Monday re-cap: The audience is the star of the show

Look at these wonderful smiling people at Monday’s show! Recognize many? I did not. But I think we all made some new friends. It seems these folks traveled (from far away in some cases) to see some rad bands—Max Beast, Total Fang, Ghost Animal, and Skyline Electric—most of which were new to Pehr, just like themselves.

For a live music fan like myself this was pretty cool because there was a new excitement. And then there’s the fact that life, the universe and everything is always, inexorably moving…

Max Beast had only played one show before this, their final performance. No! These guys were awesome fun and had a rockin’ drummer. He put that grunge/Pixies/”let’s get amped” drum fill in here and there (ya know the one that goes buppa-buppa-buppa-EXPLOSION) that gets me every time. Max Beast warmed up with a Hole cover so I think I got their number there. Good one, guys.

Total Fang. Argh. A-MAZ-ING songs (especially “Girls At Night,” which you can hear here, and “Basement Decay”…if I were in an L.A. cover band I would cover those tunes—future classics). But aw shit if they didn’t turn out to be one of those backs-to-the-audience bands THAT I CANNOT PHOTOGRAPH. Bwahahaha. Joke’s on me, I guess‚ I just had to listen to the playing. It sounded really good and powerful in all the right places so I hope they keep playing.

Ghost Animal was missing their drummer. But damn if a little toy drum machine didn’t fill in okay. And although the organic rock oomph wasn’t, by definition, quite there, GA’s performance simply focussed more attention on the voice and songs of Michael Avishay, who is a very talented performer and writer. It’s not modern to talk about such matters I know so…I’m getting back into my groovy wheelchair and rolling back to the retirement home.

Skyline Electric was truly breathtaking glitched jazz. It wasn’t everyone’s taste, I know. But to the the dozen or more people who stayed inside to listen, you get an extra double thanks from me. Not that you need that. SE’s drummer Alan used to be in Devo who played with Sun Ra back in the day (at that WMMS Halloween show at the Agora—read the story it is such a great tale!!!), so when you listened to Skyline Electric (which also featured Omega, who’s a Monday night sweetheart as well as a skilled and clever bassist), you plugged your cerebral cortex into a spaced out continuum that connects the best music of the 20th and 21st centuries to the realm BEYOND…What could be a better gift than that?

This was a smart smart audience and the bands were really great. I appreciate all that you do, so I hope you come back again to play, listen and hang out.

Kyle—thank you. Mikhai—many thanks. Tai—thanks for the beer. Pehr—thanks for the space.

More of the newest music this Monday so don’t miss out…