Show Review: MJ Lenderman @ Emos (2.6)
Breaking up is hard to do, but it sure does make for good music.
MJ Lenderman’s lyrics aren’t sprawling, poetic pleas for understanding. Instead, they arrive as snapshots intimate, personal, and timeless observations of everyday life. Wrap that up nice and tight with music that echoes the highlights of a sound delivered within a newly appointed label aptly titled No Depression in the 90s, which found itself a successful hybrid of Americana and Rock, spawning the genre Alt-Country. Breathing life into its faded wake comes Lenderman.
“Coward cutting Joker lips into a rubber mask
Please don’t ask how I’m doing
Draining cum from hotel showers
Hoping for the hours to pass a little faster.”
One could spend more time than necessary comparing the similarities between the then and now, regarding the social, political, and personal challenges presented to the younger generation, but whatever makes it work, doesn’t matter. MJ Lenderman’s observations, as fractured and rudimentary on the surface, run deep enough to resonate on a human level. Its the same shit that we all go through, one day at a time, whether good or bad, that reminds us that we are still alive.
MJ Lenderman’s Thursday night performance at Emos (the old version more suited for this particular show), for a sold-out crowd, peppered with dusty relics still tied to the 90s movement mixed with much younger, predominantly male audience, proved that there are layers to this kid, his band, and his music.
Lenderman and The Wind, kicked off their 20-track performance with Six Flags off of their 2022 release Boat Songs, a 6-minute track hinting at the bands willingness to explore the sonic, guitar-driven elements of their material. Switching gears immediately after with the title track from the most recent release, an album that has received favorable reviews from a majority of the taste-making publications, Manning Fireworks quickly established the ebb and flow of the following performance. A between-the-song callout from an audience member, in response to Lenderman’s How are you Austin? greeting, prompted Lenderman to reveal, in all honesty, that three members of the band were recovering from a brutal experience with some bad oysters. Despite the illness, the frontman promised that they would bring it.
Over the next 18 tracks spanning most of their catalog, leaning heavily into Manning Fireworks the 6-piece outfit, never dwelling too long in the quiet or loud of their abilities, kept the audiences attention on the mix. The dedicated single ‘Shes Leaving You’ and fan favorites like ‘Wristwatch’ and ‘Joker Lips’ received an enthusiastic response. Meanwhile, ‘You Don’t Know The Shape Im In’ and ‘On My Knees’ highlighted the bands seamless ability to shift between moods without losing momentum.
A lengthy stretch of shows for the band, running into the fall is currently selling out in many of the markets. For those catching the buzz, and wanting to experience the live performance, time is ticking and opportunities are fading.
Shows: https://www.mjlenderman.com/tour
