Good Things In Twos
Last night was Mates of State at Neumo’s, with Viva Voce and Smoosh opening.
Mates of State are a favorite of mine. I’ve seen them more times than I can count at this point, mostly due to the fact that they got started in San Francisco at the same time the Sonoma County music scene was undergoing a renaissance of sorts (partly thanks to the great bands, and the presence of Section M magazine). They played at the Inn of the Beginning constantly in those days, along with bands like Electro Group, the Velvet Teen (back when they were a duo called the Secret Band), Deathray, and tons of others. My old band, Superficial Hero, even opened for them once at the Phoenix Theater. Even then, when the band was young and fresh, they were incredibly tight, and their unique drum/organs/dual vocals lineup and high energy won them countless fans in that area.
Since those days, they’ve toured constantly, married, released 4 records on 3 labels, put out a handful of 7″s, had a child, and toured some more, picking up more and more fans along the way. Which meant that tonight’s all-ages tour kick-off show at Neumo’s was pretty packed.
Smoosh, a band comprised of two young (early teenage) girls, opened the show. Sadly, we missed seeing most of the set, since we were sitting on the curb outside the venue eating a hastily assembled dinner of turkey sandwiches and falafel. Luckily, we could hear them pretty clearly from where we sat, and they sounded good. I know they’ve been around for at least a couple of years now, and it really shows in their performance, which was confident and accomplished. When I was their age, I hadn’t even picked up my first guitar, or even really thought about picking one up. In fact, at that age, I was probably only vaguely aware of music other than what was on the radio at the time. Meanwhile, they’ve already got an established and successful band, with high profile gigs lined up. This makes me incredibly jealous. In a “good for you, I wish I could pull that off” sort of way.
Viva Voce took the stage next, establishing the strict two-members-per-band limit of this show. They were a loud, bluesy pair, close to the hard, riff-rocking territory of Led Zeppelin and their descendants, but with more of an indie sensibility. Maybe in the same category as Two Gallants, or the White Stripes’ harder tunes. He pounded out some heavy beats while she played some absolutely devastating, speaker scorching lead guitar. They had a pre-recorded bass part, and occasional percussion elements, playing along with them, which worked, but had it’s drawbacks (lack of spontaneity in arrangements, mainly). I don’t think they suffered for it necessarily, but it would have been nice to see them with a love bassist holding down the low end. However I do award them 25 bonus cock-rock points: 10 for the prominent cowbell on the first song (“Thanks Will Ferrel, for ruining the cowbell,” remarked the drummer, after the inevitable heckling that brought on), and 15 for the dual-necked Danelectro guitar action on the final two songs.
And then it was time for Mates of State. If you haven’t seen them live, it’s tough to capture the feeling of their shows. More than anything else, it’s the vocals that really sell them. When they’re both belting out overlapping vocal lines, that slip in and out of harmony and counterpoint sections, there are few things better. Since I last saw them, they’ve added a little Korg synth and a digital piano to their setup, in addition to the old Yamaha organ they usually rely on. The piano especially was a nice touch, helping them get across the piano-based tracks that they usually have on each album. And they ended up playing songs from every album, including a couple of favorites from their debut, My Solo Project, and their cover of Nico’s famous Jackson Browne-penned hit, “These Days.” “Like U Crazy,” from the new album, clicked in the live setting in a way it didn’t on record, with their dynamic shifts emphasizing the tenderness of the refrain. In fact, there was only one song that I was really hoping to hear that didn’t get played, a track from the new album whose title slips my mind at the moment (“Fraud in the 80s” perhaps?). A damn fine show, but then, I would have expected no less.
