A week ago, DIY-hero Phil Elverum, who has produced some of independent music’s most iconic records, brought Mount Eerie to the Parish, touring behind a pair of thematically linked 2012 releases, Clear Moon and Ocean Roar. One time K Records lynchpin, Elverum now lives back in his upstate Washington hometown of Anacortes, running his own label P.W. Elverum and Sun. His newest albums represent a melding of his more recent tendencies to favor difficult black-metal-influenced riffs and his traditional (our traditional?) love of pop songs.
On record, Elverum sees to it that the songs drift easily from one extreme to the other, but live, the band achieves this even more effectively. As a long time Mount Eerie/Microphones listener and fan, I can say that the sequence of songs was assembled impeccably, and this incarnation of the band sounds more impressive than any I have seen before. Elverum also played a solo, mostly acoustic set at the recently Red-Hunter procured Baby Blue Studios, now called the Owl, which is undeniably attractive for fans. However, I’ve never seen Mount Eerie more powerful or focused as with this band.
Mount Eerie played entirely new material (though I sat here for a few minutes trying to evaluate if I had missed something in the set), including the newest single for Calvin Johnson’s Dub Narcotic label, “Distorted Cymbals.” As much as I love both of the new Mount Eerie records, I think that this single lands right up there with any track on the full-lengths. The quick chord changes and staccato drums bounce around in your brain for days after. Fans pushed all the way to the stage in supportive fervor. After one song, a guy yelled, “That ruled!” Elverum politely thanked the fan before launching into the next song, after which the same guy yelled, “That ruled, too!” Simple, but an expressive and emotive truth that drew laughs from the audience.
Elverum’s backing band consists of a slew of important musicians also residing in Anacortes or Olympia, WA. Carson Churchill writes and performs music as Takhoma, an interpretation of the word Tacoma, the city in Washington and the original, native name for Mount Ranier. Allyson Foster and Nich Wilber play in a band together called Hungry Cloud Darkening who recently made a record for the final member of Mount Eerie, Paul Benson, who not only performs as Ever Ending Kicks, but also runs his own small label, Fontee Fount. Earlier in the night we were treated to a set by Ever Ending Kicks, which involved quiet, beautifully sung pop songs built on loops laid down successively by Benson.
I can admit my bias as an enormous fan of Mount Eerie, but the audience and friends around me seemed to believe, like me, that the show was outstanding. The only sad part is the end, especially since Mount Eerie doesn’t make it to Texas nearly as much as Texas would like. As that’s the case, if you missed this one, don’t even think about missing them again, Austin. For you lucky ones who still have a Mount Eerie show coming through your town soon. Go.
