The Dodos Instore @ Good Records 3-18-08

After their whirlwind time in Austin during SXSW, the Dodos came to Dallas for a couple of shows and probably some much needed rest. While I wasn't able to see them play at Lola's in Ft. Worth I did catch their Good Records instore with MissInfo of fotophonic. I only snapped a few shots, in part because the crowd was so thin it felt intrusive, but also because I was rather well captivated by the music.
The set-up was a basic two-man deal: one on guitar and vocals, one on drums. There was a third guy for the sounds that Meric Long (singer/guitarist) and Logan Kroeber (drummer) couldn't produce or replicate themselves. Long had a dual mike set with one mike both on a slight reverb plus routed through a pedal that allowed him to either loop or double up the sound. For the vocals the loop was more common while Long also put his guitar through another loop/double-up plug. The effect was worth the effort as Long was able to bring in a twin guitar sound or a trumpet loop when the song required it. Kroeber, the drummer, had an unusual kit as well. Three drums, including the snare, but no kick drum for that bass sound. He also had only two cymbal stands, but the primary stand used two cymbals with a smaller one layered atop the other.
All of this is to say that I was interested in hearing how these two gents would perform live after listening to their first album Beware of Maniacs and a few song available before their new album dropped the day of the instore. For the most part the additional sound guy was there for the bits and pieces of sound that neither Long or Kroeber were able to do themselves, although if they could I'm sure they would have. The two-person non-electro set-up was a delight to see for its own aesthetic purposes. The music itself however, was astounding. It's not often that a band with an arrangement like the Dodos have can make their songs sound better live but they pulled it off brilliantly. They were dead tired by the looks of it. Even so, they didn't hesitate to play with all their heart. The two songs I wanted to hear ("Men" and "Fools") were excellent and I'm a little disappointed I didn't have anything to record the set with. As I said, the instore was for the release of their new album Visiter, which has quickly found itself in rotation on my cd player and iPod. It's an excellent album, one that I suggest you actually pay money for.

The Dodos @ MySpace
The Dodos Music
The Dodos @ Amazon