Cursive unleashes its typical emotion — and the crowd its typical devotion — at sold-out Echoplex
Michelle Shiers on
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Over two decades of ups, downs, hiatuses, side projects and lineup changes, Omaha’s Cursive have inspired a following as intense as frontman Tim Kasher’s emotional caterwauling. Those fans turned out in force at the sold-out Echoplex on Friday night to help the band celebrate the deluxe reissue of Cursive’s 2003 breakthrough album “The Ugly Organ.”
Kasher, dressed in a suit and tie, commandeered the audience saying “We wrote some songs for you,†and moved into “Sink To The Beat†from 2001’s “Burst And Bloom” followed by the raucous thrusting “Big Bang†from 2006’s “Happy Hollow.”
Despite the occasional sabbaticals between records, Cursive have steadily pushed out one album after another filled with lofty concepts and personal torment.
However, it is “The Ugly Organ” that stands tall in their catalog as one of the more ornate and influential indie-rock concept albums. Fronting a lineup featuring cellist Ellen Lind, Kasher yelled out “Let’s get started! What better time!?†as the band began the noisy “The Ugly Organist†followed by “The Recluse.” Cursive retain a perfect self-loathing quality in their orchestral-emo with Kasher as the wide-eyed wise commentator. “Butcher The Song†started with a sample of plucked piano innards and the energy in the room propelled into a mosh. Fan-favorite “Driftwood: A Fairy Tale†came alive with strings and every single person in the room screaming “Liar liar!â€
Both Kasher and guitarist Ted Stevens shared vocal duties as Stevens took the reigns on “Tall Tales, Telltales†from 2000’s “Domestica,” but it is is always Kasher’s maniacal laughter and momentary shift from whisper to bark that characterizes Cursive’s expressive posture.
Returning to the stage after the main set, Kasher explained to the audience that the concept of the encore goes as far back as ancient Greece with Aristotle’s band, “and they lit a doobie and they had some shots then they said ‘Lets go play those two more songs!’†They ended the evening with “Sierra†and “Staying Alive†as fans sang along to the perfect Cursive-style show-closing lyric “Do do do do, the worst is over.â€
The night was kicked off by Omaha labelmates Twinsmith, a quartet boasting energetic indie-rock with a hint of jangly surfy goodness. Twinsmith are due to release their sophomore album Alligator Years on May 5 via Saddle Creek Records.
Philadelphia’s four-piece Beach Slang followed with their vigorous indie-punk filled with crashing drums and blaring rhythms. Many fans in the audience were there to see them and sang every single word to every single song. Frontman James Snyder, previously of punk outfit Weston, thrashed his hair and sweat around the stage with urgency and noisy melody. Snyder’s vocal style is derivative of ’90s garage-punk, but the band still sound fresh. Currently with only two 7-inches and one EP under their belt, Beach Slang are garnering more buzz in the punk scene due to their line up featuring JP Flexner (Ex-Friends), Ed McNulty (Nona, Crybaby) and their emotional and melodic racket is a live force to be reckoned with.
Photos by Michelle Shiers
[…] Over two decades of ups, downs, hiatuses, side projects and lineup changes, Omaha’s Cursive have inspired a following as intense as frontman Tim Kasher’s emotional caterwauling. Those fans turned out in force at the sold-out Echoplex on Friday night to help the band celebrate the deluxe reissue of Cursive’s 2003 breakthrough album “The Ugly Organ.â€Â Kasher, dressed in a suit and tie, commandeered the audience saying “We wrote some songs for you,†and moved into “Sink To The Beat†from 2001′s “Burst And Bloom†followed by the raucous thrusting “Big Bang†from 2006′s “Happy Hollow.†Despite the occasional sabbaticals between records, Cursive have steadily pushed out one album after another filled with lofty concepts and personal torment. However, it is “The Ugly Organ†that stands tall in their catalog as one of the more ornate and influential indie-rock concept albums. Fronting a lineup featuring cellist Ellen Lind, Kasher yelled out “Let’s get started! What better time!?†as the band began the noisy “The Ugly Organist†followed by “The Recluse.†Cursive retain a perfect self-loathing quality in their orchestral-emo with Kasher as the wide-eyed wise commentator. “Butcher The Song†started with a sample of plucked piano innards and the energy in the room propelled into a mosh. Fan-favorite “Driftwood: A Fairy Tale†came alive with strings and every single person in the room screaming “Liar liar!†Both Kasher and guitarist Ted Stevens shared vocal duties as Stevens took the reigns on “Tall Tales, Telltales†from 2000′s “Domestica,†but it is is always Kasher’s maniacal laughter and momentary shift from whisper to bark that characterizes Cursive’s expressive posture. Returning to the stage after the main set, Kasher explained to the audience that the concept of the encore goes as far back as ancient Greece with Aristotle’s band, “and they lit a doobie and they had some shots then they said ‘Lets go play those two more songs!’†They ended the evening with “Sierra†and “Staying Alive†as fans sang along to the perfect Cursive-style show-closing lyric “Do do do do, the worst is over.†PHOTOS AND WRITING BY ME FOR BUZZBANDS.LA […]