It's generally hard to write about a show by which you were completely unmoved, because unspectacular shows give the writer nothing to say. No one, and definitely not pretentious music d-bags, want to write simply, "The music was fine, the band was pretty chill, I had an alright time. The end," but that's what reviews of hum-drum shows tend to boil down to.
Unless said humdrum show is a post-rock show. Mediocre shows by bands that are considered part of this broad, amalgamated genre are unique because, in my experience, the thing about post-rock shows (and really, post-rock albums, bands and fans) is that they are either really awesome or really horrible. For example, Sigur R?s vs. Tortoise.
Last year, I saw Sigur R?"s, maybe the most famous active post-rock band in the world, and was so moved by the gigantic, sweeping sound they were able to achieve that I wept - repeatedly. I felt like I could actually see the band's music in all of its intricately textured majesty coming alive, an experience that you simply cannot have from listening to the records; it was unlike anything I have ever seen.
I guess Tortoise's set at Bonnaroo in 2003 was also unlike anything I have ever seen, but not for the same reason. Whereas the Sigur R?"s show gave fans an insight into the creation of their highly original music, seeing Tortoise, who are hailed as one of post-rock's most important bands, was like watching a bunch of drunk kids learn to play instruments. The band awkwardly fumbled through their catalog, abruptly ending songs and seeming uncomfortable on stage. Their music had no depth, nothing of the atmosphere or mood that the band has perfected on their studio albums, and it was a disappointing mess.
The Do Make Say Think show at the Middle East last week stands out to me as the only post-rock show I have ever seen that was so-so. Several of the songs in their mammoth 80-minute set were invigorating, energetic and masterfully constructed, but just as many were boring, indulgent or boringly indulgent. Ultimately, the sum effect of their marathon of melodically dense compositions and mind-numbing, crescendo-loving wankery was a show that was just OK.
DMST have developed a reputation amongst Internet-dwelling studs as a stellar live act, and there were definite points of this show where the band hinted at why that is. With two synchronized drummers and a rotating cast of technically wowing bassists, the band's rhythm section consistently cranked out super-sized beats that lent themselves more to penitent arm-raising than dancing.
During finale "The Universe," for example, both drummers thundered away in a fist-pumping maelstrom, then completely reined themselves in, pausing to allow a small guitar melody, then blasting off again in perfectly syncopated unison.
The unflappable pummeling of the rhythm section gave DMST's two guitarist firm footing on which to shred, but instead of trying to match the bass and drums' intensity, Justin Small and Ohad Benchetrit opted for melody. Catchy pop hooks and western, Americana riffs that I verbosely described to a friend as "the sound of a man trotting his horse through a frontier town on its dirt road in 1848" peppered the percussion, constantly pitching and heaving throughout the band's lengthier songs.
The best moments of the show were when both guitars simultaneously careened into the percussion, which randomly happened several times. Meeting head-on, melody and rhythm clashed, resulting in the sonic equivalent of a lightning storm. The standard post-rock vocabulary - words like "epic," "sprawling" and "theatrical" - really do apply: It sounded huge, and it was awesome.
Some of the worst moments, conversely, were when the band too hardily pursued this grandeur. Climaxes are sweet, but not 10 times per song. For much of the show, particularly the middle section, it felt like all of DMST's music fell into two categories: part of a crescendo, or filler between crescendos. Obviously, this is boring - a climax loses its effect if the whole set is one big, damn climax - but worse, it's cheap, as if the band would rather go for the flashy thrill than something less sexy but more substantial. Not only did DMST's music make me yawn, but it made me mad.
I don't know how to look at DMST after this show. Are they a band with a lot of upside that had a bad night, or are they a bunch of climax-happy sensationalists worthy of my scorn? It's hard to say, but after a show as middling as this one, I don't care enough to see them again to answer the question.
Mikey Goralink is a sophomore majoring in American studies. He can be reached at Michael.Goralnik@tufts.edu.
"
