By: David Rachac
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Holly Muñoz of Aviette - Photo by David Rachac
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A couple of hours before I was set to head out for the evening, I was sitting in my office, playing Aviette’s excellent Until We Hear From Dave loudly, when my son asked if he could shut the door. I knew that the music was probably interfering with his ability to hear the PlayStation, but I decided to mess with him anyway, asking him why he wanted to shut the door. He was trying to say, “The music is disturbing me,” but with the volume cranked up and me needling him, it came out “I think the music is disturbing!” Which I thought was a perfect description of Dave – a moody set of songs that translated beautifully to the 400 Bar that night for the CD release party.
On stage, Aviette came across much the same way as they did on their CD – brooding and atmospheric, with hard, thick sound. Combining the noisy pop of Sonic Youth with the eerie nihilism of The Cure, singer/guitarist Holly Muñoz lays down meaty Crazy Horse-like riffs while vocally ranging in style from the breathiness of the Cocteau Twins to the sharp bite of PJ Harvey. Drummer Kyle Larson is simply malevolent on the drums, pounding out a thunderous beat while bassist Justin Hartke keeps the ship righted by laying down a full, melodic base for Muñoz to play against.
The songs from the first half of Aviette’s set were all drawn from their new CD, starting with the haunting, drawn-out intro of “Red Rims” before time-shifting into the jagged, weary beat once the song kicked in. “All Hollowed Out” (maybe their finest song this night) was all whip-sharp riffs and heavy tribal drums, with Muñoz darkly confessing to infidelity:
You know you see the truth in me
And you know I am all hollowed out
I know what you stand for
And I know why you are staring at the floor
Both “Ruling Planets” and “Everest/Spyhunter” gave Muñoz the opportunity to stretch out a little bit with guitar solos, soaring high above the dissonant cacophony created by Larson and Hartke before coming back to earth. They also included a cover of Low’s “Sunflower,” probably as a tip of the cap to Duluth-based No Wait Wait, who was playing in the headliner slot.
The second half of the set was predominantly new songs, and on the whole, these songs were a bit more upbeat than the earlier songs, even including a sing-song “na na na” in the chorus of “Yours And Mine.” They even held a “meat raffle” drawing in the middle of the show – hard for anyone to take you overly seriously when you are willing to poke fun at yourself like that.
To put the finishing touch on the evening, Aviette asked guitarist Jason Shannon to join them onstage for a song, and when he wrapped a scarf around his head, I knew that the time had come for Poison’s “Every Rose Has Its Thorn.” They reworked the song so it wasn’t so grimace-inducing, but I really wasn’t enjoying it all that much – until a bunch of their friends pelted the stage (and band) with handfuls of confetti for the second half of the song, adding the missing piece of cheesy hair-metal glory. Although ‘80s music usually makes me break out in hives, I certainly understood their desire to end the show on a light note and show off a more playful side of their personalities.
Aviette plays on Friday, October 6th at the Varsity with Kid Dakota for the movie premiere of Four-Eyed Monsters.
Set List
Red Rims
All Hollowed Out
1907
Ruling Planets
Everest/Spyhunter
Sunflower (Low cover)
Yours and Mine
Say So
Steadfast
Every Rose Has Its Thorn (Poison cover)
Location Info:
400 Bar
Artist Info: Aviette
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