Totally Altar(ed)

On September 7th, 2010 at the Brooklyn Masonic Temple, located at 317 Clermont & Lafayette, Boris and Sunn O))) performed their duo album Altar, put on by All Tomorrow’s Parties – and oh my lord, I’ve never felt closer to the Elder Gods. But, before I tell you about all the ways their performance made time feel all wibbly-wobbly, I shall tell you of all the awesome that happened preceding.

A portion of this night’s success relied on the fact that Ethan and I, at times very big forgetful slackers, managed to find tickets to the show through various last minute sources. This could be luck, or possibly a sign from Ulthar giving us great fortune. Furthermore, California pal and Vermont native Cooper McBean arrived with his sister Megan as Ethan and I were walking in the doors of the venue where Sleep had played the night before. Embraces and high-fives a plenty were followed by the purchasing of beers (well, not before we had to buy drink tickets). The Masonic temple itself is large with two levels. The bottom for the stage, standing room, sound booth, beer and merch while the upper part had several rows of seating.

For the first band, Jesse Sykes and The Sweet Hereafter, the hall’s lights remained relatively raised, allowing for those still trickling in to find their positions, friends, or the end of the beer ticket line. The band took to the stage, two smoke machines pushed the altered air onto the crowd and they began to play. While they aren’t as stoney as most metal bands that I prefer, Jesse Sykes has a voice that works in beautiful harmony with her guitar, and with the music being played by the band behind her. Skinny, lanky, with long black hair – she belted out, and carried sweetly, a range of notes that transformed the venue into a temple to the Elder Gods. Their set was awesome, even when they transitioned to the ending portion in which they experimented with the genre of folk.

After Jesse Skyes, BXI played. That was, at the very least, an interesting experience. To give you a background, BXI is made up of the members of Boris with Ian Astbury, of The Cult, as their lead man. This act was a mix of emotions that consisted of seeing the musical talents of Boris playing without robes (see next paragraph), but also having to endure an aged metal dude in a leather jacket and yoga pants. Granted, Ian’s voice still carries and sounds ripping. It’s rather distracting to see the line-up of Boris support a fleeting – but still awesome – character from the past. During the set I did question, out of amusement, the mathematical equation as to how this band came into existence. Nonetheless, it was still along the lines of ‘fucking radical’. (see fig. 4).

fig. 4

A couple of cigarettes, and a piss, later it was time for the grand finale. Quickly the lot of us jumped in and out of the beer line(s) and sought higher ground on the upper deck to embrace the trembles that were about to fall upon us. The lights darkened, the smoke machines created a worm-like creature that stretched over a portion of the balcony, and they took to the stage in a whimsical fashion (robes-n-all). What was once cheering quickly turned into silence as the congregation of listeners anticipated the first series of strummed notes to vibrate through their bodies. The band(s) slowly swayed back and forth with their instrumental weapons in hand. From the balcony it looked as if an ocean of black shirts was about to slam onto the stage, drowning those who wore their summer-time plaid shirts like sailors lost at sea, while we atop were the tidal-wave crashing down with angst. The snare hits became more consistent and it continued to build, everyone now feeling it in their bones. The first song finished and I somehow felt altered, more so then what two beers could do to me normally.

[editorial note: when placing your bag in your friend's car before the last act goes on stage, remember to grab the camera. This sorry excuse of a human totally forgot it. Lack of pictures begins – now]

Sadly, during the second song the power cut out. Some of the already amazed crowd quickly fled for the doors to smoke and chatter about the immediate satisfaction of seeing this duo play only two songs, while the rest of us waited in agonized anticipation, wondering whether the power would return.

Hark! Nodens would, with his mighty power, allow for us puny humans to continue with the show, and the power returned . Once again, the band(s) members took the stage and proceeded from whence they had ended.

I was now sitting in a recently vacated chair and was mesmerized by their new presence on the altar laid before me, even though I could not see them through the darkness of the hall (because they had cut the lights out of concern over the power supply). Note after note began to vibrate through my body. Their power was now making my brain move within my skull. My organs, not literally, changed position around my stomach. The sensation of breathing sound. And my consciousness ascending upon a Lovecraftian realm in which pure thought, fantasy and fear became one.

The experience itself consisted of drifting between visual and mental awareness, especially during “The Sinking Belle (Blue Sheep)” (that features the vocals of Jesse Sykes).

And just as soon as it started, my mind and eyes felt the lights go up.

The show was over…

The experience alone of seeing these two amazing bands perform this album in its entirety was the best live performance I’ve ever had both physically and mentally.

While exiting the show, my comrades and I remained in silence only to make the occasional comment of “holy shit that was amazing”, or “my body is still vibrating.”

Now that I have been to several ‘big time’ events about the city which include some of my favored bands, this still remains to be the best thing to have happened in New York since I’ve been here, and possibly the year.

My praise to you, oh, Elder Gods. May our sacrifices be plentiful.

Blood for the blood God.

Tags: All Tomorrow's Parties, Altar, ATP, Boris, Brooklyn, Brooklyn Masonic Temple, BXI, elder gods, Jesse Sykes, Jesse Sykes and the sweet hereafter, metal, Sleep, Sunn, Sunn O)))

This entry was posted on Thursday, September 9th, 2010 at 8:37 am by Austin and is filed under Music, Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.