing his long-time label the controversial Death Row Records. That's so gangsta!

The cause of garage rocker Jay Retards death is revealed and it involves (shock!) drugs.

Snooki from "Jersey Shore" hosts an interview with Phoenix - surprisingly, not in a hot tub.

Billboard Magazine picks Olivia Newton-John's "Physical" as the sexiest song ever written. We are 'physically' ill.

Heart of Darkness

Up until the last couple years of my life Valentine's Day meant jealously watching other couples parade their annoying love in my face while I sulked around in the cheap whiskey aisle at the liquor store. Alas, I have found happiness but you still won't catch me climbing aboard the corporate holiday ship that is Valentine's Day. Because NPR has already stolen my idea for best break-up songs to mark the date, I have decided to come up with the ten absolutely saddest songs I can think of. Pour yourself another drink and chase it down with a healthy dose of heartache.

Aretha Franklin - "Don't Play That Song For Me"
When The Queen is sad, you'll know it. And feel it.



Beach Boys - "I Just Wasn't Made For These Times"
"Sometimes I feel very sad," Brian Wilson sings like a mantra in this ode to depression. It doesn't get any more simple than that. Or heartbreaking.



Billie Holiday - "Am I Blue"
If loneliness had a theme song, this would be it.



Bright Eyes - "A Perfect Sonnet"
It's over dramatic, over-the-top, whiny and full of F-U/feel -sorry-for -me lyrics - everything a sad song should be.



Bill Withers - "Ain't No Sunshine"
Stark and soulful. Sadness has never sounded sexier.



The Cure - "One Hundred Years"
When you get to that nihilistic point where nothing matters anymore and never will again, this is your song.



Johnny Cash - "Hurt"
Cash took this thrashy-industrial song by Nine Inch Nails and turned it into an epic summary of a broken man at the end of his life laying out his 'Empire of Dirt' for all to see.



Neutral Milk Hotel - "Oh Comely"
Invoking The Holocaust, trailer parks and lovers being chewed to death by horrible creatures in a snowy forest is all in a day's work for singer/songwriter Jeff Mangum. It's not all sad though - the lovers at the end of the song rejoice at the fact that once they are eaten by the animal they will be as one in his stomach. Yay!



Otis Redding - "These Arms of Mine"
Even if this song was about flowers and puppy dogs, that voice would still make you cry.



Patsy Cline - "Crazy"
We've all been there - wanting that person who is no good for you. But I bet you never wrote a song this good about it.

Make a Plan to Love Me

In honor of Shameless Self Promotion Day here at AOoN, we wanted to remind you of some of the great interviews we have brought you over the last few months, like:

Indie rock freak-funkers, Le Loup

Apocalyptic noise-makers, The Farewell Republic

DC stalwart and soon-to-be household name, Deleted Scenes

U2's, Bono (Er... maybe some day)

Also, don't miss one of our favorite monthly features State of Rock, whereby we take a look at one of our nation's great states and tell you the top ten musicians or bands who call it home. So far we've covered Washington, DC, Maryland and Kansas. Maybe your state will be next!

Working Hard For The Money (except for the money part)

Hello Friends. Like NPR and PBS before us, AOoN would like to interrupt your regularly scheduled programming to ask for your help. Don't worry, we don't need money (yet)! We're asking once again that all of our readers set your facebook status to advertise the blog and encourage others to 'friend' us. Also, if you are a tweeter, uh, twitterererer - whatever it's called, you can follow us and tell your friends to follow us by going here.

Why you ask? Well, because we want to provide you with the best music news, reviews, lists and opinions that we can and the more people who follow the better chance we have at gaining advertisers. In the coming months we intend to keep expanding and even start giving away and selling some sweet merch, like t-shirts, stickers, etc. We want to have the means to see more live shows, interview big stars and actually pay our growing team of amazing writers.

Thank you all for your wonderful support and please, please, please spread the word!

Breathe...Keep Breathing

From the omigod omigod omigod department, it looks like all those rumors about a new Radiohead album this year just might be true. This week more rumors that the band is putting finishing touches on what is slated to be their eighth album. The bands most recent release, In Rainbows, was a critical success and record industry game-changer due to the fact that it was released online and fans could decide how much they wanted to pay for it. No word yet on whether this will be released the same way or if they will take a more traditional approach. For more, check out the Radiohead news site At Ease.

Album Review: The Antlers - Hospice

Today, Scott Goldstein tells us about an album I have been curious about myself for quite some time. His thoughtful review and beautiful descriptions have convinced me to head to the record store ASAP.

The Antlers released their latest album, Hospice, on June 23, 2009. Hospice weaves a bitter narrative about a Hospice worker and his grief stricken relationship with a terminally-ill bone cancer patient named Sylvia.

Hospice, like For Emma, Forever Ago (Bon Iver), was written by a lone artist secluded from the world. Frontman Peter Silberman moved to New York in 2006, cut off all ties from family and friends, and started recording the album in 2007 that was intended as an elegy for his disappearance. The result, two years later, is Hospice, an intensely sad album that explores tragedy and loss.

Hospice is an elegant record made brilliant because of the way the Antlers have mastered their sounds. The album opens with the instrumental "Prologue," which has piano symphonied with swelling ethereal noise, whose constant repetition recalls life support. "Kettering" takes the listener straight to the death bed of the girl, a place of isolation where our hospice worker is so absorbed caring for his patient that the rest of the world has been muffled into a hollow, eerie murmur.

The beautiful tragedy takes a brief detour in what is one of their best songs on the album, "Bear." In "Bear," Silberman tells the tale of a young couple who decide to have an abortion. Metaphor-filled, Bear describes the remorse they feel, yet the Antlers exploration of regret sounds interestingly original; none of that screaming crap, but rather an eerily beautiful sound that could give nightmares in its calmness. However, Bear does not come across political, rather it provides a thoughtful break from one depressing story, and brings you into another. Like many of the songs on the album, Bear immerses you into its own dreary world and then explodes into its chorus before receding back to the lump-in-throat alternative Universe that is Hospice. This pattern occurs in many of the songs on Hospice, and the little/soft-to-big and back to little refrain brings to mind a flickering candle, or a dying star.

The introductions to the songs in Hospice are a huge reason why the story of the album makes its point. The intros pull you into their dreary world magnificently and originally. "Sylvia" begins with a striking banging of drums evoking being told some terrible news, while "Prologue" captures the repetition of a life support machine.

The true brilliance of Hospice lies in its simplicity, the story feels so right because it is so simple. The Antlers are only three guys; Silberman, drummer Michael Lerner and Darby Cicci, and they bring you into their world without overdoing it. Perhaps this is because most of the album was done without a label. The lyrics, too, are clever and thoughtful, as Silberman comes across looking like a careful wordsmith.

Hospice is so compelling because of the strikingly intimate look at the psychology of our sufferer. This is attained because of the emotion felt by Silberman during his time in New york. In an interview I saw, Silberman explains that, “The record came about during the ending of one period of my life and the beginning of another…I’d say the record is semi-autobiographical. The story was written alongside the recording which took about a year and a half. It took a long time to make it make sense…” Merely hearing the pain in his choked-up voice shows the emotion Silberman feels talking about the album that is so much about himself. His pain makes the album so brilliant, it enables him to describe pain with astounding accuracy.

The best songs on the album are probably Bear, Two, Shiva, and Sylvia. Silberman and company have captured tragedy and loss, and paint the world in Hospice in a way that you are so drawn in that listening to the album almost makes you feel ashamed for peering down into the world of our sufferer, for seeing him get broken time and time again in the grand performance that is the world of Hospice.

-Scott Goldstein

Once the 30 inches from our recent Snowpocalypse here in Washington, DC melts, many of you may be looking for something to do that gets you out of the house but allows you to keep warm. Look no further than this Sunday's Our City Film Festival. The event, a perfect Valentines Day date I might add, will take place at the Goethe Institute in China Town and feature documentaries made about our fair city (you know, the one under all that snow). The films being shown cover everything from DC's booming farmer's market movement, a late night at a Jumbo Slice (DC's venerable drunk food of choice), the homeless chess players in Dupont Circle, and our personal favorite, Straight Up Go-Go, a documentary on DC's go-go music scene featuring musical legend Chuck Brown (note: one of the g0-g0 musicians featured in the film will be on hand).

Need another reason? All proceeds from the event will go to Yachad - a Jewish non-profit for affordable housing whose main mission is to rejuvenate lower-income neighborhoods by helping those who already live there stay there and stop the displacing effects of gentrification. So there you have it, cinematic enlightenment, social justice and getting the hell out of the house for a while all wrapped up into one perfect Valentines Day.

For tickets and information click here.

Jock Rock

We never miss an opportunity to make fun of someone's inflated ego, and in the wake of this year's Super Bowl, we thought we'd take a moment to poke fun at athletes who didn't think they were famous enough already. Here, a list of some of the best sports bloopers we've ever seen and a gentle reminder to other athletes with musical ambitions: Don't quit your day job.

Shaquille O'Neal - Diesel
Between his two careers Shaq has broken an equal amount of backboards and ear drums.
Sample lyric: "I can flow like pee coming out you know what/Or some poopy diarrhea coming out your butt."



Deion Sanders - Prime Time

Someone from the record company should have intercepted this before it hit the shelves.
Sample Lyric: "Every since I was young I was the best in sports/From the baseball diamond to the hoop courts."



Oscar De La Hoya - Self Titled
I'd rather have De La Hoya punch me in the face as hard as he can than make me listen to his music for more than a second.

Sample lyric: "If ever you got rain in your heart/Someone has hurt you and torn you apart/Am I unwise to open up your eyes to love me"



Terry Bradshaw - I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry
The Pittsburgh Steeler's quarterback/loose cannon might have carried his football team at times, but he couldn't carry a tune
Sample lyric: (these are covers so at least he couldn't screw that up)



Jack McDowell (Stick Figure) - Memento Mori
American league pitchers don't normally get to hit the ball. If McDowell's music is any indication that's a good thing because it's certain he'd strike out.
Sample lyric - "She's ready now/But you never have to mention/She's steady now/No signs of her dementia/I'm still waiting for her to say/I feel Magenta"

-Travis Hare

Snowbliteration

You would think, given the fact that we here at AOoN are currently being battered by a storm that is supposed to rival the great Knickerbocker Storm of 1922, I'd have plenty of time to write. It turns out that epic snowfall just outside my window has a way of elevating my ADHD to unprecedented levels. Instead, I've decided to let others do the work for me. For those of you more inclined to sweating than myself, here's a great winter weather workout mix from our good friends at NPR.

Scott Thought #3

Our good friend Scott has one more point to make about why you oughta be spending your money on live music instead of poor quality mp3's.

I saw my favorite band, The National, at the 9:30 Club last May, and I will remember it forever. Matt Berninger, their lead singer picked up a bottle of Malbec at the end of “About Today” live, where there is a long and brilliant instrumental, and he was able to take a break. After rocking out for a bit, he found himself parched, and, looking up, smiling, he shot the cork into the audience. Hundreds of hands shot up and I came up with it. I framed the cork and have it to this day! It’s these personal intimate moments with your band that are light-years ahead of crappy iTunes quality listening. This is why we save money to pony up for a splurge when we can listen to the same song in the comfort of our own home. Music is not sports where people would rather watch the game on their Hi-Def television. I hope, I sincerely hope, that with the coming decade and digital age, where it is easier than ever to hear your song wherever whenever, that we will keep the concert going strong because each and every person comes home with a story. And besides, even if you disagree with the rest of what I said and think it’s crap, face it…concerts are f***in awesome!

-Scott Goldstein

Funkier Than the Average Bear

With the Super Bowl upon us, frequent contributing writer Debbie McGuire, A.K.A. my mom, remembers a special moment in time when music and sports collided like two angry linemen.

This is the 25th anniversary for a great music video. No, this group did not make it into the music hall of fame, nor did they win any great awards for their music.

25 years ago, in 1985, the Chicago Bears won the Super Bowl. 80’s dance music was in style, Michael Jackson was at the height of his career and Madonna, Wham and Duran Duran were all topping the charts.

We were headed out of the Punk era and onto something new. At the movies we watched The Breakfast Club, Police Academy, Rambo and The Goonies. On T.V. we were watching Moonlighting, MacGyver and the mini-series North and South.

However, in the month of January, in 1985, we all took a moment to watch not only the Chicago Bears win a Super Bowl; we took a whole month and watched the Chicago Bears do The Super Bowl Shuffle on every late night show, on the news, and on the new MTV. Yes, the beloved Super Bowl Shuffle - Jim McMann, Refrigerator Perry and other Bears greats danced, sang, and played their horns to raise money to feed the poor in Chicago. The video is on Youtube now, which of course didn’t even exist in 1985. It’s still just as endearing today as it was then. So, Happy 25th Anniversary to The Super Bowl Shuffle.





-Debbie McGuire

When They Get Together, It's Always Hot Magic

Today writer Michelle Fay Nowitz gives her amazing tale of one crazy night with Of Montreal.
If you’ve never heard Of Montreal’s ethereal tunes, listening to them for the first time might be an experience similar to Alice going down the rabbit hole. Alice, floating in midair at moments, falling fast and hard at others - all resulting in an adrenaline pumping high sure to make your brain conjure up psychedelic visuals as well as dance your ass off. Of Montreal’s latest album, Skeletal Lamping, takes you on a psychedelic-pop journey through endless twists and turns with surprises around every corner. Their show at the 9:30 club this past weekend wasn’t much different.

The moment the lights dimmed, the audience was greeted by four men donned in black body suits wearing various animal head masks. Each picking a different instrument, they began to play, strum, and bang mercilessly, as if they were children who just discovered that they could make endless noise. The crowd, who was cheering them on, assumed that the band members were wearing the various masks (Kevin Barnes, of course, being the tiger), but were pleasantly surprised to see the actual band members come out one by one and kick the animal-human hybrids off their instruments. The second they picked up their instruments and got settled, they immediately swung into their pop hit “Suffer For Fashion”. And with the opening drumbeat of the song, on went the lights and the colorful, vivacious graphics on the large screens behind them accompanied by Kevin Barnes’s melodic voice floating through the rafters. They continued on to play “Mingusings”, in a harder and louder version than is found on Skeletal Lamping.

As for graphics, the band innovatively used the green shirt Kevin Barnes was wearing and the green masks the mimes (who were previously on stage as the animal-human hybrids) had on as a green screen; when the live cameras placed around the stage would film a band member, instead of the plain green that they donned in real life, the color would magically turn into multi-color kaleidoscope designs on the big screen above the stage. And for the band members who weren’t wearing green? The mimes generously shined green lights onto them, forming an other-worldly effect, also translated on to the screen. They even took it as far as to have two mimes (one in a green cape) fighting behind Barnes with green swords (or lightsabers, depending on how you look at it) as he sung.

The concert was a theatrical production which even a non-Montreal fan would have found amusing, if not mesmerizing. The band morphed even their smoother, gentler songs into ones that the audience could jump, dance, and prance to-much like Kevin Barnes seemed to be doing on stage during most of their set; their clever use of green screen (especially during “Spike The Senses”) was impressive and complemented the music perfectly; and let’s not forget the moment when two men came on stage in gas masks and surrounded by smoke as Barnes sung the mesmerizing and slower tune of “St. Exquisite’s Confessions”, which picks up towards the end with the surreal lyrics “Feeling voices again not good/Think the sky is pregnant with maggots…” Or the man dressed in boys’ one-piece pajamas come on stage accompanied by a guy dressed up as a priest. “St. Exquisite’s Confessions” ends climactically with intense music emanating from guitarist Bryan Poole and drummer Jamey Huggins, and the boy beating the shit out of the priest. And did I mention the point where two guys come on stage wearing only underwear poised in the dark, holding what I could tell was some sort of fruit? They stayed standing tall and proud as Barnes jumped and danced around them, and the audience jumped with him, as he sang “Oslo In The Summertime” effortlessly. Just as effortlessly as it seemed the men crushed the fruits in the palms of their hands.

By the end of the show, the visual and theatrical stakes got raised higher and higher with each song. From the mimes shooting feathers out of huge machines on to the crowd as they danced, to the epic finale: heavy instrumentals blare, strobe lights flashing brighter and faster, and Kevin Barnes climbing on top of a huge wooden X with each arm or leg on each section, vertically facing the crowd as the mimes pull the sides of the X stretching Barnes, as if it is a medieval torture device. Kevin Barnes is a thespian in our modern age – his stage presence and behavior is histrionic in the best way possible.

Lyrics are an important part of Of Montreal’s unique sound – their surreal feel give way to an incomparable vibe and tell elaborate stories that exist as if on a virtual plane which you can listen to incessantly. You will soon become addicted to the best kind of sexually explicit lyrics such as “I want you to be my pleasure puss/I wanna know what it’s like to be inside you” from “Plastis Wafer”. Or “we can do it softcore if you want, but you should know I take it both ways/We can do it softcore if you want, but you should know that I go both ways” from “For Our Elegant Caste” (I won’t even mention the lyrics to “Gallery Piece”). Barnes’s inimitable voice creates a musical cocoon that continuously draws you in as you listen to the unconventional lyrics and transports you down the rabbit hole for the entirety of the performance. The band was omnipotent – controlling the crowd at will with their instruments and voices. They commanded attention with their stage presence, resulting in frenzied screams and endless howls of approval from the crowd.

From their grand opening to their extravagant finale, the entire audience was Alice, falling chaotically and rapidly down the rabbit hole, and enjoying every second of it.

-Michelle Fay Nowitz