about a month ago, i solicited list-members opinions re: the scottish band mogwai, who
would be playing a show in my area (denver, colorado). several of you were kind enough to respond and encouraged me to attend.
well, the show was last night (sunday, june 3) and it was indeed very good.
unfortunately, scheduled opener bardo pond had to cancel as of about a week
ago for reasons unkown to me. instead, the replacement opener was a trio
called johnny dowd - the lead singer grew up in oklahoma, but the band is
currently based out of ithaca, ny. boring! blues-based, barroom
boogie-country rock. overly cliched and without inspiration in my opinion.
an odd pairing with mogwai.
mogwai however was very good, i liked the show alot. they generally
played slower, atmospheric soundscapes that tended to build to deafening
levels. with 3 guitarists, bass, drums and keyboards/knobs, the sound became
a blurred mass.
i would encourage other members of this list to see them live, especially
those who favor soundtracks for the blind and swans are dead. they played
for about 1 hour, 45 minutes. my only word of caution would be to bring
earplugs/cotton, etc. and at least allow yourself the in-the-pocket option of
using ear protection as this may have been the loudest show i have ever
witnessed - eclipsing even the 3 times i saw swans. my ears are still a bit
numb as i type this, some 13 hours later. overall grade an solid "b".
