The Music Tapes + Olivia Tremor Control 09/21/11

Photo by Anna Quinlan

The past couple of months have been pretty magical in terms of shows. I've been able to see and meet a few of my favorite musicians; some that I never thought I'd have the opportunity to see perform live. Back in September I was shocked to see that The Music Tapes were opening for Olivia Tremor Control at Le Poisson Rogue, in New York. The Music Tapes very rarely perform live, and usually do so in the form of private house shows. Last winter they were traveling around the country, serenading friendly house guests with sweet lullabies. Unfortunately, I missed the date they were visiting New York due to winter break at home, and despite my lovingly desperate e-mails offering home baked apple crumble and hot tea if they moved the date earlier, I was never able to see The Music Tapes. Needless to say, I snatched the tickets for the show in September up within seconds (school night schmool night).

Julian Koster of The Music Tapes is one of my greatest musical heroes and influences. I first heard him play on the profound second record by Neutral Milk Hotel, In The Aeroplane Over the Sea. Initially, I was unsure what was producing the ghostly howling and angelic whistling that appeared on many of the tracks. But, upon further investigation I discovered it was Mr. Koster on the musical saw. From there, I fell in love with the sound and the unconventional nature of the instrument and began teaching myself how to play. As I began to research things further, I discovered his own project, The Music Tapes, and instantly fell in love with the odd, dreamy, nostalgic sounds, recording devices, instruments, and lyrics. Between toy pianos, chord organs, bowing of banjos, singing saw orchestras, 7 foot tall metronomes, and clapping machines, I couldn't ask for more. Essentially, this guy's the tops.

Naturally, the show did not disappoint one bit. Julian Koster was accompanied by the other contributing members of the band on chord organ, horn, etc. as well as the 7 foot metronome, vintage suitcases to sit on, illuminated toy soldier lawn ornaments, and an apple spinning on an old record player. They played a set of songs both old and new, primarily off of Music Tapes for Clouds and Tornadoes and the new EP Purim's Shadow, including the mind blowing "Hacidem" in which Mr. Koster plays the saw like...a beast (refer to video, below, for the tail end of the song). Looking around, it was evident that the crowd was full of a mixture of people; some followers of Koster's project, others waiting for Olivia Tremor Control to play, and some who stumbled upon the show by chance and figured it'd be something to do. At the beginning of the set I overheard a few confused audience members exclaiming that this was "the weirdest thing" they have "ever seen," but by the end I also overheard some people explain that they never stay for the opening acts, but were extremely thankful that they did for this one. Between the circus-like announcements explaining the workings of the mythical 7 foot metronome and exaggerated acted out responses from the band members, plus Julian's jumping around stage-antics and story telling (he's a master story-teller), the initial comments aren't unreasonable. But, it's this strange combination of eccentricities that made the show so magical and wonderful and why I love the Music Tapes as much as I do. Before some songs, Koster told stories about how his Romanian grandfather would tell him a story before bed about an elephant shadow (wherein at this point one audience member yelled out, asking if that was how the collective the group is part of got their name 'Elephant 6,' to which Julian responded "ok, sure!"), as if we, too, were grandchildren being tucked in at night, entertained by the fantastical stories only our child-like imaginations could grapple.

After the show, I hung around for a bit and noticed Julian sitting on the steps up to the stage. When we made eye contact, I smiled and waved, and then he stood up and walked over to me. Partially giddy and in partial disbelief (and completely nervous), I couldn't help but gush to him about how wonderful he is and how much of an inspiration he has been to me. We talked about the band and playing the saw and he was incredibly down-to-earth, friendly, and wonderfully strange. He definitely is the rare sort of being who lives in his own magical world of the unreal, so much that to him, it is real. It's a beautiful thing. He also looks half his age, so I'm convinced that he's the Fountain of Youth. A special night, indeed.

All photos and video taken by me on digital and disposable film, except for the first one!

xx