Concert Review: Murder by Death
A Summary of the String-Based Concert at the Bowery Ballroom
Indie rock band Murder by Death played NYC Friday with Kiss Kiss and O'Death. It was a solid concert, although Adam Turla and the rest were a relatively tame headliner.
There aren’t very many concerts where the opening bands receive the same amount of praise as the headlining act. This was the case Friday night when three string-based bands gathered to play a superb show at the Bowery Ballroom in New York City. The headliner, Murder by Death, played a set that touched on all four of their albums and was driving, although a bit timid. In addition, the opening bands Kiss Kiss and O’Death each put forth acts that showed how their talent isn’t restricted to their albums.
Kiss Kiss: Dress Up to Kill
The erratic, almost bi-polar style of Kiss Kiss’s debut album, Reality Vs. the Optimist, dictates their live shows. The band’s driving, screaming indie-rock style is backed by an electric violin, which makes their music—at the least—disorienting. Their sound shifts between screamo, indie rock, and string-and-piano-based post rock, and these changes often happen multiple times in the same song. If nothing else, the album is a good indicator of the intensity of their live shows.
When playing live, Kiss Kiss makes it obvious that their main goal is to make the audience enjoy their music. For the most part, Kiss Kiss stuck to the original song, but they often sped up the tempo, as in their live rendition of “Dress Up” (which was blended very nicely with its album-mate “Satellite”). Their musicianship shined in the individual solos, and bassist Sam Oatts in particular aggressively displayed his talent many times over, as did violinist Rebecca Schlappich. All together, Kiss Kiss gave an eccentric and entrancing performance which suited their style.
O’Death: A Foot-Stompin’ Good Time
Second up was O’Death, a band who describes themselves as “goth-country” and whose lead singer Greg Jamie sounds like Modest Mouse’s Issac Brock after chain-smoking for 20 years. Backed up by the typical country fiddle and violin, Jamie’s dark lyrics and dissonant guitar make a sound that will not be appreciated by all audiences. Despite their decidedly strange sound, O’Death put on an energetic show that was filled with hand-claps, foot-stomps, and sing-alongs.
O’Death was incredibly comfortable playing at the venue, and they cheerfully bantered with the crowd as they were egged on for a half-hour long set that quickly approached an hour. Their energy got the crowd moving—which was rare for an opening act—and even after they left a stage, the crowd demanded an encore (which the band happily gave). In a strange twist of events, O’Death encouraged more audience movement than Murder by Death would, and they gave a quirky, energetic performance that was very well-received.
Murder by Death: A Solid Set
After the excitement of O’Death, headlining band Murder by Death seemed almost peaceful, although their set was anything but. Starting with the single from In Bocca Al Lupo, “Sometimes the Line Walks You”, the band attacked the songs mathematically and they were noticeably lacking in energy. However, this was clearly due to nerves, as guitarist/singer Adam Turla admitted that New York City was nothing like their Bloomington, Indiana home. They seemed to get over the nervousness, and regardless, their set was driven and well-executed.
Throughout their set, Turla loosened up and chatted with the audience about backpacking in Europe, writing their songs, and flirting with stop signs. As the night moved on, the band showed that they had an excellent stage presence, but they were also clearly fazed by the audience. Regardless, their set went without a hitch, and they played just as many old songs as new ones.
Murder by Death’s tour with O’Death and Kiss Kiss will continue until April 23rd.
