For most bands, a five hour long car ride through the backwoods of two states followed by five more hours of waiting in line under tornado level wind gusts and intermittent downpours of freezing rain would be enough to dissuade me from hitting a show. But when a band has only played a handful of concerts on the east coast in the last five years, will perform brand new material for the first time in six years, and virtually holds demigod status among fans and critics alike, a bit of inclement weather seems less intimidating.
For most bands, a five hour long car ride through the backwoods of two states followed by five more hours of waiting in line under tornado level wind gusts and intermittent downpours of freezing rain would be enough to dissuade me from hitting a show. But when a band has only played a handful of concerts on the east coast in the last five years, will perform brand new material for the first time in six years, and virtually holds demigod status among fans and critics alike, a bit of inclement weather seems less intimidating. Moreover, when you consider that the band in question also happens to be Modest Mouse, even standing on hot coals for five hours starts to sound pretty bearable.
Like a lot of my fellow Modest Mouse fans, I had heard several quiet rumors–spoken under the breath in dark corners–that painted a relatively unflattering picture of their live performances. Almost universally, these stories carried caveats with possible explanations and guilt-absolving excuses, like that lead singer Isaac Brock had played the gig so drunk he could barely stand. I knew, of course, this may have been nothing more than gossip, but I have to admit, it had me scared. However, despite my reservations, I decided the potential reward outweighed the potential risk; and that, even if they did disappoint, I could at least finally say that I had been able to share a room with some of the most influential pioneers of indie rock.
The show, which had sold out in less than an hour, was held at the Fillmore Theater in Charlotte, North Carolina. From outside, the venue seemed surprisingly run down, and too small to host a band that could easily fill entire amphitheaters. But inside was more spacious than expected, and the ceiling boasted a number of white chandeliers. Needless to say though, once the music started, the place was completely packed. The opening band, a local group called Junior Astronomers, had an impressive set. Musically they sounded remarkably full, even while playing without bassist Colin Watts. Frontman Terrance Richard attacked his lyrics with a voice that bears a slight resemblance to that of the Arctic Monkeys’ lead singer, Alex Turner. Overall, they did well, especially given the pressure of having to open for an A-list band like Modest Mouse. Richard seemed especially excited, ending the set with an enthusiastic stage dive and several minutes of crowd surfing.
Finally, after twelve hours of waiting, Modest Mouse walked out to a deafening roar of cheers and applause. They started the night off with a sped up version of “Dark Center of the Universe,” setting the tone for the rest of the show, which featured minor changes from the studio versions on almost every song. The highlights for me were renditions of “Third Planet,” “Fire It Up,” and “I Came As a Rat,” all including some playful divergences both musically and lyrically. About halfway through the set, Brock decided to take a few minutes to tell the audience a semi-unintelligible story that had something to do with a homeless man on LSD, which was both interesting and slightly confusing. Then, after “Black Cadillacs,” keyboardist Tom Peloso rushed off stage, and Brock informed the audience that he had apparently blown out his eardrum. Luckily the band was able to finish the show, and it didn’t seem to substantially throw off their vibe. All in all, the set contained a good mixture of material from most of their albums, and even included three new songs which inspired some excitement for their upcoming studio release.
Modest Mouse will be playing here in Richmond on Monday, May 19th at the National. Anyone interested in getting an idea about what the set list for that show might look like can find all the songs from the Fillmore show here and all the set lists from their most recent performances here.
