Show Pics: Junior Boys @ The Mohawk
You could tell who was from Austin at ACL by their reaction to the rain. While I loved seeing the bits of green, yellow and red on the radar Wednesday night, we had an outside show at the Mohawk to hit. Junior Boys were in town and I will freely admit that since I first heard “In the Morning”, I have been a big fan.
The rain fortunately parted sending water from the skies to areas just North and South, leaving a wall of clouds filled with lightning as a backdrop for those on the upstairs patio. And while you could sense the weather kept the crowd down a bit, I think it only kept the lesser fans away as everyone at the Mohawk was way into it.
Egyptrixx opened, more on the show and a few pics after the break…
Happy Birthday, Mohawk!
Egyptrixx is Toronto-based electronic artist David Psutka. He pulls from a number of influences to produce a sound that I spent much of my mid-90’s pursuing. A few tracks reminded me of Spring Heel Jack’s album Bust Curious Thirsty, though with out the drum and bass beat freneticism <- awesome sorta made up word. It is easily classified as IDM, a focus on the intelligent part. Rangy from glitchy to melodic, Egyptrixx earned a fan and will likely get a spot on the next IT Department post. The full length Bible Eyes is available now.
More lightning between the clouds, still no rain downtown…
Junior Boys waited through a bit of an awkward pause, standing in the loading area stage right for the go ahead. Lights were dimmed and the band, Jeremy Greenspan and Matt Didemus, was joined by a drummer (trying to find his name) on stage. The setlist favored newer works, “Parallel Lines” opened. I only recall “Teach Me How to Fight” from Last Exit. The only real negative about the show was the exclusion of “Hazel”. “In the Morning” was worth the price of admission. “You’ll Improve Me” cements the latest the album, It’s All True. The encore, “Banana Ripple” made up for the lack of “Hazel”.
As for the performance, stoic is about the best word to describe Matt Didemus. The dude sets things in motion, unleashes the synth and tweaks thing once underway and playing keys as needed, while Jeremy plays the frontman spending time sitting at the keys, occasionally standing with a guitar. And even then, frontman is a stretch as interaction consisted of a few pleasentries and smiles when not delivering the great vocal, better in fact than the live sessions I have heard online. In all, the performance was workman-like, serious about the songs, and it worked. The material kind of dictates this stage presence, and the crowd understands. I don’t recall which song it was, but Jeremy even said after one of the more somber points in the show that they were ”done with the slow stuff.” While I am more drawn to the low-tempo and darker material, the live setting dictates adding a little more dance to the party.
…so everyone danced.
A few more pics available over at the photo site…