MOG CITY!: Enter The Cobra

Waking up on Saturday with yet another hangover, I was excited for the day ahead. Once I could get my lazy ass moving, I found myself back at Brandt's working on Leningrad, which sounds shockingly fierce. It's a big song. It has two basses (which is what the demo was originally called) and has two very distinct sections. It's hard to explain, but will make sense when you hear it. The highlight of the day was busting out the old school Kurzweil K-2000 and some FX pedals for me to replay some string sections. A lot of effort went into making the strings sound less synthetic and I think the results were quite impressive

Then, after a trip to Rebel Rebel for our Saturday afternoon CD purchases (which included new albums by The Knife and Placebo as well as the new Morrissey single and Japan's Best Of), B and I met up with Astoria and Harlem for a manly dinner at New Green Bo. Tonight was a special night, as it marked the debut of In Loving Memory, also known as ILM and often referred to here as Ass Cobra. Anyhow, we knew we had to represent and support this new MOG-related band.

It was a fun journey to Greenpoint. Luckily, Brandt knew where the hell to go and it was a 3-subway experionce. But per usual, it was a fun ride, filled with the usual laughs and creative writing we are known for.

Here are some highlights (for the record, we did not graffitti this shit):

The Train:

THE MAN:

So anyway, armed with masculinity and Baltika 9 (Good Russian Beer) we get to Greenpoint (Brooklyn for your tourists) and head to a nondescript rehearsal space located above the tattoo parlor. Ash was outside and I think happy to see not only all the guys, but especially G and I because we told them we weren't coming to the gig because we had tickets to see Richard Ashcroft open for Coldplay (which we did, but sold the tickets to attend the ILM gig). So the vibes were good. Enough small talk lets get to the gig:

I love Charles. He busts my balls daily and has raised the bar of all of the MOGrelated bands. Some have crumbled to that standard bearing, others have risen to the challenge. Some, like myself, are slow learners. But when my man plays bass, he plays it like a fucking ninja where he looks all calm and chill and he's smacking the low end down like a champ. While I already knew he had the talent, it was fun to see him perform for the first time. Killer.

Obviously, my soft spot is for Ash. Since his days being "that kid with a sampler" from Oyster Bay to stepping up to fill the second guitarist slot in the aggression, he has been on undending yet occasionally erratic path of progress. Tonight was the culmination of that journey. He stepped up to the plate and delivered both musically and with great personality. It was like watching your kid graduate with honours. Technically sound and charismatic, Ash can best be described by Dan Hamill: "Yo, Ash as a frontman is AWESOME". You can't argue with G-nius.

I apologize that I don't have a clear shot of Robin during the performance. As we all know, she is elusive to begin with, but she lets the skinbeating do the talking. And she spoke fucking VOLUMES on this night. I am her biggest fan, as we all know. However, I was able to grab this rare shot of Robin and her S.O. Damon, who I am a big fan of, and is a member of this blog but never posts chatting with Hypefactor member Brandt.

As for the band and the music, the years of hard work have paid off. Being an instrumental three piece is a difficult task to begin with, but in the right setting and with the right songs (KEY), ILM pulled it off. The songs were melodic and catchy, the right length, and played to everyone's strengths. Ash's four dozen pedals paid off and he was playing this sweet guitar he BORROWED OFF BRANDT AND MIGHT BUY OFF HIM SOMEDAY. Also, being of fan of Ash's electronic streak, I was excited to hear some loops and sounds throw in as an enhancement to the songs. Proper use. My complaints are few and not significant enough for this blog. I missed their early song DETROIT and OCIONIC, which is dear to my heart. Great songs for a band with an exciting future. Obviously, I am biased, I know them and I work with them, but I, like they are for me, am objective and I love the fact that I can get on this blog and truthfully report this.

After the gig, we hung out and caught up. Seeing Ash, Robin and Charles (and Charles' lovely wife Laura who refused to be photographed for this blog) is always a treat and hopefully in the coming years we will be seeing them play more and playing with them as well. Watching them was really inspiring and got my live performance juices flowing. It made me also want an ILM album asap. In this candid shot, Brandt tries to convince Charles that his new home/studio is safe to bring his car and gear to, especially after playing in Greenpoint ;-) so we can finish the HF album

It was a great evening to be a member of the MOGpac. Sadly, Mattagement was missing, but he had a reasonable excuse as he was yet again weekending in Europe. I was very proud of the band and the Pac itself. Good people, good times.

I can never end the week without a display of the Kruger babies, who are coming to visit us in June: