Article By Daniela Idara Archibong
Photos By Alex Dworkin
The Bottleneck
Lawrence, KS
June 16, 2010
The Bottleneck, in downtown Lawrence, KS, may not look like the most glorious of places due to its chipped black wall paint, barren décor and scarce lighting, but the venue is a place that some consider to be a musical landmark. On the first wall you encounter upon entry, you can see photos of the once-smalltime bands that have filled the place with sound: Widespread Panic, The String Cheese Incident, Radiohead and many others. Since this is not exactly a place people go to when bands aren’t performing, there were just a handful of people sitting in the old wooden booths & chattering around the bar. As soon as the bassy vibrations of Kansas City/Lawrence-based band Mouth moved the creaking wooden floorboards of the old venue, people I didn't know were even there quickly came out from nowhere to cover the bare floor.
Just by hearing the fluidity of the sound coming from the Zach Rizer’s bass through his magical pedals in the opening jam put my face in permagrin mode! Once you get on the dance floor, you can't help but move your feet to Stephen Gunn’s rhythmic and fresh drum patterns and groove to the sweet melodies singing out of Jeremy Anderson’s baby blue guitar. I have seen this band multiple times, but each time it's always a remarkable new experience as they progress as a musical unit of three. Suddenly, when the second jam started pulsing out of the speakers, a few groovin’ bodies became a whole lot more!
When it comes to genres, it is hard to categorize this trio of musicians as they are all over the board with their sounds. The distinctive wobble sound at the beginning third jam made me feel like I was getting down to a dubstep DJ set, but then I look up from a dancing haze and realize these are live instruments creating this amazing sound! Each tune they played displayed the futuristic funky sound that they are known for, including their spaced-out live dubstep version of the Star Wars Force Theme song. As Mouth began to jam out their funk-driven composition entitled “Yellow Patch”, it was very noticeable that the moving crowd was nearly composed of only dancing ladies and hula-hoops. As the epic tune progressed, the crowd became more diverse and dance-entranced. The second to last two tune, “Bad Wolf” featured a jazzy kind of feel with elements of melodic progressive metal sound. The impressive set ended with their rendition of a Hall & Oates tune “I Can’t Go For That” which took a turn for that dance-funk-party feel that I felt reminiscent of the last time I partied at a George Clinton show.
This was the first night I was able to experience the Ohio-based live electronic group called Papadosio. I had no idea what to expect other than a good time. The last time they were supposed to play here, they ended up having van troubles. I felt that Mouth was a good choice of opening act for this band as they both have this funky dance-invoking sound. The quartet picked up the party at the same level the previous band left it. While I am not a big fan of vocals in jam bands, Papadosio’s song “Unparalyzer” was quite pleasant and accented the qualities of the synthesizer with a nice blend of drums and amazing bass lines.
I was totally mesmerized during Papadosio’s set. The amazing light show, bluesy walking bass lines, super guitar riffs & electric keys totally had me in a euphoric trance. I might as well have been abducted by aliens because though my body was there, flowing on the dance floor, my brain certainly was taken to another dimension. Papadosio had some amazing original tunes, but I was completely blown away by their live version of Shpongle’s “DMT”! Since this was my first time seeing this band, I didn't take as many notes as I would've liked. Rather, I enjoyed making small mental observations as well as allowing their sound to resonate through me. I definitely amazed by them and I can't wait to have them move me again!
www.papadosio.com
www.myspace.com/abandcalledmouth
Photos By Alex Dworkin
The Bottleneck
Lawrence, KS
June 16, 2010
The Bottleneck, in downtown Lawrence, KS, may not look like the most glorious of places due to its chipped black wall paint, barren décor and scarce lighting, but the venue is a place that some consider to be a musical landmark. On the first wall you encounter upon entry, you can see photos of the once-smalltime bands that have filled the place with sound: Widespread Panic, The String Cheese Incident, Radiohead and many others. Since this is not exactly a place people go to when bands aren’t performing, there were just a handful of people sitting in the old wooden booths & chattering around the bar. As soon as the bassy vibrations of Kansas City/Lawrence-based band Mouth moved the creaking wooden floorboards of the old venue, people I didn't know were even there quickly came out from nowhere to cover the bare floor.
Just by hearing the fluidity of the sound coming from the Zach Rizer’s bass through his magical pedals in the opening jam put my face in permagrin mode! Once you get on the dance floor, you can't help but move your feet to Stephen Gunn’s rhythmic and fresh drum patterns and groove to the sweet melodies singing out of Jeremy Anderson’s baby blue guitar. I have seen this band multiple times, but each time it's always a remarkable new experience as they progress as a musical unit of three. Suddenly, when the second jam started pulsing out of the speakers, a few groovin’ bodies became a whole lot more!
When it comes to genres, it is hard to categorize this trio of musicians as they are all over the board with their sounds. The distinctive wobble sound at the beginning third jam made me feel like I was getting down to a dubstep DJ set, but then I look up from a dancing haze and realize these are live instruments creating this amazing sound! Each tune they played displayed the futuristic funky sound that they are known for, including their spaced-out live dubstep version of the Star Wars Force Theme song. As Mouth began to jam out their funk-driven composition entitled “Yellow Patch”, it was very noticeable that the moving crowd was nearly composed of only dancing ladies and hula-hoops. As the epic tune progressed, the crowd became more diverse and dance-entranced. The second to last two tune, “Bad Wolf” featured a jazzy kind of feel with elements of melodic progressive metal sound. The impressive set ended with their rendition of a Hall & Oates tune “I Can’t Go For That” which took a turn for that dance-funk-party feel that I felt reminiscent of the last time I partied at a George Clinton show.
This was the first night I was able to experience the Ohio-based live electronic group called Papadosio. I had no idea what to expect other than a good time. The last time they were supposed to play here, they ended up having van troubles. I felt that Mouth was a good choice of opening act for this band as they both have this funky dance-invoking sound. The quartet picked up the party at the same level the previous band left it. While I am not a big fan of vocals in jam bands, Papadosio’s song “Unparalyzer” was quite pleasant and accented the qualities of the synthesizer with a nice blend of drums and amazing bass lines.
I was totally mesmerized during Papadosio’s set. The amazing light show, bluesy walking bass lines, super guitar riffs & electric keys totally had me in a euphoric trance. I might as well have been abducted by aliens because though my body was there, flowing on the dance floor, my brain certainly was taken to another dimension. Papadosio had some amazing original tunes, but I was completely blown away by their live version of Shpongle’s “DMT”! Since this was my first time seeing this band, I didn't take as many notes as I would've liked. Rather, I enjoyed making small mental observations as well as allowing their sound to resonate through me. I definitely amazed by them and I can't wait to have them move me again!
www.papadosio.com
www.myspace.com/abandcalledmouth
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