I apologize for the delayed review. However, I realize that
the timing couldn’t be more perfect because the Mowgli's are coming back to DC
on November 13, 2013, with the Royal Teeth and X Ambassadors. Now, with no further
ado, my almost two-months delayed review!
I think the most difficult part of being a fledgling Indie
music fan like myself is the blank stares I receive when I say I’m going to a
concert. Sure, part of the fun is bragging to people that the band I’m going to
see is the ‘next big thing’ but it does get a little lonely on Mt. Smugness.
Luckily, I am well-versed in the art of peer pressure, and that is how I coerced
brought my boyfriend Anthony to a concert of a band he’s never heard of and one
I only know from Spotify. So, to all you cooler people than me, I present my
review of the Mowgli’s and American Authors.
Most of the credit goes to the goddess of this blog, Anita,
for offering me use of her gift card to Ticket Alternative. I scoured through
pages of bands, and recalled that I had maybe somewhere heard of the Mowgli’s.
Ah, that’s right, the lineup for Lollapalooza, yet another music festival I’m
too broke to attend. I saw that American Authors was opening, and I knew their
hit song “Believer” from the few times I get to listen to Alt Nation in cars
other than my own.
Usually, my MO is to buy tickets to bands I know more than
one song to, but Anita was graciously offering, and I decided to break
tradition. So, getting over my fear of driving to H Street to the Rock and Roll
Hotel, I dragged a cheerful Anthony with the promise that if we made it before
8, the beers were cheaper and the wings were half-off.
As someone who has never been to the Rock and Roll Hotel,
let me just say it was love at first sight. My favorite venue is typically your
Merriweathers, but my heart secretly yearns for a gritty, grimy bar that is
full of human spirit.
Too late to hear the first opener (but we did make it for $3
PBRs and half-priced wings), a Philadelphia band called Buried Beds, Anthony
and I busted our way to the front of the sweaty crowd to watch American Authors
set up. I’m not sure if many of you will agree, but watching a band doing their
own set up and sound check is very humbling, and makes me love them more. I
could tell that this quartet from Brooklyn was going to rock because their
foreplay was setting up kickdrums. Also, it never hurts when they do sound
checks on banjos. This wasn’t going to be my average concert.
You might know American Authors from spot in the Lowe’s
commercial, or like me, you can’t get enough of “Believer” from your Spotify
station. Don’t try to Google them, because you get links for syllabi about
American literature. Not for much longer. This band is going to be big. They
are a lovable group of hipsters from Brooklyn who released their EP in
September. With only about half a dozen songs, they make up for lack of
quantity with musical power. American Authors is a very happy band that has a
good amount of spunk.
I didn’t know all of the songs, but I couldn’t help but bop
around. The lead singer banged on the drums, and I enjoyed the positive vibe.
American Authors values friends, family, and making your own luck. This isn’t
the band you’re going to listen to when your boyfriend leaves you—American
Authors is cheerful and a little edgy. With titles like Best Day of My Life,
Luck, and Home, you’re in for an endorphin rush that’s coupled with twangy
banjos and soulful mandolins.
AUTHOR’S NOTE: As a result, I’ve now seen American Authors
twice since this concert. They opened for the Airborne Toxic Event at Rams Head
earlier in September, and again at a free concert I attended in Philadelphia.
They’re much better in a smaller venue, instead of an outdoor concert full of
posers. I’m looking forward to seeing their newer releases, but until they
write more songs, it might be a while before they perform at 9:30 [Club].
Once the sweat dried off me and my claustrophobia abated, I
was geared for the Mowgli’s. The video for “San Francisco” is the stuff that
butterflies, sparkles, and ponies are made of. Like American Authors, the
Mowgli’s are a happy band. Not surprising, considering they are all from
California. A modern-day answer for the Beach Boys, the Mowgli’s have a
commanding presence that can lift the sourest of moods with songs like “Emily”,
“Hi, Hey There, Hello” (which my boyfriend and I are trying to learn as a duet
with him on guitar), and the always inspiring “Carry Your Will”. The lyrics
aren’t poetry or particularly intellectual, but the harmonious sounds of guitar
and drums will leave you grinning and dancing.
If you’re into a little bit of West Coast rock coupled with
a rush of serotonin, the Mowgli’s are your band. They’re alternative enough to
fulfill your musical needs without being mainstream, but still not off the deep
end because they are California hippies. The Mowgli’s are a massive band (I
think I counted six or seven members), and they could demand a crowd at your
larger venues as an opener, but I think it would diffuse them. Did anyone see
them at Lollapalooza? I’d like to see how that would compare.
Check out the videos for San Francisco or The Great Divide
(also the title of their second album). Then, considering joining me in
November, as part of the DC stop on the Mowgli’s Random Acts of Kindness Tour.
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