| October 5th, 2006 by Dillon Flynn (Permalink) Add Comments |
Philadelphia’s premier carnival-rock collective, Man Man, took to the stage of Eugene, Oregon’s WOW Hall on Sunday night, October first. And while I realize this has been literally done to death on every single corner, pillar, post, nook AND cranny of the Internet, it needs to be said.
Everything you’ve heard about Man Man’s live act is true, and then some. The energy, the absolute demonic calamity of it all, is potent enough to melt a human spleen. The five-piece, all clad in white jumpsuits and mostly mustachioed, leaps and screams their way through a blast of a set, juggling a slew of “instruments” along the way. Go see Man Man.
The set itself, comprised of highlights form the first two releases, featured four brand new numbers, (presumably) intended for inclusion on the band’s upcoming third album. “She don’t scream when she used to scream,” begins “Mister Jung Stuft,” an uncharactaristically focused effort for the night. But whether or not this can be attributed to the band’s unfamiliarity with the material or to some new muscial direction, I cannot say. Much more noticeable was the full-scale freak-out of “Spooky Jookie,” featuring the memorable lyric,
“Born from spitfire/I’m afraid of holy water/People think I’m posessed by the devil/But mama I’m posessed by your daughter.”
The filler-esque “Top Drawer” was relatively forgettable in the live sense, but the encore featured “El Azteca, an oddly techno-tinged ditty that alloweed for much havoc on the part of drummer Pom Pom. Also worth is the song’s sole refrain, sung in a full-band hurly burly unison: “BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH.” Not exactly hum-along-able, but difficult to forget, nevertheless.
After the show, singer/keyboardist/bandleader Honus Honus was kind enough to share a few words with Indie Cult regarding the future of Man Man.
“I got my degree in screenwriting, you know. Completely useless. Now I do this […] In three years, I’m sure my voice will be completely ruined.”
So is there any hope of seeing album three before that happens?
“Oh, yeah. We start recording in January. Most of it’s already written.” When asked if the band had settled on a name for the record, Honus chose to leave it at, “Yes… We have.” As far as the mood and direction is concerned, he offers only this:
“It’s going to be unhealthy.”
