FYM ON THE LIST: MOOOLS/WOLF PARADE, SEATTLE

I first met Spencer Krug while taking photos archiving the infamous Frog Eyes/Sunset Rubdown daytrotter.com session. At the time I met him, he was coming down the studio stairs, and as I roamed around the studio archiving both sessions, Kurg's talent was searing and mythically apparent. Over the course of the evening he eliminated most of a bottle of Jameson, and recorded some remarkable music with both bands.

Last night FYM was able to see (finally!) Spencers other musical denomination, Wolf Parade. Over their past three albums FYM has had a listening love affair with the dual song-writing dynamic between Spencer Krug and Dan Boeckner. Their work together in Wolf Parade has created some of the most intense musical landscapes for dreamers. It's the lonely drinking music that can get you through the night, or an entire summer away from your lover.

The sold out evening at the Showbox in Seattle, began with the Japanese rock superheroes, MOOOLS (FYM has wanted to see these guys for a REALLY longtime). Their set was comprised of well-crafted, technical indie rock jams.

Moools, who play their entire set in their native language,  reminded FYM of how universal music is. Their sound, and high-spirited performance, transcended language boundaries, rapidly winning the approval of the crowd tune after tune.

In an age of digital incognito, The Moools live show, lifts a heavy-heart, and unified the audience before Wolf Parade started their set.

Wolf Parade took stage at 10:30pm. Their 90 mintue journey started off with "Soldiers Grin," a song we obsessively listened to last summer (we are still rooted to the place that we sprang from).

The band looked stoked to be performing on this sold-out evening (many-many sincere thank yous were given to the audience throughout the night), and Spencer assured the crowd a well balanced set from all three albums would be played. The setlist was sooo nonpartisan that Dan and Spencer literally went one for one, evenly trading off performing lead vocal duties for each of their songs.

The first singles off Expo 86, "What Did My Lover Say (It Always Had To Go This Way)" and "Ghost Pressure" both sounded flawless. I soon realized, their albums are merely a reference point for the energy, and musical prowess that these guys put into their live shows.

The enthusiastic crowd hit their zenith as Arlen Thompson (drums) repeatedly beat out the first notes to "I'll Believe In Anything" Wolf Parade's most epic mountain of emotional din. We pushed our way forward pointing fingers to the sky, screaming out the words we've heard so many times.

Wolf Parade's last song before the inevitable encore, closed with Spencer Krug's heart crushing "California Dreamer." By this time the alcohol, and coffee, had dehydrated (and over-heated) our damp bodies. We stood shoulder to shoulder, with the chanting audience, awaiting the ENCORE!

Wolf Parade came back for a three jam encore, with each song representing one of their three albums. This exhaustingly amazing show ended with a song both Spencer and Dan sing on "Kissing the Bee Hive." They jammed out for 15 minutes getting as close to the 12am Showbox curfew as they could!

Moools, and Wolf Parade both gave stellar performances. And nights like these, are the reason why we keep chasing the thrill of seeing live music. It's a special thing when people step away from their computers to go sweat and sing along with their favorite tunes in a compact environment for 120 minutes. A special thanks to Moools for giving us a spot of the guest list, to go on an adventure with two incredible bands.

(Story and Pictures By: J Codling)