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When delivered in an underwhelmed monotone voice, "We're thrilled to be here" sounds like some sort of obligatory statement or truly pathetic joke. Thus, it was hard not to snort a little when The Twilight Sad's James Graham first delivered that line from the stage at Rock and Roll Hotel Monday night, staring at his shoes. However, unlike some other underwhelmed-sounding Scots (Camera Obscura and Arab Strap come to mind), Graham's demeanor immediately switched from dour to intense the moment his bandmates started playing their instruments and The Twilight Sad were able to convey a visceral urgency over and above the sheer volume of their music.
This urgency proved magnetic. Although local openers The Positions had a perky, pleasant indie-pop-meets-ska set, their lack of on-stage energy (perhaps due to singer Nicole Stoop's cold) further magnified the intensity of the Scottish quartet... an element that, along with the decibel level, actually increased the longer the band remained onstage.
Yes, The Twilight Sad were loud. After starting the show with only a few glittery guitar notes and Graham's vocals on "Cold Days from the Birdhouse," the band really ripped into the audience's eardrums. In fact, Graham informed the audience that someone who went to their show in New York City contacted the band's label asking for his money back on the claim that the band was too loud. After getting the desired bemused snorts from the audience, Graham pronounced that guy "a dick" and dedicated their next song, "Walking For Two Hours" to him.
Still, while any music that dips into shoegaze and post-rock is overwhelming by nature, the show wouldn't have been nearly as impressive without Graham's stage presence. Bassist Craig Orzel and guitarist Andy MacFarlane remained fairly static throughout the night, allowing Graham to carry the show. With his strong and thickly accented vocals and actions like kneeling down to help drummer Mark Devine pound on the drum kit during "Talking With Fireworks/Here It Never Snowed," he did this with ease.
This mixture worked well on the audience who forced the band, who had already made a headstart for the bar upstairs out for a one song encore. "This doesn't happen that often," said a surprised Graham who also stated that they really didn't have many songs left to play. However, they'd saved one gem from their nine song debut, "Mapped By What Surrounded Them" to impress the Monday night audience with their dense guitars and tuneful melodies one last time.
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the show was fantastic. i almost started crying when they left the stage without playing Mapped, but almost crapped myself when they played it for the encore. other than a couple neglected parts due to band size (intro to Cold Days and the layered vocals in Mapped) it was a solid show. i think my eardrums still hurt...