Another House Show

So, something kind of unique to our new homeland is the supper club. We haven't been to a traditional supper club yet, but we did go to a house show last week that took place in a basement and uses the old supper club concept as its namesake. The owners of the house, on Madison's northeast side, have retained the very 50s vibe of the house, and when they host shows in their basement, they call it the North Mendota Supper Club. It's just a regular old half-heartedly finished basement, with paneling on three sides and linoleum on the fourth wall. On the linoleum, old 7" records have been tacked up. The room looks like it was decorated by a 15 year old with precocious musical taste as part of some kind of bargain with his parents. You know, keep him out of trouble by encouraging him to start a band in the basement. He can even decorate the room!

In short, it's the kind of space that you could grow to love instantly. It feels familiar and hopeful and honest.

I had seen video from a house show there back in the spring by one of our favorite Knoxville artists, who is absolutely revered by the show's host and other attendees of the show we saw. That made the NMSC feel more familiar as well.

The band we saw perform last week is called The Mimicking Birds. They were incredible. The lead singer's voice is remarkably similar to early Paul Simon, but used in a more trancy, hypnotizing way, funneled through a mic effect pedal that made it sound like he was singing into a toy mic-- the kind that's just cheap plastic with a spring inside. Even though that description is weird, the effect sounded incredible. The band plays as a trio--a drummer, rhythm guitar and vocals, and lead guitar with some light harmony. At times I just leaned back against the linoleum wall and felt the way I used to in college when I listened to Radiohead. It was a moving, intimate concert. What said the most to me about the band, though, was the fact that they had a full drum kit and amps in this tiny basement and it never sounded too loud. They completely nailed the way they needed to sound for the space they were in.

Add that to these other odds and ends: they were heading out that night so they could play Lollapalooza the next morning, their CD is a Glacial Pace release, and unlikely frontman Nate Lacy did the weird, primal artwork for the disc's cover.

It was a great show.