Yet another night spent in Omaha at the Slowdown on April 19th, 2008. The night was sure to be an interesting one with some experimental rock provided by Yeasayer out of Brooklyn, NY. Following them was Man Man, who could only add to the madness with their gypsy styled grooves out of Philadelphia, PA. I have had the chance to check out both of their studio releases, particularly Man Man, as they have been on the scene for some time. After knowing what both of these acts were all about, I thought that it would be interesting to see them live. The complexity of each of these acts seemed as if it would be a great one two punch.

Chris Keating, Luke Fasona and Ira Wolf Tuton of Yeasayer

Man Man

The night started out with Yeasayer, and a short set at that. In all honesty, I was more excited to see these Brooklynites in action. This four-piece set seemed like the type of band your parents would have been into. After listening to their album about a million times in the last few months, I felt the live act could only make me more of a fan. In reality, this was not at all the type of show that I would have been interested in seeing a few years ago. I have recently been trying to expand my horizons and ran into Yeasayer.

Anand Wilder of Yeasayer

Their live show is exactly what you would expect after listening to their studio work. The drifty and somewhat trance-like grooves leave you somewhere between trying to move your body to the beat and just sitting back and enjoying the view. They are quite mellow as compared to their tour mates, which went perfectly with the constantly moving psychedelic video playing in the background. Chris Keating on vocals sure did his part to try to keep the crowd going for the duration. The buzz at set break was his stage antics, which seemed to leave many wondering what the hell he was trying to prove. For me personally, this took nothing away from the impact that Yeasayer’s brief performance had on me. These guys seem to be the real deal. No wonder all I have been hearing about their live shows is that they were blowing MGMT off the stage. I doubt it will be too long before they are the ones headlining.

Ira Wolf Tuton

Man Man’s set was only a half hour away and the venue became just a bit tighter. The clustered stage sat vacant awaiting their presence. They would soon appear and it was instantly evident that we were heading down a completely different path than their predecessor. With the entire band donning all-white outfits complemented by white face paint, Man Man was under way. Once again, this is another act that by just listening to their studio work makes you wonder what they would be like live. Well, they were way more than I expected...I just don’t know if it was in a good way.

Honus Honus of Man Man

If anybody thought Keating’s stage presence was heavy in the first set, they had obviously never seen Man Man. Lead singer and organ player Honus Honus took the stage with fury, throwing tambourines into the crowd and at one point spewing gold coins out of his mouth, directly onto drummer Pow Pow’s trap set. The music itself was decent at best. The versatility of the band as far as being able to play so many different instruments was one thing I did enjoy, and for that reason it is obvious that they are talented. Man Man's gypsy styled roots were evident throughout the entire show. This was quite interesting for a bit, but eventually just left my head spinning as if I were at a circus. I think one of my good friends put it best by saying he has never had a band pick him up so quickly for a brief moment, just to bring him back down into a lull for several minutes. That is how I have always felt about their sound though, but it was only fair to give them a chance live. They seemed like the type of act that would keep you focused. They did just that, but to me, their over-the-top behavior can only entertain for so long.

Critter Cat of Man Man

Pow Pow of Man Man

Chang Wang of Man Man

For Yeasayer's laid back, smooth performance that left me begging for more with a side of mellow dramatic vocals, I give them 8.5/10 slices.

For Man Man's interesting stage show, a one of a kind sound and failing to keep me musically captivated for an extended period of time, I give Man Man a 5.70/10 slices.

Two Fingers,
The Toastman

For more photos from the night, click here...

P.S. Hope I labeled all the names correctly. If not, feel free to leave me a comment. Or you can just leave one for the fun of it.