(Pictured above: Brodie Rush of Be/Non)
Friday night The Riot Room saw two of Kansas City’s finest take the stage in preparation for the music of Broncho, the evening’s headliner. This reporter didn’t stay long enough to hear their set, but judging by the sound check, they killed it. Without a doubt.
After patiently waiting for Nik Wallenda to complete his historic tightrope walk over Niagara Falls, Soft Reeds took little time to re-establish themselves as one of the area’s leading practitioners of danceable indie rock. Their sound has gotten tighter and more radio-ready with each gig, their covers of Talking Heads and David Bowie songs were most enjoyable, and the new material they presented proved once again to be a tantalizing tease of that which is yet to come. Their next record is being tentatively targeted for an October-ish release date, so in order to save time this reporter highly recommends that you go ahead and put "buy the new Soft Reeds album" on your autumn to-do list. Judging by how they sounded Friday, it’s going to be a monster.
Following this opening set would be a formidable task for any band, but Be/Non was more than up to the challenge. Be/Non led off with "Space," the music behind the brilliant three-and-a-half-minute animated preview of A Mountain of Yeses, the movie based on the album of the same name. Performing their first gig with their new guitarist (who this reporter will refer to as "Nate" because … well, that’s his name), there didn’t seem to be any hesitation about tackling a set filled with Be/Non’s usual grandiose approach to avant-garde rock, with a heavy dose of psychedelic sounds that Messrs Rush, Ruth, and Shank tackled as a three-piece in last month’s KC Psychfest. These two bands targeted their audience with two different brands of music which had the same goal: get the people moving. Judging by the dancing that this reporter witnessed in front of the stage, that mission was successfully accomplished twofold.
Check out Soft Reeds’ video for "This Affair," off Soft Reeds Are Bastards:
And the animatic for "Space," off Brodie Rush’s upcoming film A Mountain of Yeses. Song performed by Be/Non under this album.
-Michael Byars
| Michael is the host of The Mailbox, a weekly podcast that offers new music, concert info and news about the Kansas City area and more. In his spare time you might find him looking for some good live music, particularly at a certain bar that has lots of records. |