Two hundred and sixty two college students from all walks of life packed the floor of University of New Hampshire’s, Strafford Room, Sat., Sept. 20. A large crowd of students awaited Memorial Union Student Organization’s first big event of the year. MUSO featured a loaded bill including Genghis Tron, Transistor Transistor, the Brave Little Abacus and L’antietam.
The Brave Little Abacus started off the night, and as usual did not disappoint. The trio, known throughout N.H. for their insane solos, clever sampling and live shows bring with them a cure for the average onlooker who simply stands with their arms crossed nodding monotonously at the stage. There hasn’t been a BLA show yet where the entire crowd isn’t dancing and throwing their arms up at the end of “The Buffalo” in perfect synchronization.
Following The Brave Little Abacus and fresh from a summer tour was Transistor Transistor. Needless to say, they killed it. Look for their 2008 release “Ruined Lives” released on May 13, a Level-Plane release. Mixed reviews have been kicking around so hit the local record shop and give it a few spins.
Straight out of the van from summer tour was Boston and Southern New Hampshire natives L’antietam. They played a pretty good chunk of their 2008 release, “Arthur Carr”, and put on an insane show. After their set, lead singer and guitarist Derek Desharnais sat down to talk about their tour and what to expect from L’antietam in the future.
Finishing off the night was New York’s, Genghis Tron, an electronic metal band who digitally drummed their way through the soles of the crowds’ shoes. For a band whose lead singer sounds like he is choking on the ocean in its entirety, somehow it worked for them. Behind the band were five light bars that flashed in synchronization with every beat and riff, and it truly created a surreal atmosphere. The band definitely played a solid show, and at points, was reminiscent of something The Faint would’ve put out in their earlier years. Perfectly named to fit the genre of music played, Genghis Tron had the audience dancing and head-banging until the last chord was played.
S.S: You guys toured the country this summer, how did it go?
D.D.: Well, we had a lot of stuff stolen and our van broke down and we fixed it a ton, but it broke down a ton more, but it was the best experience I have ever had. Two of us, RJ and John, rode in the back of this budget truck because we couldn’t pay for it to be fixed. Eventually we ended up sleeping at this girls house and stayed there for five days to try to sell the van for parts. My mom had to mail me the title, but we slept too late and missed the overnight delivery. We stayed there until the last day we had the van. We almost died a million times and RJ and John were going insane. It was way too much, but the shows we played were amazing and we made tons of gold…yum yum. I loved it.
S.S.: What were some of the highlights of the tour?
D.D: Being so close to each other was amazing. It makes you realize that you have the best friends ever. I love everyone in my band and they love me. We can handle a lot of each other’s band problems and real life problems, which are insane to deal with. We’ve always been great friends, like best friends, family. Also, all the people we met. It’s such a bummer when we have to leave. The shows we played made me realize that people like our stuff. I never thought I could tour, ever, but it’s crazy. People have told me “I can relate to your lyrics,” and it blows my mind. I have never thought anyone would think that. I have seen every state and met some of the best people in my life because of tour. I don’t know what I would do without it.
S.S.: What do you guys have in store for the future?
D.D:Well, we just put out that Kid Crash split. Our songs are fun and different, but I love playing weird random stuff that will just confuse people, like, this is not L’antietam. I love it. We also recorded it ourselves which was a first. Well, at least since we were sixteen, but I think it sounds great. RJ is great at recording so we lucked out. Now… since I just got a new guitar we should record the “Loma Prieta” songs by October and it will be released in November the latest. The songs are very “Arthur Carr”-ish. We are also going to release a fifteen min song on a 12″, not sure on when or with whom. Then we will do a new full length. So, two years without touring or anything, but yeah, it will be worth it. Finally, after that, Europe,Europe,Europe! We need to do that, and we will soon.
Overall, it was an incredibly successful night and five dollars well spent. Make sure to check out The Brave Little Abacus online and see for yourself what you’ve been missing. Also, keep an eye out and an open schedule for Sat Sept 26, as L’antietam will playing on campus alongside Maudslay and Algernon Cadwallader at the HUB’s Multi-Purpose Room promptly at 8p.m.