Manchester Orchestra 11/23/11

"I'VE GOT THAT ROCK AND THAT ROLL!" we all chanted during the second tune of the night, "April Fool."  Energy was high, thanks partially to openers The Dear Hunter and Cage the Elephant.  I hadn't really heard much by The Dear Hunter but I got their groove and they had some tasty licks.  I know I poo-pooed on Cage the last time I saw them and I'm still not convinced of their future longevity.  But Matt Shultz is an undeniable front-man.  I could barely peel my eyes away from the skinny little egotistical punk skipping around the stage (see youtube clip below, have to wait until the end to see what I mean).  His incoherent vocals are still questionable for a live show, but he enjoys a good stage dive.  On the third one, he was held by just his feet and stood up straight above the crowd which was pretty cool (check pic below, kinda hard to tell he's not standing on stage).
    

So, back to Man O.  I just saw them at Music Midtown, but I had to check 'em out when they were headlining a gig.  It's been a while since I have found a band that has a way of playing soft, yet eerie, melodies that spiral to the darkest depths of the soul in the blink of an eye.  "I've Got Friends" is a fair example of pop melody that is offset with dark lyrics, strained vocals, and sudden guitar thrash.  Man, its fun to sing along with live, too.  Especially when everyone in the house harmonizes.  "Pensacola" is another good one to unify voices.  Except for one drunk chick that had many miscues and a shrieking, off-key voice that garnered her quite a bit of heckling.  Sadly, we could only really hear her during the toned down portions of songs that never became loud.  There's one in every crowd, I guess.  The only thing she didn't do was holler out "Freebird."  It's alright, I barely remember the first time I got a hold of some brown liquor, either.