Last night I had the pleasure of returning to a time long since forgotten. In support of their new DVD “Killing a Camera” released by Bifocal Media, indie rock legend Braid has reunited and is touring the Midwest and East Coast. Last night they made an appearance at Indianapolis’s Emerson Theater. They also brought Mock Orange, Murder By Death, and Minus the Bear with them.
To fully understand this show you must first understand the venue. The Emerson is located on 10th and Bozart on the North East side of Indianapolis. Not the best neighborhood. Back in its day it was a one room old style theater. Since then it has been gutted (not remodeled, gutted) and a stage, PA system, and a concession stand have been installed. The theater holds 400 people and is a death trap. It hosts numerous local hardcore and metal shows and on occasion a great show will make its way there. This is as close to CBGB’s as Indiana will ever come.
Arriving early we Brie and I got a good place in line at 5:30, door open at 7:30. The four hundred tickets go fast. We got inside around 8:00 and get ready for the first and Mock Orange. They came out and played a short but good set. They have the usual four-skinny-white-kids emo sound, but they do it well. They played a couple of older tracks that some of the crowd knew and then the played a track off of their new disc, “Mind Is Not Brain” (Silverthree Records 2004) that was rather good.
After Mock Orange was Murder by Death, the only one of the four band that I had not heard before. During their setup they brought a Kurzweil keyboard and a cello onstage. This looked promising. I am big fan of both and think they add a great sound. However, my expectations were promptly dashed as soon as the band hit the stage. They were awful. They tried real hard to be the Indie Rock Rob Zombie. I hate Zombie and these guys made the list quick style. My first clue should have been when the singer said “This is a song about Zombies…” My only question is why the fuck were these guys playing at this show? They did not belong.
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