Of Montreal – House of Blues – 11/14/08

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Well this show was actually a few weeks ago but I haven’t gotten to putting up anything on it due to our extreme website shutdown issues that keep plaguing us. Anyway, all that aside, this show was once again an exercise in ridiculous awesomeness. Now we didn’t get a horse like they did in NYC, but it was hard to really miss it as there was so much going on this whole show it was pretty much a workout just trying to follow and process everything that you were seeing, and what you were seeing was unlike anything you have seen before.

Daigle and I saw these guys back at the great Metro last year in October and the show was pretty wild back then, with a very elaborate stage setup with all the band members at different heights, the guitarist had giant wings on, and Kevin Barnes went through a variety of outfits and masks. Generally the setups back then involved Barnes almost exclusively, with the other band members usually in crazy outfits coupled with the crazy stage. When seeing it last year it was definitely wild stuff, but they have gone out and taken it way way further than they had it last year.

This tour is following on the heels of their release of Skeletal Lamping, a follow up to last year’s Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer?. I think the new album and the new stage show go pretty well together as both really take their certain asthetic and style to the very extreme. The album is very literal and almost shocking in the way it casually addresses and throws out any number of subjects usually involving sex in some way or another. The album really doesn’t pull any punches or dress songs up in metaphors and the stage show really doesn’t pull any punches either, and really goes for it all as much as you can at an indie rock show.

There were many outfits from Barnes, many masks, and many stage/set pieces on many different songs with setups of a bunch of gold giant-headed Buddhas, or soldiers, or anything else you can think of. They once again have the different levels of the stage for the various members and they all kind of move around between the various stages throughout the songs. There was a white backdrop in the middle of the stage that could rotate and usually they would set up some elaborate stage piece in there and then reveal them as the songs went on and they usually resulted in something completely off the wall and ridiculous. Just check out the pictures as I really can’t do it justice with words.

For the music the new album works really well live and as anyone who has seen them knows, they do sound a little more rock live than on the album, and they really have a great ability to bring a lot out of songs that may sound too intricate or crafted on the album. They add a lot of depth to the songs and the show certainly delivers sonically just as it does visually. Sometimes the songs are a little lost somewhat in the sheer madness of what is transpiring on stage, but the band still keeps rocking it out while madness happens around them.

These Of Montreal shows are a lot of fun and I guarantee you will not see anything quite like this from any other band, and they really take the visual stage show to a level way beyond what anyone else out there is even attempting right now. Even if you are so so on the album, I can wholeheartedly recommend the show as it never ceases to be entertaining, even if you can’t sing along or don’t know the words. Anyone who has a chance you absolutely must see these guys, no question.

Of Montreal – Id Engager- From Skeletal Lamping

Remaining Tour Dates (seriously go see them!):

December 16 – Brooklyn, NY – Music Hall of Williamsburg 16+
December 17 – Brooklyn, NY – DJ List Christee @ The Bell House 21+
December 18 – New York, NY – Late Show with David Letterman AA
December 30 – Athens, GA – 40 Watt Club 16+ (with guardian) #
December 31 – Athens, GA – 40 Watt Club 16+ (with guardian)
January 3 – Nashville, TN – The Cannery 18+
January 4 – Asheville, NC – The Grey Eagle AA
January 20 – London ENGLAND – London Heaven %
January 20 – Berlin GERMANY – Kesselhaus 16+ CANCELLED
January 21 – Amsterdam NETHERLANDS – Paradiso AA #
January 22 – Brussels BELGIUM – Botanique AA #
January 23 – Utrecht NETHERLANDS – Tivoli AA #
January 24 – Brighton ENGLAND – Brighton Digital 18+ #
January 26 – Glasgow SCOTLAND – Oran Mor 14+ (w/ legal guardian) #
January 27 – Belfast N.IRELAND – The Stiff Kitten 18+ #
January 28 – Dublin IRELAND – Button Factory 16+ #
January 29 – Manchester ENGLAND – Club Academy 14+ (w/ legal guardian) #
January 30 – Lille FRANCE – L’Aéronef AA #
January 31 – Paris FRANCE – Le Bataclan AA #
February 1 – Strasbourg FRANCE – La Laiterie AA #
February 19 – Pomona, CA – The Glass House AA
February 21 – Honolulu, HI – Loft Gallery And Lounge 21+
February 25 – Auckland NEW ZEALAND – Kings Arms
February 26 – Wellington NEW ZEALAND – San Francisco Bath House
February 28 – Perth AUSTRALIA – Beck’s Music Box – Perth Festival
March 3 – Sydney AUSTRALIA – Manning Bar 18+
March 4 – Brisbane AUSTRALIA – The Zoo 18+
March 5 – Melbourne AUSTRALIA – The Hi-Fi 18+
March 7 – Golden Plains AUSTRALIA – Golden Plains Festival
March 10 – Osaka JAPAN – Club Quattro
March 12 – Tokyo JAPAN – Duo Music Exchange
March 15 – Singapore SINGAPORE – Mosaic Music Festival @ Esplanade Theatres