Nashville – It is always so refreshing when a band or artist picks a name that truly evokes a vision that relates entirely to the sort of music they play. When I first heard the name New Madrid, what came to mind was a mysterious, European country landscape in the early morning. Fog would be drifting low across the ground as if too lazy to rise higher in the air. Dew would be fresh on the grass and the air would be cold and sharp. The sun would not yet be up, leaving the world silent and still and sleeping. Eerie and calming. Mysterious and ominous. Unsure and yet all-knowing.

That was the impression just the name New Madrid gave me, and so when I stepped into the High Watt (for the celebration of their recently released album Sunswimmer), I was eager to see what sort of music would be delivered.

This band did not disappoint. I watched curiously as they draped Christmas lights all over the drum kit in a move I had never seen a band make before. Blue back lighting flooded the stage mystically and green lit up the amps. The band, when they emerged, said nothing to the crowd; they simply launched into a rock-like set that took the senses on a wild ride through a mixture of musical genres. I, along with the entire crowd, was instantly engaged.

New Madrid seems to do what very few bands are capable of accomplishing; they combine not one, not two, but three genres – successfully. Their songs would open at times with folky vocals and harmonies one wouldn’t expect from a rag-tag band of misfits. Psychedelic, ghostly melodies would join in, and for a good three minutes you were transported to a place that was otherworldly and beautiful in its own way.

Then the band would suddenly dissolve into pure, raw rock and roll. It was as if you were suddenly dropped out of an airplane; the first few minutes you’re in a free fall, taking in the scenery below. Then suddenly, you’re slammed onto the ground with such a force that you feel even more alive despite freefalling for three minutes.

For the first four songs, the band did not say a word; they simply immersed themselves in the music whole-heartedly. Band members Phil McGill (guitar/lead vocals), Graham Powers (guitar/vocals), Ben Hackett (bass/vocals), and Alex Woolley (drum, vocals) approach their music powerfully and hungrily, as if they’re the only ones in the room while they play. I found myself fascinated with the understanding the band showed in terms of staging; never at any point was the stage lit up entirely. They created mysteriousness by keeping the lights flashing or switching colors, always between red, green or blue. It never allowed anyone a very detailed look at their features, which only added to the mystique that the band was hoping to create. And then, as if they had taken the image straight out of my head of a misty European morning, a fog began to emerge from behind Alex Woolley’s drum kit and engulf the band in a wave of ghostly haze.

New Madrid is organized chaos and musical experimentation at its absolute best. The band shows a remarkable understanding of what the crowd craves and how best to display what they stand for not only through their music, but through staging and subtle theatrics that honestly not enough bands decide to utilize.

The band will continue touring in the next few months to promote their recently released album, Sunswimmer, on Normaltown Records / New West Records.