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From Monument to Masses, Silian Rail @ Bottom of the Hill 12/01/07

Friday, December 14 2007

FROM MONUMENT TO MASSES
DESA
SILIAN RAIL
Bottom of the Hill
Dec. 1, 2007

The place was packed so full that it felt like the Bottom of the Hill was about to have a sell-out show, something I wasn’t expecting from a night of instrumental post-rock (or whatever you want to call it). At first I suspected it was the loyal and sizeable followings of indie darlings Silian Rail and From Monument to Masses, but I think it was probably more because of all the teenie-boppers out for an all ages show to see Desa.

silian rail.jpg Whatever the reason, the crowd was out and energy was good and Silian Rail soon took to the stage and got things going. Part of the Thread Productions music collective, this San Francisco-based two-piece features Robin L. on guitar and Eric Kuhn on drums/glockenspiel yet has the musical prowess of a four-piece. It’s not their full sound that’s so impressive, it’s the music, which is rich, engaging, and gorgeous. It can be difficult for instrumental music to really capture an audience, but Silian Rail did it with old tried-and-true good music writing. They performed well-written and well-structured songs that bring the listener into the music. The crowd responded well to their performance, a showcase of the virtuosi of both musicians without being in any way ostentatious.

A bonus for them being a two-piece is that they break down quickly after their set. Didn’t really save us all that much time though because the second band, Desa, from Oakland, was a five-piece and took their time setting up. I knew something was up when I saw a bunch of dudes on stage all with tight black t-shirts and wrist bands. I’d never heard Desa before, though I wouldn’t be surprised if I heard them again soon, on the radio. Out of my ignorance I assumed that, being sandwiched between Silian Rail and From Monument to Masses, Desa would be equally experimental/post-rock/instrumental. I assumed wrong.

My first clue that things were not as I thought was all the young, under-18 faux-punk kids with their Mohawks from Supercuts and their moms waiting outside in mini-vans. My second clue was the sweatbands. What sealed it was the lame four person mosh pit.

Let me say, straight out, I didn’t like Desa. They’re everything about modern mainstream rock/punk that I dislike: loud and obnoxious, affecting a post-punk power pop bullshit attitude, music laden with clichéd hooks, and boring predictable song structures. They even had the guitarist who’s back-up singing style is literally only screaming. And I never saw the bass player’s face once. He hid behind the rest of the band, his hoodie drawn over his head, and his back to the audience. Did he need ‘total concentwation’ or is he a terminally shy musician?

That being said, I have no doubt in my mind that if they keep churning out songs like the ones they played that night, their posters will be plastered on every 13 year-old’s bedroom wall by the end of 2008. They are proficient musicians and they have the attitude (“DESA is from Oakland, CA where the homicide rate is high, the drug of choice is crack, and the streets are paved with safety glass,” seriously, right off their Myspace page), the look, and the bland, easily consumed music necessary to infect the hearts of the teenaged.

Personally, I was just waiting out the rest of the show at the bar. Eventually, they finished and the headliners, From Monument to Masses took to the stage.

fmtm matthew_color.jpg Originally formed in 2000 from Bay Area musicians Francis Choung on drums, keys, and programming, Sergio Robledo-Moderazo, on bass, keys, and samples, and Matthew Solberg on guitar and loops, these instrumental post-rockers are now living bicoastal, with one of the group’s members having moved to New York City. Yet they are still making great music and playing great shows.

Anybody who knows From Monument to Masses or looks up reviews or goes to their website knows or will see that these guys are darlings of critics and reviewers everywhere, myself included. I’ve never seen a band that can integrate samples and loops so seamlessly. Their vocal samples, culled from historic and archival audio and presumably video sources, are so smooth and pervasive that I could see someone making the case that From Monument to Masses are not in fact an instrumental band. And, while sometimes it can be difficult for me to get into music that I’m hearing for the very first time, they played a lot of new songs that were immediately accessible.

The great thing about their music is its accessibility even as From Monument to Masses has moved away from more traditional chorus/verse song structures. The newer songs have what feels like very open organic structures, combined with innovative rhythms, and vocal samples that feel like they move in and out of the music effortlessly. And yet, this never comes off as high brow or pretentious.

The only thing negative I could say about them is that part of their message, part of their style, part of their image is the socialist/communist revolutionary. Now maybe I’m just reading too much into it, but even though their message and their execution is great, it still kinda feels like they’re putting on an act. I’m sure they’re sincere about their revolutionary message, but in the end what are they doing? They’re just like any other rock band. They have their merch table in the back like everybody else, they have their T-shirts on sale for the same price as everybody else, they have their website with their merch like everybody else, and they have their CD’s for sale like everybody else.

I don’t get it; what’s so revolutionary about these guys? I’m not saying they have to live on a commune, or give away all their tracks for free online (they don’t allow you to download their tracks off Myspace, but you can grab three tracks off their website), or throw away all their worldly possessions, or pull a Chumbawamba (though, I have to say, we all know they practiced what they preached), but there’s definitely some action these three bright and creative guys could come up with. I mean talk is cheap, right? Their Wikipedia entry describes them as “politically-charged,” and that’s just it: they are politically charged, but don’t seem politically active, not as a band at least.

Course, I’m no expert on these guys and their political activity; by day they could be chaining themselves across the entrances of Wal-Marts and trying to destroy the imperial-capitalist machine. But if they are, why not include that in the music?

Maybe I’m looking too deep, but these are the things that I look for, and enjoy. In the end, their execution is still flawless. From Monument to Masses put on a great show with a great message and they do so effortlessly.

[Marky Snark]