The short line outside on Houston Street was characterized by cigarette shorts and denim vests. We entered the Mercury Lounge on the lower east side of Manhattan to a crowded, dimly lit corridor of a bar. After first securing a libation, we endured the constricted caudal shuffle that gave way to the small, stone-walled venue. The stage was small but adequate for the two person act we had driven all this way to see. A cinder-block wall adorned only with the warning “This is not an exit” served as a backdrop. It wasn't long after our arrival that lead singer/guitarist Nicole Barille and drummer/pianist Sam Meister made their respective ways onto stage. Their shadows fought to survive in the pale crimson lights provided, emphasizing the underground ambiance created by the small New York bar.
Mr. Gnome, a Cleveland based post-rock duo, opened their set with a few comparatively calmer songs from their normally high energy yet eclectic repertoire. A few songs in these artistic spouses hit their energetic stride. Their music builds on their mid western post punk background and sets its surrealist sights on the fantastic. Characterized by a raw, unadulterated power, their instrumentation creates a genuine fear that the air around them might spontaneously combust. Barille's guitar is aided by a plethora of pedals and switches that surround her in a ritual crescent. While switching between lulling folk patterns and stenorian punk riffs, she methodically taps on her pedals summoning the rock that gives her singular guitar a bold, ever-evolving timbre. Her gentle folk fingerings are punctured by a fulminating wall of solid rock. Barille is accompanied by Meister's driving polyrythyms. His drumming offers its own style as it undulates beneath Barille's haunting vocals and breaks against her shrill, overdriven wails. His feet ran nakedly through barefoot blast beats and folky stomps and snares. Meister showed off his versatility by adding ghostly ambience and tonal support to Barille's unitary guitar on keyboard. The duo rocked the Mercury Lounge and humbly thanked the crowd for its support. Their show ended with the song “Cleveland Polka.” The enthusiastic punk-polka pays homage to their roots and imbued the supportive audience with awkward bobbing and lyrical mumbling. The couple left the crowd happily cleaning their ears after the show as they headed toward the bar for another round before the headlining band. The headliner was a grunge throwback and due to the post-rock throbbing in my temporal lobes, I wanted out.
Live Music Review
Mr. Gnome: Frenetic Farm Rock By Tom Prokop
05042012
3