Pygmalion Fest: Headlights / Japandroids / Owen / Mt. St. Helens Vietnam Band

September 23, 2009

What better way is there to usher in the autumn season then with a heaping dose of Pygmalion Festival, central IL’s premiere music event. This year the Chamapign-Urbana festival kicked off with the locally-based Polyvinyl Records showcase which featured a great variety of bands some new (Japandroids), some old (Owen), some local (Headlights, Common Loon) and some with really long band titles (Mt. St. Helens Vietnam Band).

I walked in as Common Loon was finishing their set, so the first band I got to see was Mt. St. Helens Vietnam Band, a Seattle five-piece who are probably the first band whose name references both a volcanic Northwestern mountain and a land war in Asia. The band’s live show is just as explosive as their name suggests, the drummer is only 14 years old but provides the driving force for the band while angular guitars and multi-part harmonies fill the room. The band’s distinctive sound lends comparisons to both Modest Mouse and Wolf Parade, which I’d say is a good place to be.

MP3 Mt. St. Helens Vietnam Band – Cheer For Fate

Last time I saw Owen at Pygmalion Festival it was an acoustic show in a coffee shop, and the show was very intimate and conversational. This show, taking place on Canopy Club’s main stage, placed the emphasis more firmly on the music with a full backing band, including midwestern indie rock legend Bob Nanna, and lots of new material to play through (Owen’s new CD release show was in Chicago the same weekend). The expanded instrumental palette fit his introspective songs very well and I especially loved the flourishes of strings and organ in the mix.

MP3 Owen – Good Friends, Bad Habits

Next up was easily my most anticipated set of the night, Japandroids. After their incredible Pitchfork Fest set I was hungry for more and they delivered just as raucous of a set this time around. It took a couple songs for the crowd to transition from the acoustic set that occurred beforehand but by the time “The Boys Are Leaving Town” started they erupted. Moshing, thrusting hands in the air, and people jumping on stage and catapulting themselves into the crowd before security could catch them ensued. If the crowd was energetic though it did not compare to the copious amounts of heart and soul the two Japandroids, Brian (guitar/vocals) and David (drums/vocals) injected into the set.

They started by asking the sound guys to turn everything up because, as David said, “I can still hear myself and if I’m not going deaf yet, it’s not loud enough”, before relentlessly rocking out, making use of the entire stage. From the inspiring loud/soft dynamics of teenage sing-a-long anthem “Young Hearts Spark Fire” to rumbling fury of “Rockers East Vancouver” (which became “Rockers East Champaign” for the night), the band continue to compete for the position of best live band of 2009. I think their own words best capture the feeling that night. Upon asking them backstage how they think the show went, David said, “Honestly, I think we slayed“.

MP3 Japandroids – Young Hearts Spark Fire

I’ve seen Headlights more than any other band playing at the festival (it’s getting close to double digits) and while the temptation would be to skip over them, they always bring something new and exciting to their live shows. Being Champaign-Urbana’s most well-known band, each time they play seems like a homecoming party and this night even moreso with balloons filling the stage and an invite for the fans to dance on the stage for the last few songs (even referencing the stage-collapse that occurred when Dan Deacon did the same thing at last year’s Pygmalion).The band debuted a number of great songs from their new album Wildlife, along with favorites like “Put Us Back Together”, “Cherry Tulips”, and “Lions”. I don’t think I could have asked for a better ending to the night with gathering around the hometown heroes and singing along to some of the most exuberant indie pop to reach our ears.

MP3 Headlights – Get Going

Follow the jump for more pictures from the night. Click here to see the full set.

Mt. St. Helens Vietnam Band

Owen

Japandroids

Headlights

Posted by Taylor in Festival, Live