Austinist Show Review: Trail of Dead

Contributed by Phil West

Austin band ..And You Will Know Us By The Trail of Dead, in its decade of evolution, has long had a reputation for controlled (and sometimes out-of-control) chaos in its live shows as one of its hallmarks. Back in the day, the band would make shows at now-defunct venues like the Blue Flamingo and Liberty Lunch just that much more interactive. We still remember the Lunch show, for instance, in which Jason Reece flung random objects off the stage, including a half-full beer can which found its way twenty rows back, hurtling over the heads of the audience only to fall on an unsuspecting woman's breast.

Like many of us, Trail of Dead find themselves older and thicker, but still entirely capable of generating chaos. Though this past Wednesday’s show at Emo’s featured several songs off the new So Divided, the show was surprisingly dominated by the jittery 1999 Madonna album.

The new album is the source of some perplexity among fans, including a fellow Austinist reviewer who accused the band of delving dangerously closer to prog-rock land. Trail of Dead has evolved to the point where what they’re doing sounds capital-I Important, even if their decisions over the last two albums are making the band harder to consistently trust.

Photo by Quinn on Trail of Dead's site

The first two songs at Wednesday’s show, “It Was There That I Saw You” and “How Near How Far,” from 2002’s Source Tags and Codes, may be the apex of the band’s output even if they continue on for another decade. On those songs, singer/guitarist Conrad Keely displayed the traits that make that album so incredible – a constant high-wire tension between soothing and bombastic passages, arranged in an almost-symphonic way.

The show, from there, shifted into So Divided land, with “Wasted State of Mind” and “8 Day Hell” – an excuse for Keely to get some of his other bandmates (from alt-country group Brothers & Sisters, who Keely’s sidelining with) up on stage to sing backing vocals. Initially, the pair (who we snarkily pegged in our concert notes as “Mountain Man and Rock Girl”) stood on stage with all the comfort of people who had randomly won a radio contest, but settled in by the second song.

But, then, the show shifted direction again with Reece emerging from behind the drum kit to take the microphone for “Caterwaul” and “Homage,” a pair of songs from the more relentless pages of the Trail of Dead catalog. Introducing himself with a call to forget the “niceties” of the prior songs in order to “get evil,” Reece prowled the front of the stage and let loose some karate kicks and somehow – perhaps because 1991 was in town for the holidays – triggered a mosh pit which transitioned the show into its four-song Madonna finale and a hurried encore of “Will You Smile Again For Me?”

And while it wasn’t the frenzy of thrown objects it has been in the past, the set’s final half was still full of the unsettling approach that makes Trail of Dead so worthwhile – a shuffle of tempos and intensities that keep even the most familiar in the audience off-balance, refreshingly removed from the rock cliché predictability that far too many bands find it harder to resist as they get older.

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By Paige Maguire in Arts & Entertainment on November 28, 2006 1:00 PM 0 Comments

Comments [rss]

overrater

Come on, these guys are almost as boring and self obsessed as Soundteam - I'm not a troll, I'm just old, and already own the albums these kids are ripping off. They are way too cocky for the work they actually project, and frankly they have a hard time drawing flies outside of Austin. Why else do you think Interscope has failed to promote the album? They have not made that mistake with the other crap they shill! They should've stuck it out on Trance and passed on the Audioslave tours. Commerce be damned!

josh

#1 - I'm still kicking myself about the 2005 Emos performance. I have learned my lesson though; no more getting trashed on the lake before a good show. hah!

By the way, did anyone catch their set at Beauty Bar during SXSW 06? I had too many conflicts to make it over there but heard they didn't dissapoint.

Math

I agree that the first couple TOD records sound a lot like Daydream Nation-era Sonic Youth. But if anything, that's a positive quality.

My favorite TOD show - probably with Constantines at the Horseshoe in Toronto. I don't envy anyone who has to follow the Cons, but they did a great job (despite a total lack of smashing things, which I was kind of looking forward to).

mary

it was a great show. shame we had to suffer through the blood brothers first...

it was hilarious when the emo's security guy mistook jason as a crowd member and attempted to push him off the stage.

josh

The thing I appreciate the most about Trail of Dead is their propensity to evolve. So many artists stick to the same shtick.... the experimental qualities that first make them famous are so easily sacrificed in the name of record sales. When a band or artist has the backbone to continually forge a new path or direction, I really pay attention. I have to admit, both Worlds Apart and So Divided took a little time to grow on me. But when I gave them a chance I was rewarded with a rich new palate of sounds and melodies, merging seamlessly, permeating the entire album. A true work of art, not limited to one or two songs, but a musical saga that continues from beginning to end.

Grape Ape

Agreed, Stubb's show was the best. It was too bad QOTSA was the better of the bands. TOD is pretty much been commercialzed at this point and they know it. I was really hoping the new album would have gone in a different direction.

dan skarbek

Favorite Trail show: Stubbs with Queens of the Stoneage during ACL several years back.

dan skarbek

The show was good. The opening two songs were the best though...kinda hard to follow although wasted state of mind was killer. blood bros. were fun too. i saw some kids getting tore up in the pit. good times. looking forward to soundteam then funfunfunfest.

see ya at the show!

i'm not gonna say.

I know - i'm probably just being a hater, but isn't it nutty how sonic youth -y they are?

lot's of my friends like them, and i respect the work they put in, but I just can't get off to it!

I think that means i should probably just stop commenting about them!

adi

that's funny, i consider them inventive and refreshing but that's just me :)

i'm not gonna say.

To me, this band has been derivative and irrelevant for years. I guess I'll never get it. I thought it was fun when they were a two piece, but now...

whatever.

ttrentham

They apparently had quite a show in St. Petersburg.

adi

my favorite Trail of Dead moments:

- 2001 Red Eyed Fly show where former bassist fell off the stage, knocked me over, knocked my drink over, and somehow i ended up with the mic, and the ability to sing the last "words" of A Perfect Teenhood into the mic.

- 2005 Emo's show where 50+ stormed the stage towards the end as reflected in this post's picture.

good times always, these Trail of Dead shows.

this last one was quality too, i know they've gone all over the place in terms of their sound the last few albums, but nothing takes away from a great rock n' roll performance, for me.