| MODEST MOUSE - live at The Powerstation, August 1st, 2011. |
| Written by Sarah Mudgway |
| Sunday, 07 August 2011 23:51 |
 When a band as experienced, well respected and dearly cherished as MODEST MOUSE announce that they will be gracing New Zealand with their presence for the very first time, it’s hard to predict what kind of event you are going to be part of. There’s always the initial excitement, which then slowly turns into slight nervousness: Will they play one’s favourite song? Will they live up to the high expectations one has placed on them? And just how will a band with such an eclectic array of musical instruments and styles perform said songs in a live environment? With nine EP’s, five full-lengths and a couple of cassette tapes to their name, Modest Mouse are no small thing, and the fact that their first New Zealand show at The Powerstation sold out so fast that a second had to be added only goes to proves this... as does the volume of cheers that erupted from the sold-out Powerstation when Isaac Brock and company took to the stage. Accompanied by the sound of nature and flashes of ‘lightning’ it was an epic start, to a consistently epic two hours of solid musicianship, and for many, a dream come true.  Opening with ‘King Rat’ and moving straight into the dance-inspiring ‘Dashboard’, it was clear from the get-go that Modest Mouse were there to please and perform. The synthy ‘Bury Me With It’ was a crowd favourite, with the skills of each musician [two drummers!] shining brighter with every song performed. Drummer/percussionist Joe Plummer was a favourite of mine to watch - hitting his drums with an obvious passion, and trading drum sticks for percussion instruments which were thrown at him by a stagehand hidden in the wings. Brock’s vocal performance in ‘Fire It Up’ unfortunately seemed to get lost behind the wall of sound coming from the rest of the band, but all was made up for when guitars were swapped for banjos and the band launched into the sonically beautiful ‘Satin In A Coffin’ - by far my favourite song of the evening. The spot-on harmonies and the flawless musicianship that one would expect from such an experienced and talented band was on full display, and the soft accompaniment of the crowd singing along only made it that much greater. Further proving their talent, the night took up a slight ska vibe when the brass instruments made their debut for ‘This Devil’s Workday’ followed by ‘Cowboy Dan’ which traded brass for strings.  The stage banter and set-up was kept to a minimum, with Brock revealing a sense of humour mid-set when he forced a break to "observe the raddest hat" in the audience. But while his words were few, and there were no flashy signs or gimmicks, the music was given the chance to speak for itself which let’s face it, is the reason everyone was there. Rounding out their ninety-minute main set with tracks such as ‘Paper Thin Walls’, ‘Dramamine’ and ‘Spitting Venom’ before playing a four song encore which included ‘The World At Large’, it was safe to say that the wait was worth it for the fans who managed to get their hands on the highly sought after tickets. Let’s just hope it’s not another eighteen years before New Zealand gets the chance to see Modest Mouse live again...  Click HERE to view more live Modest Mouse photos.  |
