SLOW PULP with INTERLAY and DISQ LIVE AT HIGH NOON SALOON DECEMBER 6, 2019

SLOW PULP
with INTERLAY and DISQ
LIVE
HIGH NOON SALOON
DECEMBER 6, 2019

What a homecoming!!!

My how things have evolved in nearly four years. On January 21, 2016, I was so proud and excited to have been able to attend the final performance of the Madison, WI indie pop band Modern Mod at the High Noon Saloon. That evening, which also featured support from three opening bands including Trophy Dad, Surgeons In Heat and my beloved Post Social was a stellar night of local music made by the new generation of hopefuls and upstarts, all working tremendously with Modern Mod in particular delivering what the band members have expressed to me was possibly the very best they had ever performed.

Even though I arrived to the experience of Modern Mod very late in the game, I was enraptured by what I saw and heard: a collective of serious young artists working and playing in harmonious collaboration, without any sense of ego, all ensuring that the songs they wrote were the stars of the night. In doing so, they became stars themselves.

Since that night, Modern Mod has disbanded. Both Post Social and Trophy Dad are on extended hiatuses due to the nature of the life and times of being young, as some have graduated from college or have left Madison entirely to pursue new projects and opportunities. And in several cases, new bands and collectives have been formed, including Slow Pulp, which is the quartet made up of former Modern Mod lead singer Emily Massey and her union with the band formerly known as Barbara Hans, which featured Bassist Alex Julian Leeds, Drummer Teddy Matthews and Guitarist/Keyboardist/Vocalist Henry Stoehr.

Transplanting themselves from Madison, Slow Pulp now makes Chicago, IL its home base. Since their move, the band has slowly but very steadily been enhancing their songwriting, recording, performances and as a result their overall profile, culminating with their four song EP entitled "Big Day" (released May 15, 2019), which has quickly become one of my favorite releases of 2019. But don't just take my word for it. The publication Stereogum has also listed "Big Day" as one of the best EP releases of 2019 as well, yet another cherry on top in a year filled with them, from a celebrated appearance at the SXSW Festival plus consistent touring and exposure.

Now with 2019 reaching its end, the band has made what could be considered their victory lap as on the night of December 6th, Slow Pulp conducted their first headlining performance right back at home in Madison with a SOLD OUT show, alongside the local bands Interlay and also on the rise Disq in tow. Without question, for me, the evening represented a newfound peak as the bands scaled greater heights to an often jaw dropping effect.

INTERLAY:
Nathan Hahn: Bass Guitar
Alex Kaiser: Drums
Alexandria Ortgiesen-Vocals, Guitar
Indigo Smith-Oles: Guitar

The night began with the cavernous wallop of Interlay, the one band of the evening that was unfamiliar to me but I will now try my best to keep some tabs upon. I thoroughly enjoyed the sheer amount of juxtapositions I saw and heard as the band barreled their way though a collection of material that bridged gaps between shoegaze, drone, post-punk, and simmering art rock.

With the sinister banshee wails of Alexandria Ortgiesen hovering over the proceedings, her bandmates supplied an enormity of sound that washed over the audience as if caught in a relentless tide. The menacing growl of Bassist Nathan Hahn (who arrived with his own cheering section) combined with the penetrating pounds of Drummer Alex Kaiser's percussives hit you like a gut punch while Guitarist Indigo Smith-Oles' sliced through the sonic wall with glacial fretwork, supplying the sole sparks of light in the encroaching darkness.

Visually, I really found myself caught up in the whiplash physicality of both Hahn and Kaiser compared with the stoic, static stage presence of Ortgiesen and Smith-Oles and it was that very push-pull aesthetic contained within the music and the theatrics that created a palpable tension that was intensely captivating, making for a strong start to the evening.

photo by Anita Sattel

DISQ:
Raina Bock: Bass Guitar, Vocals
Shannon Conner: Guitar, Keyboards, Vocals
Isaac De Broux-Slone: Vocals, Guitar
Brendan Manley: Drums
Logan Severson: Guitar, Vocals

When I first discovered the music of Disq back in 2017 upon hearing and becoming instantly enraptured with their outstanding debut album entitled "Disq 1" (released July 11, 2016), the consistent statements I heard among members of the Madison music community is that the band's two members, Bassist Raina Bock and Vocalist/Multi-instrumentalist Isaac De Broux Slone, were "prodigies" and "geniuses." I heard it over and over again as one musician after another would exude some gasp induced exclamation as to the supremacy of Disq's music prowess and through listening to their album, created and released when the twosome were still high school students at that, I remained thunderstruck at the towering level of their artistry which was undeniably and firmly schooled with classic songwriting, home studio wizardry, and musical performances that felt to be seasoned far beyond their years.

Since that album, Disq has joined forces with the Saddle Creek label and released a towering single in "Communication" b/w "Parallel" (released January 25, 2019), expanded their ranks to five members, including Madison musicians Shannon Connor (Post Social), Brendan Manley (Post Social/Dash Hounds/Squarewave) and Logan Severson (Lameena) and have also steadily increased their profile and recognition in the indie music press through their exceptionally well received performance at the SXSW Festival, and consistent touring during the year in both the US and England!!

Armed with new material, Disq charged the High Noon Saloon stage like a gang and stormed through their ferocious set as if it were street fight with the stage being their turf to protect. Frankly, and in the very best and only way to properly express it, the quintet did not arrive to mess around. They came to conquer.

Opening with an instrumental and roaring through a collection of entirely new and absolutely terrific material, including both a raucous "Communication" and pulverizing "Parallel," as well as new material from both Shannon Connor and Logan Severson, Disq far exceeded any possibly expectations that I ever could have held for them. It was a seamless, frightening performance that constantly left me in amazement as their level of confidence, energy, agility and pure, muscular force was staggering to behold.

Isaac De Broux-Slone made for the rather bemused yet stoic figure in the eye of the Disq cyclone, with only his stellar singing voice and sparkling guitar heroics providing the flash. Raina Bock joyously supplied a superlative bottom end with her elastic, melodic bass work, creating and swirling around the rhythms. To watch these two lifelong friends and bandmates blissfully within their element and, I would imagine, dreams realizing before their eyes, was so enriching to regard from my vantage point at the lip of the stage.

photo by Anita Sattel

Shannon Connor and Brendan Manley, both of whom I have seen perform many times over these last few years, surprised me with their evolution, as the typically quieter Connor was the most assured I have ever seen him on stage and to that end, Manley pummeled his drum kit harder and faster than I have previously seen. Logan Severson was a man possessed, herking, jerking and gyrating his body and guitar as if caught in the throes of a fever dream.

Through the entire set, all five members of Disq were in ferocious, feral lockstep, building in power with a glorious momentum inspiring the audience into a slam dance fury (even bashing me against the stage--something I am clearly too old for now) and leaving the stage in ashes. Complete with a blistering triple guitar attack, a thunderous rhythm section, tight four part vocal harmonies and shining star songwriting, Disq performed as if they were the evening's headliners, almost daring any other band to follow in their wake

...which Slow Pulp absolutely had to.

SLOW PULP:
Alex Julian Leeds: Bass Guitar
Teddy Matthews: Drums
Emily Massey: Vocals, Guitar
Henry Stoehr: Guitar, Keyboards, Vocals

I have to admit that I was indeed a little scared for Slow Pulp after Disq exited the High Noon Saloon stage. In fact, the members of Slow Pulp were a tad trepidacious themselves as Guitarist/Vocalist Emily Massey expressed from the stage during and both Bassist Alex Julian Leeds and Guitarist Henry Stoehr admitted to me afterwards.

But the band proved that they had nothing to worry about whatsoever as Slow Pulp solidly and soundly commanded the High Noon Saloon with a multi-layered, voluminous performance that showcased precisely why they have more than deservedly been receiving the increased attention. Who knows what the future will ultimately hold, but trust me, dear readers and listeners, you really want to keep your eyes and ears open for this wholly unique and singular band who, also like Disq, unquestionably sound like no one else other than themselves, .

While the band's overall vibe was completely different than Disq's, what Slow Pulp achieved this evening was markedly similar. The band's set was seamless! The flow and segue of the songs from one into another were glistening as they established a visual presence that darkly conjured their stage persona. Yet, to extend themselves further from both Interlay and Disq as this evening's headliners, Slow Pulp not only had to cement their identity but to also encapsulate the night, tying the musical aesthetics of all three bands together, which they accomplished with a rich, evocative beauty.

photo by Anita Sattel

Over the course of their set, during which the band performed the entirety of "Big Day" plus their previously released singles, new material and even a surprising Coldplay cover, Slow Pulp weaved an atmospheric spell, something akin to being lost in a dream. In many ways, the band's expertly conceived and executed set made me think of something akin to an elongated Pink Floyd soundscape, a series of songs that ebbed and flowed in movements of sounds, moods and emotions.

Visually, the band shrouded themselves in a hazy darkness with the stage smoke eerily filtering the colored stage lighting providing melancholic shadings to augment the introspective music. The slinky "Preoccupied" elicited sultry, meditative romance, where the aching lament of "Die Alone" provided a pulsating heartache juxtaposed with the angular art rock stylings of Stoehr's crystalline guitar solos.

Where the whisper to a howl of "High" let the emotional floodgates open in a fury (again inspiring the crowd to slam dance, bashing me into the stage back and forth), "New Media" and "Steel Birds" unfurl in gloriously textured and soothing sonic waves which somehow never sacrificed their punch and force, supplied brilliantly by the supple rhythm section of Leeds and Matthews.

Emily Massey is a frontwoman of undisputed skill and magnetism. As a singer, her warm vocals envelop blissfully while as a rhythm guitarist, she can slash like a petulant punk rocker making for a combination that has formulated into a new stage persona that is worlds away from her time as a power pop diva in Modern Mod. In fact, the completeness of her maturation and evolution as an artist has felt like a shedding of a skin, so to speak, a musical line in the sand of "before" and "after," evoking a quality that is impossibly Bowie-esque. 

Whatever it takes to house that specific artistic ability, I do not know. But for Massey, she has IT as fully presented during Slow Pulp's gorgeous, anthemic "Young World," which was performed for the first time as a piano driven ballad to rapturous effect.

 

With her Slow Pulp compatriots in Leeds, Matthews and Stoehr, we have a indie rock dream team that displays a level of comfort and warmth among each other that fully translates to the music they have conceived and perform together which then deeply ingratiates itself into the audience who were in the palms of their collective musical hands without question.

It is strange to think that the final Modern Mod occurred almost four years ago. It really doesn't feel that far away but when I think of how all of these musicians have grown, changed and continued to pursue their art, the time of Modern Mod, as previously stated, feels like a lifetime ago. As good as they were then (and they were very good), they have all only improved and advanced themselves wonderfully as they have committed themselves further and deeper, emerging even more seasoned than before and yet, just as pure, wide-eyed and open-hearted as when they all wrote their very first songs. 

That joy of creation and collaboration remains paramount as I watch them, their performances all existing without a shred of ego or preciousness or possessiveness. And despite the increased attention and rise in their respective profiles, they remain humble, grounded, gracious and kind as they continue to inspire and support each other while also taking the time to extend gratitude to those who have supported them (Massey even thanked all of their parents from the stage). Their earnestness is matched only by their artistic fearlessness, making all of these bands ones to truly root for.

This night was a special night of a homecoming indeed and what a privilege it was to be there to experience it.

all photos by Scott Collins except where indicated