Lightning Bolt: Live In Brooklyn 8/30/09
Providence's Noisiest Duo Shake Up The Broadway Backyard
Sep 5, 2009
The Broadway Backyard is as odd a venue as they come. It sits between two graffiti-covered buildings and was shielded from street view by a large plastic fence. It seemed to be equal parts gravel and grass, but closer inspection revealed that it was all gravel, with grass and weeds growing through. There was even an overpass for the subway trains that rose up and over the backyard.
The show was booked by NYC show promoter Todd Patrick, who did a great job of giving the show a party atmosphere. There were drinks and a grill cooking hot dogs, hamburgers, and something for the vegetarians in the crowd. Neighbors climbed onto their roofs to watch the show, and band members mingled with the crowd. It had a massive good time vibe that lasted the whole event.
Hot Box, Talk Normal, and Teeth Mountain
The first band was an all-girl trio named Hot Box, who banged out some loud punk music that made interesting use of vocals from all three members. Next up was Talk Normal, a female duo that made a lot of incomprehensible racket with a guitar and drums (and a guitar ON the drums). Unfortunately, their racket was not of the enjoyable variety.
The last band before the headliners was Teeth Mountain, a band with many members that played a variety of instruments including a saxophone. While it seemed promising during sound check, they soon revealed they dealt less in music and more in long ambient drone that lasted for nearly 10 minutes at a time. While not as grating as Talk Normal, it was not very interesting either.
Lightning Bolt's Earthly Delights
When it was time for Lightning Bolt to go on, drummer Brian Chippendale shocked a portion of the crowd that had gathered around his drum kit next to the stage by revealing that they would be playing on the stage, which is outside of the norm for them. Fortunately, the stage did little to reduce the fury of the band as they exploded into a song.
That’s all it took for the crowd of previously docile fans to lose their minds and start moshing. The pit, which took up the entire area in front of the stage, kicked up most of the gravel underneath creating a crater of dirt and sharp rocks. Despite this, the energy didn’t let up for the entire show.
While it the non-stop playing made it somewhat difficult to distinguish between songs, fan favorites like “Assassins” and “Dracula Mountain” stood out. Tracks from their forthcoming release Earthly Delights (which was recently leaked) also made an appearance, such as the feedback-heavy “Sound Guardians." By the time the band had reached the end of their set, they stumbled offstage until Todd teased them to play an encore.
The ensuing encore was ridiculous in its ability to make the crowd go absolutely insane. They played what seemed like a ten minute long medley, with bits and pieces of other songs before playing a few more songs to cap off the night. The pit got a lot rougher during the encore, but also more fun. By eight o’clock, the band had finished for good.
Lightning Bolt managed to make the afternoon for all those who came. The crowd trickled out onto the streets of Brooklyn with a smile on every face and sweat on every shirt. For all the college kids in the crowd, it was likely the last bash of the summer, and what a bash it was.
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