Jason Simon (Dead Meadow),Immigrant Union @ the Toff,Melbourne (24/08/2011)

Mon 29th Aug, 2011 in Gig Reviews

Immigrant Union are usually six-piece fronted by the Dandy Warhol’s Brent DeBoer and the Lazy Sons’ Bob Harrow. Tonight, given the refined nature of the event, they’re performing as a three-piece; two guitarists and a bass player. “We’re half of Immigrant Union,” says Harrow. “The other half are right there,” says DeBour, pointing towards the bar. “Sometimes they don’t want to play.”

Their sound can be described as alt-country treated with noticeable classic-rock and folk influences. Dignity comes off sounding a little like Country Joe and The Fish, if only for the chorus: “One, two, three, four whiskey’s and I’m on the floor.” The drifting rhythm and complementary vocal harmonies of My Heart’s A Joke, on the other hand, draw parallels with early R.E.M. The galloping rhythms of Mokoan and The End Has Come are unabashedly country, while You Win, a song originally from DeBouer’s solo EP The Farmer, wouldn’t be out of place on a Dandy’s album.

Despite the absence of a drummer the band manages to retain the heavy washboard rhythms that drive most of their songs. Harrow’s countrified wails have a unique helium-induced bent that cuts through and rises above the treble-heavy guitars and blends perfectly with DeBour’s laconic style. There’s an irony and irreverence to most of their materia; their subjects range from tales of decadence and heartbreak to alcoholism and footy. “The best thing that came out of playing footy was a song about playing footy,” says Harrow.

They play casually and almost effortlessly. The songs drift through influences as obvious as Dylan and Young but find their own place through the passion and fun with which they are handled. There’s nothing at all unenjoyable about Immigrant Union; they play well and their songs consistently hit the mark.

Jason Simon is best known as the vocalist and guitarist for Dead Meadow, or by some, as the nephew of David Simon, creator of The Wire. The contrast between Simon’s solo material and that of Dead Meadow’s is immediate. Dead Meadow are a band who wades in grating psychedelic sound-scapes and a general love of volume, whereas in this setting, it’s just Simon and an acoustic guitar, accompanied by his wife on harmonium.

He takes to the stage as his wife pumps the bellows of an old wooden harmonium, which drones, long and mournfully, unsettling the sparse and seated audience. He’s casual, unassuming and never says anymore than a few words between songs. Good Hope Road and Let’s Begin demonstrate that his solo material hasn’t deviated too far from the psychedelic inclinations of Dead Meadow. Instead he’s channelled these inclinations through a route once taken by Leonard Cohen and Townes Van Zandt. Most importantly, he’s retained the unsettling and sometimes alienating presence, which Dead Meadow has in spades.

Despite the subdued nature of his performance he seizes the opportunity to dive into the heavier and distorted segments, striking a balance with the softer melodies. There are hooks lurking within his songs that are choked only by his resistance to approach them. Through restraint and care he imbues his songs with the haunting and ethereal qualities that characterise his sound.

At times though, the set lacked cohesion. Due to the long breaks between songs Simon never really succeeded in building any momentum. This he attributed to “all sorts of different tuning going on.” But it didn’t necessarily matter as each song, as on the album, tends to take on a life of its own. His soft vocals drift gently with the melodies in their own harmonic space as he balances rhythm and lead guitar parts with virtuosity. At times it sounds as if there are two or even three guitars playing, building the same kind of drifting layers you’ll find on any Dead Meadow LP.

Without a wall of screaming guitars and feedback to hide behind, Simon remained tense and reserved for the duration of the gig, which certainly came across in songs like A House Up On A Hill and As I Went Out One Morning. And though the set could have been more cohesive, Simon’s approach is one largely subjected to whim. There was nothing at all forced about the performance, he worked at his own pace and lived inside his songs for the 45+ minutes he was on stage. He affirmed his reputation as an immensely underrated songwriter and performer, one who’s just as capable solo as his is with Dead Meadow.