By the time Robert Rolston (better known by his nom de guerre, Quintron) took the stage just before 1:00am on Saturday night/Sunday morning, the crowd at Strange Matter had had ample time to black out, black back in, and order another round, which it turns out put everyone in exactly the right headspace to receive the gospel of otherworldly space disco that they were about to receive.
By the time Robert Rolston (better known by his nom de guerre, Quintron) took the stage just before 1:00am on Saturday night/Sunday morning, the crowd at Strange Matter had had ample time to black out, black back in, and order another round, which it turns out put everyone in exactly the right headspace to receive the gospel of otherworldly space disco that they were about to receive. Kicking off the set with a ten-minute puppet show featuring black lights, anthropomorphic cakes, and the eerily modulated voice of Quintron collaborator and partner-in-matrimony Miss Pussycat, the duo gleefully left Frying Pan territory behind and crossed the county line into Fire.
With Miss Pussycat handling vocals and maracas and Rolston manning everything else, seated at a sort of cybernetic calliope, Quintron unleashed a full-frontal assault of impossible-to-deny dance jams, pausing only to remove all unnecessary items of sweat-drenched clothing. The energy built and sustained for the better part of an hour; by the end of the night the mood of sheer abandon was contagious.
Admittedly, I’m arriving a little late to the Quintron party–I’d been told months ago by a friend exactly how hard Rolston had rocked during a show in Austin, and when the opportunity arose, I failed myself and my country by not seeing for myself at the next possible opportunity. As an act of contrition, I cannot stress enough how crucial it is to catch this synth savant whenever he next graces RVA with his presence. If a benevolent carnival-inflected psychedelic flashback is your idea of a killer night out, then you’re unlikely to find anything better than this.
Of the three warm-up acts (The Nervous Ticks, Mutwawa, The Milkstains) honorable mention is due to first-ups (and Richmond locals) The Nervous Ticks, a high-energy three-piece whose angular sound and spot-on percussion kicked off the night, calling to mind mid-aught LA acts like Mika Miko and No Age. This wasn’t their first Strange Matter appearance and it’s unlikely to be their last, so keep an ear to the ground–if they pick up another opening slot, you’ll want to be sure and arrive early.
