Saturday night at the Capitol Theater was, as opener Cougar’s drummer David Henzie-Skogen put it, “a battle of the animal-named bands.” While the coincidence was certainly funny and the bands promising, cough medicine arguably had the biggest impact on the night.
PHOX is known for putting on an impressive show. The band’s usual whimsy and lively stage presence, led by frontwoman Monica Martin, paired with tight and impressive musicianship make for exuberant, fun shows that can be, in turns, ghastly, touching, sweet and hilarious.
But at this concert, Martin was nursing an illness. In fact, she was sick enough to cancel their show in Champaign, Illinois, Thursday night and despite her best efforts, it was clear Martin still wasn’t feeling her best Saturday.
Accompanied by tea and cough medicine on stage in place of her usual liquor, Martin was visibly distressed throughout the first half of the show. Martin appeared worried, stressed and dismayed, which is completely contrary to her usual cheery and smiley stage presence.
I'm sorry to still be ill, sweet Champaign. I've been sucking down ginger, kale, and supplements for days and😔👎🏽 pic.twitter.com/23eXTwHA3l
— phox (@PhoxBand) November 5, 2015
It probably didn’t help that she was dealing with some feedback problems for the first half-dozen songs. She acknowledged early on in the show that she had been sick and she coughed between songs throughout the whole set.
Despite the obvious hindrance of sickness, PHOX still delivered some cool moments that have come to be expected from their shows. To open the show, Martin ambled out with multi-instrumentalist Mateo Roberts and the two performed an excellent, organ-infused version of “Calico Man.”
In true Wisconsin fashion, PHOX even acknowledged defunct Madison band Dolores (RIP) in between songs by playing a riff from their “Pleased to Meet You.”
Dolores emerges as one of Madison’s best with debut (and final) album’s psychedelic rock
PHOX even performed a few new songs supposedly from an upcoming album. The first, which Martin said was still “nebulous” was called “World for a Spin.” It was classic PHOX, a track that would have sounded very at-home in the band’s first album.
The other new track, which Martin said was “very complete” and “already means a lot to [her],” was called “Pillowcase.” This track found Martin taking on a unique vocal melody which sounded pretty different than anything she’s done before. It otherwise fits the PHOX mold with the exception of a hint of sunny, beachy guitar at the end.
Finally, Martin performed a sweet new a cappella song tentatively called “Stocked Liquor Cabinet,” which she wrote in Justin Vernon’s airstream trailer.
Those weren’t the only treats that the hometown crowd was endowed with Saturday night. PHOX also had a cover of Aaliyah’s “Are You That Somebody” up their sleeve. For good measure, and almost predictably, they inserted a snippet of “Hotline Bling.” While it was a funny cover, I’d imagine it would have been a lot more fun had Martin been feeling herself.
PHOX wasn’t the only band to perform at the Capitol Theater Saturday. One could probably write a piece and-a-half on the opener, Cougar. Though the band hasn’t released any new music since 2009 and hasn’t played together for four years, the band looked and sounded as sharp and impressive as ever.
Cougar has mastered the art of rise and fall in music, on many songs playing coy for minutes before bursting out into moments of sonic hugeness and impact that leaves mouths agape.
PHOX may be incapable of having a truly “bad” show, but Saturday night may have been an example of one of their weaker performances. It became evident how important Martin is to the band as a whole. But, it says something about the band that even seeing PHOX at their worst, one can still walk away feeling pleased.
