Last Friday I went to Bowery Electric to catch the end of the Cantora records showcase. I headed out the door towards the chic Cooper Union building and could see the crowd splattering out into the street from a block away. It was loud, it was hot, and there were a ton of people downstairs. By an excellent twist of fate, Slam Donahue didn’t take the stage until around 10:30 by which time I was able to finagle my way into the back, where the guys from Emil and Friends were hanging out and I peeped the beginning of Slam Donahue’s set “Big Brother” style via a flatscreen monitor in the green room.
Slam Donahue has a presence, and it’s not just because of drummer Keenan Mitchell’s golden mane. Sporting an electric-acoustic guitar David Otto’s vocals were on point, trading off on a couple songs with bassist Thomas Sommerville. They played several songs I hadn’t heard before, which had a much more organic feel than a lot of their stuff they’ve released online. The crowd was into it, but I heard people asking questions about their, “sampler” which Sommerville was manning. Out of the little box with buttons and lights came sounds eerily reminiscent to Pink Floyds “sound effects” and I dug how they mixed electric and acoustic elements within their set. They killed their staple songs, closing with what I believe was, “Its Scary”. I have never seen an acoustic guitar employed to make that much noise.
Emil and Friends took their time getting ready and I used those previous moments to squeeze my way into getting a birds eye view from up by the bar. They opened with a short jam after a humble introduction where Emil cleverly called to question what the letters in CMJ stand for. College Music Journal? What?
Ending the synthesizer space rock jam, a twangy guitar cut into the mix followed by a punchy drum beat and just like that—Emil and Friends had us all. The song, which I Have yet to indentify, reminded me of a modern day David Bowie sensibility, with theatrical elements, but at its base rocking enough to get the crowd going and the free of hearts feet moving.
Distracted by two girls drinking gin clandestinely from a flask next to me, I wasn’t able to catch the name of the songs, but Shauna and Monica, told me, “this music is perfect for this point in my night.” What they truly meant by that I will never know, but I think everyone else was feeling just about the same way. – Ed Guardaro