Aloha w/ Rahim @ Schubas - 8/20/06

Website link: Aloha

Aloha used to be the little experimental indie rock band from Ohio, who my brothers and I discovered on Amped (the snowboarding video game for Xbox that boasted a soundtrack of over 180 songs). Now with four full length albums released on Polyvinyl, the band is finally starting to get the recognition they deserve. Having listened to them for the last two years, I was naturally thrilled at discovering they were scheduled to play at a small club two blocks from my Chicago apartment. The group played at Schubas on Sunday, August 20, with special guest Rahim who started off the night with a bang. I don’t know Rahim too well, but they give off major hipster vibes. Their distilled indie rock was amusing enough in a half hour live set, but whether their trendy sound would survive on record remains to be seen.

Local band The Eternals almost ruined the entire night with their vomit-inducing Primus vs. Outkast sound. Even more unfortunate was that they played for an hour, not the half hour posted on the show schedule, and they played second (after Rahim). It was a shame because the drummer and bassist seemed talented, but the third man evaded any chance of salvation with his senseless yapping and random keyboard hits.

Aloha’s new album Some Echoes has been received extremely well by critics, currently ranking at #20 on Metacritic.com’s Best of 2006 list*. Critics like to throw around a bunch of genre and sub-genre names when discussing Aloha, like progressive, post-rock, free jazz, indie pop, and even soft rock, never failing to mention their trademark xylophones. What’s most important is that their grab bag of inspirations allows them constant exploration: whether it’s through instruments, song structure, emotions, or elsewhere.

Front man Tony Cavallario’s voice is accessible, and he never wastes time with uninspiring lyrics. He switched between guitar and keyboard (proving proficiency at both), while T.J Lipple alternates between keyboard and xylophone (somehow managing to hold four mallets in his two hands). Seeing the members of a band switch instruments is always something that wins my respect (the bassist was the only one to stay put). At one point they even put three men on percussion (including a guest), sounding off like a marching band drum line. Each of their songs functions like a small work of art in a gallery. They seem to focus on constant reinvention, not only from album to album but also song to song. A headline tour affords them live show time to explore even further, jamming past many songs’ regular lengths.

Hearing the arpeggios of “Water Your Hands,” from 2004’s Here Comes Everyone, played with such accuracy was truly breathtaking. Although they omitted some of my newer favorites such as the soft rock of “Ice Storming” and the Mark Mothersbaugh-like “Between The Walls,” the show was still extremely rewarding for dedicated fans and newbies alike. “Mountain” and “Your Eyes” were especially thrilling, but the boisterous “Summer Away” and “Weekend” were what really made the show sparkle. The emotional high-point of the show occurred during “Boys in the Bathtub,” a song lamenting the loss of youth and innocence. The song reminds me personally of the spring of 2004 at MSU, when it was played regularly on the campus radio station.

Aloha has no desire to be trendy. They’re not trying to take over the world. They view their craft not as a means to an end, but as the endpoint of all their creative collaboration. And the integrity they constantly carry with them is starting to take them to high places. They rumble like snow rushing down a mountain, or waves relentlessly crashing a rocky shore. This band will be remembered and celebrated for their work, whether later this year or ten years down the line. I hope for the band’s sake that the former will be true. But only time will tell.

*For those unfamiliar with Metacritic.com, they create average scores of album reviews. They weigh the scores based on the importance of the reviewer and include quotes from many of the sources. It’s a nice way to get a lot of info on a band or album very quickly.

Video: "Summer Away" from the 2004 album Here Comes Everyone