Band: Man Man
Venue: The Firebird
Location: St. Louis, MO
Tickets: $16
Date: 2-18-2013
4/5 Man Man members. From left to right: Honus Honus, S. Murphy, T. Moth and Pow Pow.
I was never intentionally misled about what a Man Man concert was. I was told that a Man Man concert would be raucous, a tad rambunctious. Maybe even a little boisterous.
And all of those words describe the concert. They just don’t describe it enough. The concert was a sensational mix of loud colors, loud sounds and a band that knows how to play the crowd flawlessly.
Before we jump in with a concert review, allow me to give you a bit of background. Man Man has been labeled an experimental rock group, and maybe there’s some truth in that. I mean, more than a few times you get the full impact of their eccentricities (example: drummer Pow Pow had a magic orange toolbox full of maracas, kazoos, a feather and what we’re pretty sure was one of the missing crystal skulls), but they are more than an experiment. They are the result of genre smashing, neon colors and the gentleman’s sport of tennis. It goes without saying that they are Men Men after my own heart.
Having arrived two hours early, my brother and I snagged a most-coveted location: right in front of Pow Pow’s drum setup. And that was a fantastic place to be. I even made it into one of Honus Honus’ pics of the audience. Check this out. Recognize the girl on the right? Me either. I’m far front left.
Once Man Man took the stage (after two excellent opening acts, Damian Suomi and Murder by Death), I think the audience went a little wild. The place was hopping all through the set. I’ve got bruises on my knees from being pushed into the stage and I didn’t notice until the drive home. We were all jumping and screaming and watching each band member haphazardly and lovingly play their respective instruments. And the way they stare out at the audience…it’s like they’re daring you to sit still and glare at them. When they’re playing, that’s impossible. They never pause between songs, they don’t exchange pleasantries. They don’t need to. The first song either scares you out of the house or gets you in the bedroom. Why waste time wooing you?
The set itself was a brilliant mix of old and new, giving us time to belt out our favorites and learn that their next album will be eagerly awaited (that sentence was really toned down…eagerly sounds better than anxiously awaiting, hoping the next meteor won’t be striking before the album comes out because that would be a natural disaster on too many levels and I can’t figure out how this sentence should end so I’ll end it with FLAIR!). They played hard, they played well and I’m planning on seeing this band as many times as distance and their schedules will allow. Here’s the Setlist (bestowed upon us by Brown Sugar):
Man Man Setlist
Pink Wonton*
Paul’s*
Black Mission Goggles (interspersed with Doo Right)
Encore:
Sarspirillsa (first 30 seconds of vid)
You know, the night was best summed up when I was chatting with one of the band members. While I was getting him (Murphy) to sign my shirt, we saw Honus rolling around on the ground with the girl he was taking a picture with. Laughing, I asked Murphy,
“How do you guys handle him?”
He smiled and said,
“Easy. We’re all as bad as him.”
And don’t we just love that?
Concert: A+
Venue: A+
Drink Prices: B
Audience: A+
Overall: A+
*This is a new song!
