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Alternative band still not ‘Modest’

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Also by Sam Philipsek:

No 'Help Wanted': Band brings new take on love song (September 18, 2007)
Photographer captures state beauty (September 7, 2007)

by Sam Philipsek

Monday, November 12, 2007

Still receiving much buzz from their March release, We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank, Modest Mouse floated on at a sold-out show at the Orpheum Saturday night.

The evening's opening act, Love as Laughter, who included two drummers and a small horn section, delivered a sincere and generally well-received set with blues and classic rock undertones.

But inciting a much more positive response from the audience was the Philadelphia act Man Man, their wildly entertaining stage presence a sufficient prelude to the main attraction. Dressed all in varying white outfits, this eccentric group of guys with bad haircuts and worse facial hair delivered a madly entertaining and passionate performance. Chaotically moving from stripped-down warbles to frantic chanting, much of the joy of seeing Man Man was in viewing the spectacle of their playing multiple instruments throughout their cacophonous set, and then wildly discarding whatever it was they were musically banging on at the time.

Though their fervor was evident, Man Man's bizarre dress-up and antics were more confusing than anything, and the fruit of their pounding and screaming at times bordered on a noisy stage show that lacked real musical tendencies. Their exhausting performance was, in the end, a visual and audible treat that cannot be given justice on paper, but should instead (when prepared) be experienced for oneself.

The most rewarding use of the stage was undoubtedly the group that the packed Orpheum paid $35 to see. Complete with the solid acquisition of former Smith's guitarist Johnny Marr, Modest Mouse delivered a show worthy of their critically acclaimed and commercially successful rugged alt rock/pop releases. Playing for well over an hour-and-a-half, each song was an extended and intimate performance that surpassed their now-polished recorded sound. Indeed, frontman Isaac Brock's seasoned and beautiful heartache was right at home in the old theater and wonderfully supplemented by dueling drummers and an energetic Marr.

Opening with "Black Cadillacs" from their 2004 success, Good News for People Who Love Bad News, Modest Mouse played songs mainly from this release and We Were Dead. Favoring a heavier sound, Brock and crew performed lively and slowly building renditions of "Bury Me with It," "Bukowski," "Satin in a Coffin" and the emotionally rocking "The View" from Good News. Even the commercially beaten to death "Float On" was conveyed nicely on stage with ambient noises and a gritty tenacity not felt on the radio.

Much of the acclaimed new album was also showcased, which was also better heard through a noisy live medium. Playing the already well-known "Dashboard," "Fire It Up," "Florida" and "We've Got Everything" with drawn out vigor, the best representative from We Were Dead may have been the final song of the encore, "Spitting Venom," which adequately wrapped up the evening with grandiose intensity.

The best song of the evening, however, came from 2000's The Moon and Antarctica. In what was easily the heaviest track of the night, "Tiny Cities Made of Ashes" demonstrated just how made for the stage Modest Mouse really is. Though Marr by himself was an awe-inspiring attraction, his enthusiastic and passionate play did not detract from the chemistry of the band and, in fact, sufficiently belied his short time with the rest of the group. Instead, his presence only added to the genuine and enlivened live show that encapsulated why Modest Mouse is worthy of their hard-earned success.

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Anonymous (November 12, 2007 @ 9:34am):

This show was AMAZING!!!

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