Waking Windows Day 2 May 2, 2014 With The Mountain Says No, Bad History Month, SoftSpot, Endless Jags, Paper Castles, And The Kids, And Ice Balloons

Words by Tim Lewis.

I had a great time seeing music last night. It was just slow enough at work that I got out at 7:45 instead of 8 and made it to The Monkey House at 8:03 or so, and The Mountain Says No, who were supposed to go on at 8:10, were onstage playing the title song. I got a super quick drink from the great bartenders at the Monkey then skipped to the front. They played their usual great set of heavy rock with power and grace. Somewhere in the middle they played a song that sounded more like an indie rock song, that slid into some heavy sections, and may be my new favorite song of theirs. They rained down glory in the song about one statistic and wrapped the set with a killer version of I’m With The Bomb. There’s nothing like turning your head from work mode to party mode with these guys! Up next was Bad History Month which was a guy playing guitar, singing and using a kick drum and high hat. He had a heavy sound that was kind of cool and the music just went on and on. I made it 10 minutes or so, then wanted to check out another venue. I ducked across the circle to Oak 45 and caught the last song by SoftSpot. The music was gentle and flowing and the woman’s ethereal voice was magnificent. I was sad when they wrapped up after the song, but I’m very glad I caught a little. I need to check them out more! I skipped back through the traffic circle and went back to the Monkey for Endless Jags. I remember liking them at a Max Krauss rock dungeon party and they did not disappoint last night. With three guitars, bass, drums and keys they filled the stage with bodies and music. Their rock songs were well crafted and wonderfully enjoyable. I was happily dancing for the whole set. Between some of the songs Ben Maddox commented on how good their vocals were and that he could hear them clearly from outside. Paper Castles followed with a brilliant set, made mostly if not entirely from the Vague Era album. The band sounded great and Padaric Padraic Reagan’s singing was really nice. The star of the show was Wren on guitar who used a wrench to pull some great sounds from his instrument. Joe Adler has been recommending And The Kids for a while now, and after seeing them last night, I can see why. Some of their music is a bit challenging but a lot finds a nice groove and rocks. They are a trio with keys, drums and guitar and had an electronic indie rock sound. My memory is fading a bit, but they were really good and I want to see them again. Up next Ice Balloons hit the stage with fury. They had a backdrop to project trippy images on and the sound was somewhere between Hawkwind and Black Sabbath. They rocked hard and the singer with the fly mask was just over the top. They had me rocking from first note to last and I never wanted the set to end. Unfortunately, it did. After a long work day and lots of music I was out of energy. Someone said the next band on, Maui, were an electronic tape loop ensemble, but I just did not have enough left to find out. I took the long walk home fully exhausted but blissfully happy. Today I have to work from noon to 10:30 so will likely not make it back. It’s too bad because there is tons and tons of great music happening today. Yesterday was my day, and I made the most of it!

This post was originally published by Tim Lewis at his personal blog, https://timstriangletribune.wordpress.com.