Rabble Rabble
Last night Rabble Rabble rocked it hard at Glasslands. They were first in the lineup for the night, preceding Implodes and Joan of Arc in what turned out to be a interesting sampler of the Chicago music scene. They started their set when the room seemed empty at first, but they didn’t skimp on the energy. I’m always impressed when bands can play like they’re just doing it for themselves regardless, and Rabble Rabble showed that. In fact, it seemed that a small crowd appeared out of nowhere because people heard them and had to check it out. Even the bouncer outside later said, “Man, that guy’s a sick guitar player!” referring to Ralph Darski.
Ralph Darski and Matt Ciarleglio
Really, everyone in Rabble Rabble is a sick player and performer. Their style incorporates punk, psych, and a bit of metal, with polyrhythm change ups in the middle of songs, and some animalistic hoots and hollers thrown in for fun. All three of the frontmen traded vocals, with Todd McCafrey and Matt Ciarleglio switching between guitar and bass on a couple songs. Drummer Kaylee Preston held it down well as the backbone. When I say they rocked it hard, I mean that the guys headbanged so hard I could smell their shampoo. All of their songs were basically the soundtrack to having a good time, and a good time it was. Rabble Rabble knocked their songs out with ease, ending on “Why Not,” off their new 7”.
Implodes
Implodes proved that they were another band at their best live. They also had a couple guitarists taking turns with vocals, with one of them looking like a young J Mascis, and sounding just as blown out on his guitar. “Can you make the delay a little more extreme?” He asked the soundman after the first song. They had heavy effects on everything, creating sprawling, spooky ambient songs that often drifted towards the post-rock sounds of Explosions in the Sky or Appleseed Cast. Both singer/guitarists Matt Jencik and Ken Camden, and bassist Emily Elhaj all had an array of pedals at their feet to aid in what sounded like their goal of gaining as much feedback as possible. They played their long, transcendental songs that felt like being pulled into the shadow world, and when their set was over it was like awakening from a deep dream.
Tim Kinsella of Joan of Arc
Joan of Arc is, of course, always best experienced live, and has been that way for the past dozen or so years. Tim Kinsella looks different every time I see him, but he still does those stretching dance moves that I don’t think anyone else could duplicate, and he still makes his sometimes awkward, sometimes satirical, but always interesting between song banter. Victor Villareal expertly finger-picked his guitar and noodled around with JOA’s signature sound, Bobby Burg was right up to the front edge of the stage pumping out the bass lines, and Theo Katsaounis kept time in the back. You know, the usual awesomeness.
Bobby Burg and Victor Villareal
They threw in a couple Owls songs, like “What Whorse You Wrote Id On,” and ended on “Anyone Can Have a Good Time” as their encore song. Kinsella prefaced this by explaining he didn’t want to do the awkward encore routine, so they would just play this song and say it’s the encore. “Here’s one more song that I hear all the time. I’m feelin’ it, here you go!” he said, before setting down his guitar to do more characteristically Kinsella dance moves during the intro. Later in the song he picked his guitar back up and shouted the words at the end, with the crowd shouting and clapping along.
Tim Kinsella
Joan of Arc and Implodes are touring together down the east coast, and Rabble Rabble are playing Boston tonight before heading back west, ending back in Chicago for their Bangover LP Anniversary show. They recently released their Why Not / Long Hook 7” which you can grab here.
