Oliver at Bowery Ballroom 12.21.07 by RedBoy (from their MySpace)
In Your Heart mp3 Exploding Head A Place To Bury Strangers …. buy it
A Place To Bury Strangers came to Chicago’s famous Metro last Saturday and stunned a young crowd, many who were unprepared for the aural “‘experience.” I fought my way to the front to be closer to Oliver’s guitar, to see the way he played, the moments when he hit those magic pedals. No one on stage said a word throughout the show until near the end when he gave a brief thanks to the crowd, which responded with enthusiastic applause. The stage was mostly dark, uplighting poured onto the two guitarists in a sort of late-90s style. But the music, it was far from that. It was incredibly loud; my earlove earplugs met their match that night. Some describe this band as “the loudest band in Brooklyn” or their newest album as “43 mesmerizing minutes of pain as pleasure,” but those ideas are really only for people who’ve never been to a noise or true industrial music show. This is not pop music. I felt the bass beat in my chest, the speakers pushing the air out of it. Have you experienced that deep thump that makes your lungs move a bit? Have you had that feeling lately? It’s wonderful; it’s thrilling; it’s a bit scary when you’re that close to the stacks at the Metro. But I wouldn’t have had it any other way that night. For not only is A Place To Bury Strangers‘ sound LOUD, it is complete. It is completely immersed in emotional density… like the way a piece of cake is soaked in rum, reeking of it. I felt like they got on stage and flipped a switch and poured it out onto us, and that is just what I love about music at times. It is the total clearing of my head that occurs when someone else’s emotional density streams through it.
This band excels at creating a mood of desperate introspection. The hollow, hard beat accompanied by Oliver’s sawing guitar that fills all aural space around it, is just so dark and heavy that there’s no amount of lyrical tinkering that will lighten it. There are no obvious love songs; “In Your Heart” where higher notes and faster rhythms take over, is a tale of heartache and bitterness, brilliantly delivered in a call and response style, (“Don’t say that you’ll be with me again… (You’re Lying.)”) Oliver’s vocals definitely take backseat to the music although comparisons will inevitably be made to the Cure; (inappropriately made, in this blogger’s opinion) he is a reluctant frontman at best. The guitar seems to be his love, not the microphone. But that does not damage the show in any way. We wait for the vocals because they are so seemingly reluctantly done. I would have liked them to have had them mixed more prominently up front that night, but after listening to the album so many times with headphones that is what a fan would think, now isn’t it?
When the part of the evening came where we all felt them revving up for the winding down, there was a pause. Oliver stood at the edge of the stage, looking out over the crowd with a hawkish gaze; I mean over every level of the crowd, every section, sizing it up as if to calculate just how far to throw something out to see if it would come back. Jono* continued to prod his bass along with the more than capable (actually thrilling) JSpace on drums and the house lights went dark again. What followed can not be written about as it was a visceral experience lasting 10 minutes or more that I have rarely had at a live music show and which must be felt first hand to truly appreciate. The kids in front of me, who were directly against the barriers, facing the security guards, were writhing and twirling and falling on us – one in particular, dangerously threatening to hurl on me throughout. Thankfully I survived the mayhem without stain or injury. I did shamelessly shield my face more than once as a Fender Jazzmaster swung over our heads. Strobe lights are proof of the existence of faeries, I’m quite certain.
For pictures of the show here in Chicago go over here to Loud Loop Press to see Drew Reynolds’ shots. There’s still a long tour ahead, you have time to catch this band live, do it.
*And I’ve heard they’ve replaced their bass player, Jono. Do let me know who’s playing now and how they do? xoxo
Tour Dates
Mar 26 2010 8:30P Cabaret JPR W/The Big Pink Montreal, Quebec
Mar 27 2010 8:00P The Paradise W/The Big Pink & Magic Magic Boston, Massachusetts
Mar 28 2010 8:00P Maxwell’s W/The Big Pink Hoboken, New Jersey
Mar 30 2010 7:00P Webster Hall W/The Big Pink & Blondes NYC, New York
Mar 31 2010 8:00P North Star Bar W/The Big Pink Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Apr 1 2010 8:00P Rams Head Live W/The Big Pink Baltimore, Maryland
Apr 2 2010 8:00P Cat’s Cradle W/The Big Pink Carrboro, North Carolina
Apr 3 2010 8:00P Masquerade W/The Big Pink Atlanta, Georgia
Apr 4 2010 8:00P Backbooth with Sleepy Sun, Mr. Gnome, & Strangers Family Band Orlando, Florida
Apr 5 2010 8:00P Club Downunder W/The Big Pink Tallahassee, Florida
Apr 7 2010 7:00P Warehouse Live W/The Big Pink Houston, Texas
Apr 8 2010 8:00P The Parish W/The Big Pink Austin, Texas
Apr 9 2010 8:00P Granada Theatre W/The Big Pink & Darktown Strutters Dallas, Texas
Apr 10 2010 8:00P Bottleneck W/The Big Pink Lawrence, Kansas
Apr 11 2010 8:00P Bluebird Theater W/The Big Pink & Io Echo Denver, Colorado
Apr 12 2010 8:00P Urban Lounge W/The Big Pink & Io Echo Salt Lake City, Utah
Apr 14 2010 7:30P Rhythm Room W/The Big Pink & Io Echo Phoenix, Arizona
Apr 15 2010 8:00P The Casbah W/The Big Pink & Io Echo San Diego, California
Apr 28 2010 8:00P Tower Bremen, Germany
Apr 29 2010 8:00P Loppen Copenhagen, Denmark
Apr 30 2010 8:00P Garage Oslo, Norway
May 1 2010 8:00P Popadelica Festival Huskvarna, Sweden
May 3 2010 8:00P Magnet Berlin, Germany
May 4 2010 8:00P Powiekszenie Warsaw, Poland
May 5 2010 8:00P B72 Austria, Vienna
May 6 2010 8:00P Unwound Padua, Italy
May 7 2010 8:00P Bronson Ravenna, Italy
May 8 2010 8:00P Init Rome, Italy
May 10 2010 8:00P Sala Sidecar Barcelona, Spain
May 11 2010 8:00P Le Rex Toulouse, France
May 12 2010 8:00P Trabendo Paris, France
May 14 2010 8:00P Les Nuits Sonores Festival Lyon, France
May 15 2010 8:00P La Cooperative de Mai Clermont-Ferrand, France
May 16 2010 8:00P Trix Antwerp, Belgium
May 18 2010 8:00P Hare and Hounds with the Crocodiles Birmingham, UK
May 19 2010 8:00P The Harley with the Crocodiles Sheffield, UK
May 20 2010 8:00P Arts Centre with the Crocodiles Norwich, UK
May 22 2010 8:00P Stag and Dagger Festival Glasgow, UK
May 23 2010 8:00P Deaf Institute with the Crocodiles Manchester, UK
May 25 2010 8:00P Heaven with the Crocodiles London, UK
May 26 2010 8:00P 013 Tilbourg, Holland
May 27 2010 8:00P Zem Teufel Heidelberg, Germany
May 28 2010 8:00P Bad Bonn Kilbi Festival Dusingen, Switzerland
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Oliver Ackermann is from my li’l ol’ town here in Virginny. Before APTBS he was in a great band called Skywave, and when he formed APTBS the other guys from Skywave formed Ceremony, an amazing band which has a new album called “Rocket Fire” due out in April. I saw APTBS and Ceremony at the same show a couple of years ago and was caught without earplugs. On the drive home after the show a middle E appeared in my left ear, and then about an hour later a slightly sharp C appeared in my right. That was the only gig I’ve ever been to that actually left me worried for my hearing afterwards. The Twilight Sad are in the same loudness ballpark, but I’ve always had my earplugs for them.
I swear the world gets smaller and smaller. I forgot to mention in the review that I spoke with him after the show, very briefly, but he was the most humble, kind performer I’ve interacted with in ages. I tried to pry some info out of him about the show and he graciously sidestepped my advances with a sly smile. What a beautiful person.
And yes, you MUST wear protection when venturing into this realm. Same with Twilight Sad, you’re quite right, C&B!! I’ll go check out Ceremony, I think I’ve heard them before, on your recommendation. You’re an angel, thank you, darling xoxo