Southeast Engine, The Dreadful Yawns, The Lighthouse and the Whaler – Beachland Tavern – April 9
There was a heightened sense of anticipation here at Citizen Dick world headquarters this week for Thursday’s Southeast Engine show; we’ve been unable to get From the Forest to the Sea off of the stereo and were deeply excited to see that material live. Happily, our high expectations were warranted; Southeast Engine ripped through ten of that album’s twelve tracks before wrapping things up with a few old favorites; the material broke into another plane live, validating our feelings that this band is on the cusp of greatness. The evening was jam packed with sweet and rocking sounds, as two local acts, The Lighthouse and the Whaler and The Dreadful Yawns performed admirably in opening slots.
The Lighthouse and the Whaler blanketed the room with orchestral folk sounds, incorporating a mandolin and a violin into several songs (the pairing of which had me humming Biggie Smalls under my breath all night). The songs worked, for the most part, in a sweeping and dramatic mode, building tension with lush orchestration. The highlight was a song (the title of which escapes me) that was introduced as lullaby like; the hushed track captured the spirit of the band nicely. Also of note was “The Field Song,” which the frontman described as the aegis for the band deciding to play music together. They’re fairly new to the local scene and are worth keeping an eye on.
The second band of the evening, The Dreadful Yawns, also from Cleveland, moved things into slightly more psychedelic territory, with spiraling vaguely jammy songs. The interplay of the co-ed vocalists was particularly pleasing, as was the occasional devolution into spacey noise and guitar noodling. Taken as a whole, the set was a bit more difficult to pigeonhole, but my toes were tapping throughout. They’re opening up for Rodriguez on the 24th; it’s worth it to roll in early.
When Southeast Engine took the stage, I was primed for action. They started with a bang, rolling out “Law-Abiding Citizen” and “Two of Every Kind” right off the bat. They’re two of my favorite tracks on the album, and the ones that lay out the narrative structure, so it was a killer way to open the set. They played “The Forest, Part I” next, which helped me realize that I missed the boat on the concept a touch in the review; hearing the songs out of order made it clearer that the Forest suite is a bit separated from the story of the cartographer. Frontman Adam Remnant confirmed this after the show, saying that those first three tracks serve as a kind of dream sequence that sets the mood more than anything else; the narrative proper starts with “Law-Abiding Citizen.” The power of the live act was such that it forced these kinds of revelations. The music works on two distinct levels; one one hand, the songs all move in a homey and catchy groove, hitting the listener hard with musicianship and craft. On the other hand, they’re deeply cerebral, inviting over-analysis. It’s not often that you can shake your ass to the uber-literary; Southeast Engine completely pull that trick off. Even better, the band realizes that the words are important. James noted early on that Remnant’s vocals were infused with even more emotion and soul than they are on the record; dude wrote some great lyrics and he cranks them out from his gut. He means it, which is always good to see.
The musicianship on display was impressive; it’s clear from the recorded material that the band is talented. Live, they’ve got the easy grace and skill that you often see in world class athletes. They throw in fills and solos with the same kind of nonchalant confidence that informs a finesse pitcher’s curveball. The piano freakout that Bill Matheny cranked out at the end of “Preparing for the Flood” would have made Keith Godchaux blush. Kevin was particularly transfixed by the complex chords that Remnant cranked out. Bass player Jesse Remnant laid down the funk and Leo Deluca did that thing that I love where the drummer puts a tambourine on the high hat. All this to say that the tunes sound great on the record, but live Southeast Engine has the chops to open them up and let them breathe a bit. The live music scene in Athens, Ohio has clearly given these fellows a chance to mesh as musicians. The end-result is a pleasure to listen to.
Highlights of the evening are tough to pick out, as the set was uniformly solid, but a few cuts did distinguish themselves. “Sea of Galilee” and “From the Roots of the Mountain to Your Holy Temple” rounded out the new material and both were top-notch. The shuffle of the former song was more pronounced than on the recorded version and it’s relation to “Jesus Walking on the Water” was clearer live. It’s a song with a joyful yet slightly nefarious energy and it bristled with both on stage. The latter song hit sounded an emotional high note for the evening, with the building crescendo at the conclusion and the soaring harmonies of the Remnants shining brightly. The set wrapped up with a song from A Wheel Within a Wheel and a track from the band’s debut (video of which is below). It seemed like the band was cherry-picking from the back catalog, reveling for a moment in the fact that they’ve got a wealth of older cuts to pick from.
To sum up, buy the record and see this band. We had the pleasure of catching them in an intimate venue. The next time they roll through town, it will be on a bigger stage. The quality of the songs, the joy and skill with which they are performed and the easy affability of Southeast Engine are all both compelling reasons to get off your sofa and to believe that they’re going to be uber-famous before long. Lastly, all three of the Dicks were in the audience for this one. You didn’t think we’d leave without the set list, did you? (Also, if you can’t see it in your browser window, scroll down for the video. It’s at the bottom there. I promise.)
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