Have you heard O’death’s album, Broken Hymns, Limbs and Skin? It came out in October of last year and it’s been on constant rotation at Chez Tart ever since. It’s been characterized as “a giddy junkyard hoedown” that’s part gospel, part punk, part Americana. I’ve heard the phrase “you’ve not really heard O’death until you’ve heard them live” and was hoping that it wasn’t just talk. Well, my darling readers, let me tell you. It. Wasn’t. Just. Talk.

Oh no… this band was more than amazing on stage. My blog buddy, Autopsy IV over at the fantastic blog ninebullets.net (and why don’t I have that linked up on here!?! gotta remedy that) had told me to not miss this band when they came through. I’d heard their show was “frantic and sweaty” and that doesn’t begin to describe the controlled chaos that happened last night! Opening with ”Lowtide” and closing with “Angeline” and a cover of the Pixies “Nimrod’s Son” almost an hour and a half later, this gang of five crazed and exhausted men stumbled off stage to greet their fans. In that hour and a half the adoring audience danced, and moshed, and jumped the stage to pour beer down the gullet of Newman, the bass player and toast Greg Jamie the lead vocalist with glasses of whiskey. I’ve never seen a band have so many drinks bought for them while on stage! They had to negotiate with the sound man as to how many encores they could play; there was simply no way this audience was going to let them off without at least two. We all left the scene that night, exhilarated and more than a little hoarse from hooting after every song.

I swear I saw an upturned gasoline can as part of David Rogers-Berry’s drum kit. There were definitely chains and bells and plenty of sticks… when he took the stage he brought with him an arsenal of backup sticks and I think he used every single one! Standing atop his stool he egged the crowd on, growling and gesturing wildly as he sang along. This man is a true showman, and when not required to actually beat his drums he twirls his sticks like a girl with a baton in a high school marching band. There were constant adjustments to his cymbals and stands, which with the force of his insane drumming were constantly knocked over and flung askew, and yet he rarely missed a beat. What a pro, and such energy. As the base energy of this band, Rogers-Berry provides a seemingly un-ending supply of enthusiasm.

Newman, on bass, is his perfect counterpart. Smiling a mile wide for most of the show, even before the beer and whiskey began to flow, he suffered through two instrument failures. The poor man seemed cursed that night! Abandoning one bass after a broken string (maybe two?) he waded through the crowd to fetch another which lasted until the final song before giving out completely. Some onstage tweaking proved successful and mid-song he joined in time for a raucous ending. When not playing electric bass, Newman provided vocals and general mayhem, reminding me of the Greek god Pan; he just had that wicked, keen look in his eye, yummy!

Gabe Darling plays banjo, ukulele and guitar and sings harmony in such a beautiful way. His intros to songs such as “A Light That Does Not Dim” and “Only Daughter” make them unmistakable favorites. He sang beautiful harmonies, played just crazy-fast and looked to be having the time of his life with his bandmates. I can’t stress enough how talented this man is and how amazed I was to see him keep this ridiculously frenzied pace and keep it in tune and in time! I can’t imagine this band without him, and frankly, without any of its five members.

One of the most characteristic sounds in O’death is the frenetic fiddling of Bob Pycior. His electric fiddle playing has to be seen to be believed. Honestly, I could never convince you that a man could dance and writhe and thrash to the music and fiddle at the same time as Pycior does unless you’ve seen him do it. It’s amazing. It’s crazed, even possessed you might say. After one song the shirt came off; this is one sweaty affair. He fiddles fast, so fast that your ears can’t even hear it all at once and then as the song slows he plays these long plaintive notes that make you ache. Along with Greg Jaimie’s voice which takes on a high pitched whine at times, the wicked fiddling whips the crowd into such a frenzy. Everyone up front danced with everyone, not caring who they came with that night, it was at once a communal affair, joined together by this orgy of music. And Jaime’s voice… strong, controlled, capable of that screeching whine and also beautiful tenor tones, played guitar almost incidentally; his voice is his true instrument. He provided some light banter between songs, not too much. This was their first show on this tour, having had to cancel two nights ago in Austin. I figured there might be a few cobwebs to kick out, and if there were, they sure didn’t show it. Only one false start on “A Light That Does Not Dim” for which Jaimie apologized saying “Well that’s embarrassing, for us, in a good way!” And lots of thanks for being such an appreciative crowd. I think they were truly grateful to have an audience that sang, no.. shouted, along and danced their asses off. And here I was just complaining the other day on Twitter about Chicago audiences. Well shame on me! This night proved me very, very wrong, I’m happy to report.

Do go and see O’death when they come near you, they’re currently touring with Les Claypool and continuing on with him through July. Buy their latest album, Broken Hymns, Limbs and Skin …. oh and they have a new 7″ out, Underwater Nightmare,  b/w Prince of Beasts and Mongoloid, get it here!

Opening for O’death were Balmorhea, a beautiful orchestral folk group. You’ll be hearing more from this band for sure. Go to their MySpace for a taste, they reminded me a bit if an acoustic version of Broken Records. I spoke briefly with Rob who told me they had just finished a session at Daytrotter, so be on the lookout for that. Coming out of Austin, this sextuplet is also on the road this summer, with Tiny Vipers. Balmorhea are promoting their new CD, All is Wild All is Silent. Buy it here !

O’death on Tour
06-23-09    Boise, ID    Knitting Factory (w/ Les Claypool)
06-24-09    Spokane, WA    Knitting Factory (w/ Les Claypool)
06-25-09    Calgary, AB     Sled Island Festival
06-26-09    Calgary, AB     Sled Island Festival
06-27-09    Edmonton, AB    Event Centre (w/ Les Claypool)
06-28-09    Saskatoon, SK    Lydia’s Pub
06-30-09    Winnepeg, MB    Burton Cummings Theater (w/ Les Claypool)
07-01-09    Fargo, ND    The Venue @ The Hub (w/ Les Claypool)
07-02-09    Omaha, NE    Anchor Inn
07-04-09    Newport, KY    Southgate House
07-05-09    Indianapolis, IN    The Vogue (w/ Les Claypool)
07-06-09    Nashville, TN    War Memorial Auditorium (w/ Les Claypool)
07-07-09    Knoxville, TN    The Bijou Theater (w/ Les Claypool)
07-08-09    Richmond, VA    Plaza “Duckpin” Bowl
07-09-09    Norfolk, VA    The Norva (w/ Les Claypool)
07-11-09    Poughkeepsie, NY    The Chance Theater (w/ Les Claypool)
07-12-09    Burlington, VT    Higher Ground (w/ Les Claypool)
07-17-09    Ulm, Germany    Obstwiesen Festival
07-18-09    Dour, Belgium     Dour Festival
07-20-09    Galway, Ireland    Roisin Dubh
07-21-09    Cork, IRELAND    Crane Lane Theatre
07-22-09    Dublin, Ireland    Whelan’s
07-23-09    London, UK    The 100 Club
07-24-09    Dumfries, UK    Wickerman Festival
07-25-09    Wiltshire, UK    Trowbridge Festival
07-26-09    Dorset, UK    Camp Bestival

Balmorhea on Tour with Tiny Vipers
June 21 Bears Bloomington, Indiana
June 23 1st Unitarian Chapel Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
June 24 AS220 Providence, Rhode Island
June 25 TT The Bears Boston, Massachusetts
June 26 Le Poisson Rouge NYC, NY
June 28 Red and Black Washington DC
June 30 Nightlight Chapel Hill, North Carolina
July 01 529 Atlanta, Georgia

remembrance // balmorhea // all is wild, all is silent from Jared Hogan on Vimeo.