Alas, a written contribution to the site from a being other than myself. Check out contributor Kristin Owen’s assesment of Portugal. The Man’s performance @ the Knitting Factory last night, as it kicks you in the shin for not being there if you happen to live in the area.

A good friend of mine recently phoned me up to tell me about this great Alaskan band he stumbled upon at Emo’s. He gave me little to no detail about the band other than that they “reminded him of me.” So when I saw that they happened to be playing in my temporary home, New York City, on a night when I had no other shows booked to see, I figured why not just pop in and check them out. I should also point out that due to a paralyzing fear of writing for the public to view and criticize, this is the first time I have written for not only this blog, but any blog. After seeing the band’s performance, I knew I had to gather the cojones to write about this wonderful little show at the Knitting Factory last night. Not only do I want an excuse to gush profusely about the greatness that is Portugal the Man, it would also be a disservice to you readers to not be informed to check them out if you haven’t already done so.

This was my first time at the Knitting Factory and it was immediately clear that this is one of those venues that could make any band sound good, not that Portugal needed an ounce of help. The stage was on the tiny side, a tight squeeze for this six person ensemble. According to the band’s website, Portugal is comprised of three members so I am not clear on whether the band has expanded or whether they tour with additional musicians. But I’m not here to discuss the particulars; I enjoyed everything each of the six musicians brought to the performance whether an official band member or not, even the man on the tambourine/maracas.

The first couple of songs started out rather mellow and I was immediately drawn to singer, John Baldwin Gourley’s voice. To say that he sounded sort of like the dude from Mars Volta would be a serious understatement. While Gourley certainly had his own unique style, if I had closed my eyes I easily could have pretended I was listening to Cedric Bixler-Zavala sing to me in this intimate venue. Then, at the start of what I believe to be the third song, the room exploded. I cannot even begin to wrap my head around this delightful mesh of percussion, congas, synthesizers, drums and guitars in order to find a way to properly explain the greatness of what I witnessed. It was the happiest, noisiest spectacle I have seen in quite awhile and I could do little but gawk at the stage with a big ‘ol ridiculous smile on my face.

I am generally not a fan of stage tricks such as fancy lighting and props. Generally. Portugal is one band who really knows how to do it right. They began the show with a single spotlight highlighting a single musician at a time. Since I don’t know a ton about the band yet (YET being the key word) I can’t tell you during which song, but about halfway through the set the stage once again exploded. But this time it was with a strobe-tastic lighting spree. It sounds cheesy, I know. It worked perfectly, it drew you in, it blinded you, you didn’t know where to look and you tried to look everywhere and nowhere at the same time. Portugal could have carried the show without the inventive lighting techniques, but lighting turned this night into not only a show, but an experience.

I left the show with that same ridiculous smile, ready to spread the word about one of my new favorite discoveries. Then I got into a “fake” cab and narrowly evaded getting kidnapped…

 

Mp3►►AKA M80 The Wolf

 

Thanks Kristin

I’m kicking myself in the shins.

 

Portugal. The Man tour

Aug 14 2007 7:30P

Maxwell’s Hoboken, New Jersey

Aug 15 2007 7:30P

Mohawk Place Buffalo, New York

Aug 16 2007 6:30P

The Reverb Toronto, Ontario

Aug 17 2007 8:00P

Hayloft Liquor Stand Mt. Clemens, Michigan

Aug 18 2007 8:00P

Beat Kitchen Chicago, Illinois

Aug 19 2007 7:00P

The Loft Madison, Washington

Aug 20 2007 5:30P

Varsity Theater Minneapolis, Minnesota

Aug 22 2007 8:00P

The Marquis Theatre Denver, Colorado

Aug 23 2007 7:00P

Studio 600 Salt Lake City, Utah

Aug 24 2007 7:00P

The Venue Boise, Idaho

Aug 25 2007 7:00P

El Corazon Seattle, Washington

Aug 29 2007 8:00P

E-Werk Eriangen, Germany

Aug 30 2007 8:00P

Ampere Munchen, Germany

Aug 31 2007 8:00P

Arcadium Graz, Austria

Sep 1 2007 8:00P

Flex Wien, Austria

Sep 2 2007 8:00P

Star Club Dresden, Germany

Sep 3 2007 8:00P

Knust Hamburg, Germany

Sep 4 2007 8:00P

Postbahnhof Berlin, Germany

Sep 5 2007 8:00P

Kleine Freiheit Osnabruck, Germany

Sep 6 2007 8:00P

Substage Karlsruhe, Germany

Sep 7 2007 8:00P

Kulturladen Konstanz, Germany

Sep 8 2007 8:00P

Abart Zurich, Switzerland

Sep 9 2007 8:00P

Schlachthof Wiesbaden, Germany

Sep 10 2007 8:00P

Gebaude 9 Koln, Germany

Sep 11 2007 8:00P

Schoken Stuttgart, Germany

This entry was posted on Tuesday, August 14th, 2007 at 1:58 pm and is filed under live shots, mp3's.