Almost a year ago I saw one of the very first in a string of reunion gigs put on by Polvo, one of the so-called math-rock (WTF does that mean?) bands of the 90's. If the crappy math-rock label already makes you wanna dismiss em, you should reconsider. Polvo were not into the kind of pointless virtuosity, bombast, and intricacy associated with the math-rock tag. Instead, they played guitar in strange tunings, approached melody as a series of tone centers rather than individual notes to be played in perfect tune, and managed to exude perfect calm and maelstrom simultaneously.

Anyway, I found some really old notes I had taken quickly after the show that were originally meant to be turned into a post; there are also some really murky but interesting bootleg recordings from the show that I made using a mic that fits into one's iPod. School/work interfered with the post, but I just found the old notes and recordings lying around and figured they're worth a post.

UPDATE: you can download a .rar file of a few recordings of Polvo playing at the Black Cat in DC here.

Notes after the jump:

Polvo Live at the Black Cat, Washington DC, 05/09/08:

1) Polvo are one of the great unsung 90’s indie rock bands. Rock-crit comparisons to Sonic Youth abound, but make little sense; Polvo are thornier, more baroque. Their songs feature wildly sliding guitar leads, sudden changes in tempo and volume, extreme dissonance that gives way to rich drones, mumbled vocals, and a weird classic rock fixation running under it all.

2) Whiskey-damaged nerd next to me is making incoherent jokes about John Zorn. Dave Brylawski jokes about “the drunk 35-year-olds” before the band starts.

3) Frustration: the guitars are mixed too low, lacking the tinny treble that slashed through the din on Polvo’s records. Bass guitar, bass drum, and toms are all mixed way too high. The end results are muddy.

4) Ash Bowie wasn’t lying: no mere reunion. “Thermal Treasure”, an old crowd fav, featured multiple brand new sections edited into the original structure. The reworked pieces and a few newly written songs are pleasantly disorienting.

5) Brian Quast, the new drummer, lends immense momentum to otherwise guitar-heavy songs. His manic stage presence contrasts nicely with the collected cool of the six-string slingers.

6) Earlier, Dave Brylawski warned that the band would sound rusty. Hate to say he’s right. Occasional notes got flubbed, the band didn’t always gel, the guitars periodically lacked the requisite clarity for such tricky counterpoints. Still leagues above most bands half their age, but they’ll likely improve after a few more shows.

7) Polvo’s set reminded me of the virtues of 90’s indie rock anti-heroic stage presence. If you closed yr eyes, the music sounded incredibly harsh, discordant, and complex. But, aside from the drummer’s flailing, the rest of the band played with a sense of total calm and control that the less attentive might have mistaken for a lack of energy. Watching wild sounds spiral out of such mellow folks was jarring and powerful.

8) The new songs sounded great, reminding me of the better moments on Polvo’s final album, the unfairly maligned “Shapes”. The emphasis was on pleasantly droning guitar textures that lead smoothly into art-damaged classic rock riffs. Not sure if the crowd agreed.

9) So refreshing to see a band that was dressed casually, acted calm and respectful, and relied entirely on electric guitars to produce a ragged, loose sound. As much as I’m fascinated by present-day indie music, the recent emphasis on fashion and hedonism can become a bit numbing after a while.

10) Partial setlist: “Thermal Treasure”, “Every Holy Shroud”, “Feather of Forgiveness”, “Fractured (Like Chandeliers)”, “Bombs That Fall From Your Eyes”, “Downtown Dedication”, “Lazy Comet”, and “Tragic Carpet Ride”.