Sunday, February 14, 2010

Cumulus 2010 Part 2

Day two saw Steve and I buy some pedals from a true gear-nerd, and we ran into our old friend Zack, a local Seattle musician who plays in The Fool The Magician. He said the Funhouse, the venue for the show, was a cool place to play. Energetically, the Funhouse is designed for dirty, trashy punk shows, and I don't think the vibe of the music at Cumulus really fit. This Blinding Light were perhaps the best band to fill the space properly with their psychedelic whirlwind of fuzz and groove.

The Ever Changing Sky opened, and they had a couple good tunes that framed their set. They struck me as a rag-tag bunch of post-rockers who had found each other by chance. It was pretty or'nary post-rock. The drummer was great and he did play his cymbal with his earring at one point. Props!
AresteiA are from Portland, and their music was also pretty familiar, following the teachings of Mogwai, EITS and the like. But it was their energy that was captivating. These guys ROCK. And they fly all over the stage. Their drummer hit his skins so hard he went deaf. Afterward, their bassist told us "It would feel wrong to play this music and stand still." Still recovering from the workout, he then attempted to drink his water, but it splashed on his shirt. It made no difference because he was already so sweaty from playing.

Elders are from Davis, CA and they play an almost bluesy form of post-rock. It's high on the romanticism, feeling more delicate than emotional, helped by the sensual bass playing and the ever-present Nord keyboard. The woman playing that also sang at times. The guitar was jangly, rough and sounded like static as the bearded player played dissonant and unusual chords. It was a different feel, for sure, though their set seemed to last a little long. One less song, and they might have people craving more... But they won't get it unless they buy the merch.

At last This Blinding Light started playing at 1:19am. This, in my opinion, is when I should be asleep. Steve and I were desperate to leave, but persevered to experience the ritualistic majesty. White fuzz and bright fog lights set the tone for some dramatic theater, which included big mallets, tribal workouts and a jaguar guitar that laid down some fuzzy leads over the repetitious groove.
These people seem like they love the psychedelic music, but they also seem entirely inaccessible. We weren't going to do any interviews this night, but if I had set one up with TBL, I might have felt oddly intimidated, or perhaps unwanted? All speculation, and I really should just erase what I just wrote, but fuck it. That was the vibe. Mix that in with the disjointed atmosphere in the Funhouse, and I would conclude that this venue is not good for Cumulus. At least This Blinding Light can JAM, and it was the only part of the whole festival when I was compelled to dance. Considering how tired I was, I consider their 3-song set a success.

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