Music Dissolves Water: Hundred Waters at The Earl, March 8, 2015

Okay, before we get started, I need to correct something I said yesterday - March Madness 2015 is, in fact, off to a great start, or so I can assume. Although I wasn't there, I haven't heard that any of the shows were cancelled or started late, nor have I heard anything about performances marred by vandalism or rowdiness. March Madness is doing just fine - it's me that's off to a poor start in 2015.

After missing La Luz at The Earl on Friday night and Craft Spells at 529 on Saturday night, I figured my head cold had subsided enough that I could finally make it out on Sunday night to catch Hundred Waters' return to The Earl. After all, I figured, the doors opened at 8:00 pm and there were only two bands on the bill - the opener, I calculated, would be on stage by 9:00, maybe even 8:30, and the headliners will be on stage by 9:30 or 10:00, early enough that I could get home by 11:30 or so and rest up for a full recovery from my cold before having to go back to work on Monday morning. I had it all figured out.

I got to The Earl by 8:30 just in case the opener was going to get an early start, and saw that a third band, Suno Deko, had been added to the bill. I wasn't happy, and not because of any hard feelings about Suno Deko but because my evening just got that much longer, my sleep just got that much shorter, and my morning would arrive that much sooner. Fortunately for me, Suno Deko started soon after I got there, so at least there was no awkward half-hour wait for the opener to begin.

We've seen Suno Deko before - in fact, back on July 1, the last time we saw Hundred Waters perform at The Earl. At the time, I recall thinking that I liked what it was that he was doing - primarily singing and playing guitar over synthesized loops - but wasn't too impressed by how he was doing it. Well, just like with my reaction to Lonnie Walker from a few weeks ago, either he's improved since then or my listening has gotten better, as I thoroughly enjoyed his set last night, much more than I had last summer. Tellingly, I even recognized some of his tunes from last year, so he must have made more of an impression on me that I had given him due. And I didn't seem to be alone, as the audience gave him a warm and approving reception.

Mitski, a trio from Brooklyn, seemed like an odd choice to be touring with Hundred Waters, as their music was a more straight-forward, song-focused. rock, as opposed to Hundred Waters' complex, near-proggie electronica. But no matter, they were a lot of fun, and set things straight from the start, opening with Townie from their new album, Bury Me at Makeout Creek.

I don't know anything about Mitski or her band other than what she presented on stage last night, but it was clear these are not musicians who have much patience with or need for patriarchy. From the strangled girl-band pop of Townie ("I'm not gonna be who my daddy wants me to be") to the cathartic primal screams at the end of Drunk Walk Home ("I'm starting to learn I may never be free but though I may never be free, fuck you and your money, I'm tired of your money"), Mitski lashed out at real or imagined father figures, dominating boyfriends, and oppressive masculinity, all the while with enough of an ironic smirk on her face that allowed this male silverback to feel he wasn't necessarily excluded from her world as long as he remembered to keep his privilege in check. "We're cool," she conveyed, "as long as you're cool."

The emo catharsis at the end of Drunk Walk Home was all the more impressive as it was delivered solo after the rest of the band had left the stage, It didn't end the set - she followed with a dirge-like number sung over guitar feedback, but it provided the emotional climax of the set. If, like myself, you're a fan of Torres or Angel Olsen, Mitski might well be someone you'd well enjoy listening to.

Despite having a third band tacked onto the beginning of the bill, the night had been running rather smoothly and it looked like Hundred Waters was going to take the stage at around 10:00 pm or just slightly later. Their keyboardist snuck onto the stage before the lights came on and started a short, simple figure running on a loop, phased it for a Steve Reich effect, and then let it play itself out. However, while this was running, several technicians came on stage fussing with the projectors for Hundred Waters' very impressive light show - their lighting was almost as much a part of their July show as their music was. Something was obviously wrong, and they unplugged plugs, they plugged in plugs, they changed things out, and they fiddled around, but they still seemed to be scratching their heads. This went on for 5, 10 and then 15 minutes, and although every now and then, a light would come on or something would flash, they didn't seem satisfied. By this point the phased loop was losing its appeal (if not getting downright annoying), and yet they kept on tinkering, 20 minutes, 25 minutes after the hour. I could understand the band wanting to provide the best show they could, but at some point, the aggravation and tedium of waiting was starting to outweigh the wonder of flashing lights, and finally, after a half-hour, the band took the stage and started. The light show never did.

Here's a functional version of their light effects from the David Letterman show:

Still, they did what they could with some dramatic flood lighting and silhouetting, and besides, their music is more than intriguing and interesting in itself not to be diminished by the absence of bands of white light in the air.

But maybe the long wait did sour my attitude, as although it was a fine performance, it didn't seem as "magical" as their set last summer. Was it the light show, or was it me? Was it the band or was it my head cold? And how would I know, and ultimately, what difference does it make? Your experience is your experience, whatever the root cause of that experience is.

Regardless of these ambiguities, it did sound at times like Nicole Miglis' lovely vocals were lost in the mix, and she did not once play her flute, a standout moment of past Hundred Waters performances.

Hundred Waters at 529, 10/26/2012

Hundred Waters opening for Alt-J at The Masquerade, 3/6/2013

This wasn't a bad performance by any means, it just wasn't what my imagination had expected based on the last time I saw them at The Earl.

Hundred Waters at The Earl, 7/1/2014

For those of you keeping score, I made it home by midnight, and even though I did have to pay something of a price, I was able to recover in the morning sufficient to make it to work.