SHREDnews

By: Steph

Forget everything you thought you knew about the mid 1960’s to early 1970’s.  Forget what you thought you learned from the Beatles inspired Across the Universe, and don’t even consider the philosophical beliefs you obtained from Almost Famous.  If you think Freddie Mercury was flashy, think again.  The band of Montreal out does all of those artistic sources with a touch of elegant flamboyancy that is undeniably inspiring.  of Montreal played at Paradise Rock Club in Boston, MA on January 27^th and delivered the most dynamic live set I have ever seen.

When of Montreal was slotted to take the stage, a skit acted as their entrance and introduced stagehands as characters in what would become a set long narrative.  Donned in black suites and animal masks (pigs and a tiger to be exact) the stagehands were quickly replaced by the members of of Montreal clad in the most extravagant outfits that reflected the style of the mid-60’s and early-70’s.  When front man Kevin Barnes sung his first lyric and stood on stage proudly in bright pink two-toned-pocket pants the crowd went wild.  What followed were a dance party that never ended and a set that questioned the sexual standards of everyone on the room.

Barnes and company opened the set with “Suffer for Fashion” off their 2007 release Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer? This song demonstrated of Montreal’s ability to blend true rock with a 60’s pop sound to create a truly unique experience.  The first half of the band’s set was as versatile as Barnes’ vocal range: fusing upbeat dance songs typical of of Montreal with slower tracks that offered a psychedelic experience as twisted as the acid infused trips of the 60’s and 70’s.

Right in the middle of the set of Montreal played the song “Plastis Wafers” a highly sexual song off the most recent full-length album Skeletal Lamping.  This song was perfect because it is a mellow song with electro-dance undertones as well as a hard guitar rift during the chorus, which allowed the crowd to experience everything of Montreal musically has to offer.  At this point of the evening, there was nothing slowing the band down.  All the band mates were feeding off the energy of the crowd and one could see it in their faces that they were ready to set free a truly amazing show.

As of Montreal worked through the second half of the set, they featured songs that were heavily-synth infused to pump the crowd up and create the perfect dance party music.  These songs were very techno-driven and really allowed Barnes to explore his Freddie Mercury inspired vocals, which was a treat to experience.  The band closed the set with “She’s a Rejector,” and brought out a makeshift device out onto stage.  Barnes, then shirtless, was chained to the device in order to engage in sadomasochistic acts with the stagehands.  At first this seemed almost insane to me, but then it all made sense; this was not just a show, the songs were not just part of a set.  The night was a story, possibly the story of Barnes, but more importantly the story of everyone.  The whipping was not to be taken literally, the title “She’s a Rejector” indicates that the sadomasochistic act is merely a metaphor for the lyrics of the song.

of Montreal closed with “For Our Elegant Caste” and a cover of “I Want You Back” by Michael Jackson; two songs that had the entire crowd jumping and singing along.  The former was another sexual song, but with an innocent sound that transitioned beautifully into “I Want You Back,” which was played beautifully and respectfully by the band.  Overall, the night was absolutely insane and everything one would expect from the alternative and overly promiscuous of Montreal.

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