Margot Puts On An Explosive Show @ Stubbs

We’re still glowing with the satisfaction brought on by great music. We told you this would happen. Get to Stubbs, listen to Margot & the Nuclear So-and-Sos, fall in love, we said. Well, if you didn’t take our advice, we bet you’re full of regret, and if you aren’t, you certainly should be. Now you’ll have to wait until SXSW to see our new Midwestern obsession. By then the intimacy of Stubbs will be replaced with lines and crowds and tourists spilling beer on you. The girl you are trying to impress will have already heard of them, and she’ll wax poetic on the deep blue passion of their singer’s eyes while we happily sing along.

When we first listened to The Dust of Retreat, we didn’t visualize the mass of musical mayhem that is Margot. But they recreated the album’s sound perfectly, an impossible feat without eight musicians, a trumpet, a cello, and sheet metal. Percussionist Casey Tennis wheeled around like robotic candy kid. The intense performance reminded us of Arcade Fire, especially when drum sticks started flying and guitars crashed into cymbals during their final song.

Chamber rock may be the current indie fad, but front man Richard Edwards’ earnest voice and haunting lyrics set this collective apart. “Skeleton Key” was incredible, full yet poignant. Our personal fav, “On A Freezing Chicago Street,” rocked. Of course, we would love any song that included pills and cheap red wine and heartbreak, but Margot manages to make it both emotional and endearing without getting sticky sweet. We’re still disappointed they didn’t play “Jen Is Bringin’ The Drugs,” but Edwards told us his voice is getting over the flu and wasn’t up for an intense ballad. Fine, we forgive his voice, this time.