Karen Ponzio Photo
Xiu Xiu at the Space Ballroom.
The Space Ballroom doubled up on the musical magic Monday night as the mind-blowing and meditative Mountain Movers shared a bill with longtime purveyors of passion and intensity Xiu Xiu. The crisp fall air held the promise of Halloween, only a week away, and this line up, whose music almost defies description, was so good it was almost scary.
Attendees were pressed up against the stage 45 minutes before a note of music was played. By the time the Mountain Movers got up there, everyone was more than ready to go along for the ride. And if you are familiar at all with this band, then you know the ride is going to take you places you have never been. Dan Greene on guitar and vocals, Kryssi Battalene on guitar and vocals, Rick Omonte on bass, and Ross Menze on drums are about as fine a foursome as you can find not only locally, but just about anywhere else. They play together effortlessly, except you know their collective time and experience out into the music was extensive.
The band came to the stage with a six-song setlist that was a piece of art unto itself, made by Greene in his bold and color-charged style seen on their album covers and t‑shirts. The four members each have their own unique artistry and meld them together to create a trippy hypnotic experience from note one. Once the dance began, both literally and figuratively, Greene and his guitar shared a psychedelic duet as if they were trading off, each leading the other to new sounds, while Battalene coaxed sounds from her guitar and amp organically, making you feel as if you were hearing that instrument in a way that no one else ever thought to use it before. Is there a more solid yet sensuous rhythm section than Omonte and Menze? Together they brought beats that could stand on their own, though you would not be standing still if you were the one hearing them.
The band volleyed between more subdued and more intense pieces, always in sonic conversation with one another, their instruments, and the audience, who embraced and absorbed the vibe, mesmerized throughout. Very few words were spoken, save for Greene initially thanking everyone for being there and also mentioning that the band had a new album coming out in February through Trouble in Mind Records. At the end of the set, he offered gratitude for being there and added “tonight’s going to be great.” Indeed, it already was.
Xiu Xiu came to a stage that was pressed even further with audience members, whose cheers for them soon became an enraptured silence as the three members — Jamie Stewart on vocals, guitar, and percussion, Angela Seo on vocals synth and percussion, and David Kendrick on drums and percussion — began their journey through over an hour of songs and sounds that seemed to come out of everything and everywhere, as if there were three times as many members performing them. One minute they were each banging a gong and cymbals. Next, there was an exchange between string, synth, and bell, but the only thing to expect with each piece was the unexpected. Impassioned vocals from Stewart went from a near mumble to a scream, as if you were listening to a friend confess their latest sins, while Seo’s vocals added a deeper vibe, making you almost want to lean in to hear if she was ready to share her own secrets.
The crowd remained mostly silent for the first half of the set, though there were a few who sang along. Some stood completely locked into what the band was creating, eyes damp with tears, holding hands with others, and absorbing all they could while they could. The talking was kept to a minimum both on the stage and off, but that did not make for a lack of connection. It made the links between band and fans even stronger in a way, as the songs, which covered the most personal of topics, and the way they were received completed the conversation.
As the night went on, the crowd joined in more, singing along with the la la las from their song “I Luv the Valley OH!” and cheering Stewart on as he shattered a drumstick, which he continued to use and shatter the rest of the evening. He and Seo even brought out multicolored groan sticks to use for one of their final pieces. The bright plastic playfulness of those, juxtaposed with the intensity of the other sounds and lyrics, in a way symbolized this set: experimental rock with a dose of poetic performance art that made you think, that you could feel settle into your bones and your soul, but could also make you smile. Stewart left the stage with a huge smile himself and a big wave to the crowd. A few people even waved back.