Over the last few years blues has made a comeback, most notably with Black Keys and The Whites Stripes, among others. But Rumspringa is taking the blues even further back to that of Mississippi John Hurt and John Lee Hooker. One of the best things about Rumspringa is their unforgiving way of bringing back authentic blues.
At the beginning of their set Pehrspace, they handed out tambourines and maracas to the audience. I personally appreciated the hippiesh egalitarian gesture; it also helped spread out the sound through the crowd, even though the drummer's huge twenty-eight inch sunburst bass drum carries its own respective presence. Once the music started the audience's percussion came in along to add a small spice to the intimate affair of a forty person room.
His appearance was contradictory when compared to that of his emulated bluesmen, but the sound!
The singer often sang along to the guitar melody. The low howling voice, swinging drums, and rolling guitars made the blackberry and velcro wallet next to the bass drum seem like items from the future that had not yet been invented. It seemed instead as though we were in some speak-easy: drinking from flasks, smoking cigarettes, and screaming at our lung's content for the music to "Keep going!" The force of the music made people roll and sing and troll, side to side; women with seemingly tempestuous faces tapped their feet and rattled their hips.
In order to make up for only having two people, the guitarist used a looping pedal. Amazingly, the drummer managed to keep perfect time. "It's tricky," he explained after the show; "You have to really pay attention to what's going on [with the guitar loop]." But it worked incredibly well in this case; a shinning example came at the climax of the show where the guitarist joined in with the percussion that seemed all too lonely during the show. Needless to say, everyone screamed in joy to the all to short spectacle.
After the show, I swayed from side to side, but not because of the music or the aftermath of ringing ears; I was pissed drunk from all the booze (I finished a flask with the help some swigs from people around me). But I would not have drank all the liquor if I was not having fun. The show was great; be warned however, the music on their myspace does not sound the way they sound live, so do not be discouraged.
They are playing at Spaceland on March 31st and tell your friends around Brooklyn to go their show at the Music Hall of Williamsburg on April 18th.
