Deer Tick with Elvis Perkins in Dearland, and The Low Anthem
May 4, 2009 by Editor
Filed under Concert Reviews
Deer Tick
with Elvis Perkins in Dearland, and The Low Anthem
April 24, 2009
Lupo’s
Providence, RI
There are times when one must rediscover why they love music. For me, it’s seeing musicians who are passionate about what they’re doing and pour their heart and soul into their craft. All three bands on tonight’s bill did just that.
The Low Anthem’s Ben Knox Miller, Jeff Prystowsky, and Jocie Adams humbly took to the stage then turned the entire crowd on its ear. Their roots-infused music pays special attention to harmony and meter. The band used some unusual instruments, like crotales, but what was compelling was how they wringed out sounds from their tools. At one point, Miller used two mobile phones to create an eerie and beautiful echo effect with his vocals. Most acts would simply run the vocals through a rack of effects processors. The Low Anthem turns even the smallest act of making music into an essential part of the performance, and the audience loved every moment.
Photo by Kristen Pierson
Elvis Perkins in Dearland set began with Perkins alone on the side of the stage with the rest of the band joining him after the first song. The set was a lively experience. Nick Kinsey came out in front with a marching bass drum for a couple songs while the rest of the band, Brigham Brough with his bass and Wyndham Boylan-Garnett on trombone would strut around the stage. They did a great job of getting the crowd worked up.
The sound during their set was a bit difficult to tolerate. At times, you couldn’t hear when Perkins changed guitar chords. But the performance was so riveting, hardly anyone but me noticed.
By now, the venue was packed with people. I’ve seen some big name national acts come through Providence and not draw such a crowd. Everyone cheered as Deer Tick, John McCauley, Andrew Tobiassen, Christopher Ryan, and Dennis Ryan, took the stage and started playing. Some of the band’s family members were standing behind me during the show and seemed to be the most vocal cheerleaders.
Their set was full of great tunes from their first album, War Elephant, and songs like “Easy” from their forthcoming album, Born on Flag Day. During a lighter moment, McCauley had the entire crowd sing “Happy Birthday” to one fan… then he had to quickly sing it again for another.
The crowd was cheering whistling, and even singing along during the entire set. It was remarkable to see this young up-and-coming band illicit such a crowd reaction. Even though the sound problems carried over from the Elvis Perkins in Dearland set and it took them threes songs to figure it out, the crowd seemed largely un-phased and had a great time.
Though it was a friendly home-town crowd, I expect that Deer Tick will often be greeted with the same response wherever they play. It was a great show by all three bands, and I can’t wait to see them play again the next time they’re in town.
