review by: Roberto Martinelli

This was day four of the Beyond the Pale Festival, which was really less of a festival and more of a string of four evenings that were billed under the same name. There was no festival pass, so one would have to pay $80 ($20 per night) to see everything, and I don't know a whole lot of people who were into the bands on the bill that could afford to shell out that kind of dough.

So I had to pick wisely. It was really a no brainer. Stars of the Lid is one of my favorite bands, so on Sunday night I headed out to DNA Lounge, a venue that for me is a dance club. I had seen the start time billed as 7:30PM. In fact, it was 9, but things only got started at 9:30. In the meantime ambient music was blasting over the sound system. I didn't think I would need to bring the customary earplugs that are staples of my metal show going life, but I'm glad I did. As I sat on a stool in the dark, almost entirely empty club, earplugs in place, I was lulled to sleep by the blaring ambience and lack of activity. A security guard woke me up and told me he couldn't have people sleeping. That was pretty silly considering the kind of show that was to follow.

Tribes of Neurot was the first band to play. I have to admit I only stuck around for about 10 minutes of the set as I realized I had forgotten to run an errand and I wanted to get it done before Stars of the Lid came on. What I did hear from this four-piece was nice but glacial and somewhat alienating ambient. The music was generated by a guitar, a bass, and at least one keyboard. Keeping with the musicians as less-than-human theme of the evening, at least one of the members was sitting with his back to the audience as he hunched over his guitar.

Stars of the Lid set up their gear relatively rapidly. The two guys look like indie rockers except they play ambient drone. Adam Wiltzie, a guy of medium height with thick rimmed, black glasses and greasy, longish hair, took the mic and started giving the audience something you'd be more likely to hear at an Academy Awards acceptance speech: thanking a bunch of people and providing some mildly entertaining banter. As Brian McBride, who is roughly the same height as Wiltzie but thinner and with wild, shorter blond hair, took the stage, the lights went off. A comical moment followed as the two flashlights that are part of one of those headgears that mountain climbers and cave spelunkers wear shone from Wiltzie's head, and all you could really see was his white button down short sleeve t-shirt. He looked like a space alien about to play some music on the guitar slung over his shoulder and the two keyboards to his right and his left.

Stars of the Lid's set put the audience to sleep, but that was the intention. Those who kept their eyes open were mesmerized by a video presentation of shifting clouds, a drowned/peacefully sleeping girl underwater, and peoples ankles dangling over a pier. It was the perfect complement to the Stars' deeply emotive and fuzzy show.

We should have all left there. Next up was E.A.R., who is a one-man operation headed by this English guy that looks like a skeleton. E.A.R.'s "performance" consisted of this man presenting his theoretically existing backside to the audience as he hunched over a folding table, twiddling away at various electronic equipment that looked as if it were taken from a 1950s sci-fi B movie.

Accompanying this monotonous and shapeless noise was the worst video presentation imaginable, made up of the most dire 3D animation available. To give you a clear idea, that fucking shitty and creepy dancing baby thing was part of the show. Forty minutes into the ordeal, I realized it was nigh 1 AM, so I forsook Robert Rich in favor of a nice bed.

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