The Both, a collaborative project between accomplished songwriter Aimee Mann and alt-rock hero Ted Leo, brought not only their music but also their A-game stage banter to Mohawk’s outdoor stage last Wednesday night. The group’s recent self-titled album is full of listenable rock songs defined by memorable hooks. However, the group’s appeal on record and onstage stems as much from their personas as the songwriting. The pair is somewhat unlikely, but a commonality in dry wit and awkward sarcasm emerges at once in a live setting.
Mann and Leo rambled through what must have been the longest a band has ever talked before starting a song. In fact, just when I thought the duo was going to kick it into action, they delved back into banter, joking about how they should probably start, but they still hadn’t beaten their record of bantering–that time they talked for like 30 minutes or something. I’m sure that some concertgoers who came for the rock were a bit disappointed in this odd stage approach, but it worked for me. As I’ve said before: I can hear a band’s records anytime. While it’s nice to hear a band that’s on point and tight, it’s also nice to get something unexpected when you see a live show.
When The Both finally started playing, their set was built on rollicking indie rock songs with singer-songwriter frameworks. To be direct, it’s exactly what you’d expect a duo of Aimee Mann and Ted Leo to sound like. It’s the kind of stuff that’s well developed in terms of melody and progression and makes you wanna pump your fist to the up-tempo distorted chords. There are certainly edgier places the pair could have taken the project, and I can’t say that the songs come anywhere close to the kind of greatness both have achieved on their own. However, the night still provided plenty of adequate rock ‘n’ roll tunes.
Fans of each of these performers were treated to a couple songs from their individual catalogues. Around the middle of the set, Mann played crowd-pleaser “Save Me,” accompanied by Leo, followed by Leo’s “Lonsdale Avenue,” with which Mann assisted. Near the set’s end, fans got Mann’s “Goodbye Caroline” and Leo’s “Bottled in Cork.”
Lemuria opened the night with a set of blistered rock music, eliciting a crowd response that proved that more than a few people had come to the show to see Lemuria themselves. The band has spent a good amount of time in the Texas capital — they’re “from here kind of,” as the band put it — and their set was warmly welcomed by fans.
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