Mitya • Makeout Point • Night Owl
04.8.10 | Skylark Lounge
This week, we're trying out a new method of recapping shows wherein we pick out the most interesting things that happened and sort them in chronological order. They won't all look like this, obviously, but we figure it can't hurt to switch things up occasionally. You can't survive in the big leagues with just the fastball, after all, so consider this the screwball.
1. An older guy in a leather jacket who looked like life's fucked him over pretty good staggered into the bar, began harassing the paying customers, and was bodily removed by the bartender, who, I am confident, has been Rosie the Riveter for the past fifteen halloweens.
2. Night Owl's drummer, Nate, had a bumper sticker on his bass drum that said, "this makes me happy." Amen.
3. The house speakers continued to play music, albeit at a respectfully quiet level, during Night Owl's set.
4. Night Owl's rhythm section is best described as nimble, allowing the band to transition in unexpected ways between verses and choruses. In one instance, by inserting a scale into a bridge, Dirty Projectors style.
5. Singer Ian muscled through a sound system that was about as equipped as your friend's basement. He was the most audible vocalist of the night, using falsetto, shouting and general ballsiness to carry the songs with his voice.
6. Makeout Point did a very brief sound-check type thing, except there was no sound guy, so it was more just a gauge of volume. As it turned out, the volume was earsplitting, which was perfect.
7. Makeout Point played "Breaking Point." If you don't know why that qualifies as one of the fifteen most interesting things about this show, you clearly haven't heard "Breaking Point." Remedy that here.
8. A girl with a professional looking camera (read: SLR) sat on the mike chord, thereby unplugging it. The problem was quickly identified and solved, but Anthony did not pass up the opportunity to say, "This is why Led Zeppelin never played house shows." The crowd was too drunk to laugh at this, so he continued: "Because they couldn't fit all their stuff."
9. Makeout Point played a few songs off their upcoming 7-inch (release party May 29th at Blast-O-Mat, for those of you with planners). The new songs are better than the old ones, which is saying something.
10. See that level below? In reality, it was connected to the mike, which was picking up 42 percent Michelle's vocals and 58 percent her nearby guitar amp. But still, it was totally into the yellow here, which, as far as I -- and the U.S. Government's Terror Alert Levels are concerned -- is The Danger Zone! of volume. Rock and roll.
11. Mitya took the stage to a dwindling crowd. Fortunately for them, half a dozen of the people who didn't leave had the following things going for them: A) They were friends of the band. B) They were a bachelorette party, which meant that C) They were hammered, enough that, at one point, one of them shouted out, "Show me your girlfriend's titties!" and followed that immediately with "Thursday's the new Friday!" D) They were dancing by the third song (sitting by the fourth, but hey).
12. Mitya, who have a history of not sticking with the instrument they started on, played Chinese fire drill for the first third of their set. That was fun, but let's face it: Not everyone can play drums. Even fewer people can play guitar. So it was a little touch and go. Side note: Everyone can play bass.
13. They played cowbell on two songs. More cowbell is good advice to everyone with a band.
14. Mitya played for what felt like two hours. In retrospect, it was probably more like one hour. The set list is below, if that helps anyone. The perspective looks weird because this photo has been rotated and the list is lying on the ground.
15. I am still, at this moment, hours after the show, singing Makeout Point's "Falling In" to myself.
