By: Bob Longmore
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Dancer Natalie Brown with Ada Jane - Photo by David de Young
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I walked into the 400 Bar to find a thin young man in flannel shirt and a buzz cut tucked into the corner of the stage plucking his acoustic guitar. While this was a CD release show for Ada Jane, Matt Marka’s band, Marka couldn’t let the event pass without playing as himself. His giant voice ably filled the half-empty, but filling room. Finally, when some interpretive dancers appeared to perform with the song “Dancing in my Grave,” their beautiful languid movements slowly captivated the notoriously disinterested 400 Bar crowd.
Comedian and magician David Harris filled the time between Marka’s sets. Harris assumed the stage to an apprehensive crowd that he begged to come forward. Eventually he warmed up the crowd enough to have them laughing at his every whim. He even pulled some volunteers from the audience to participate in his disappearing cigarette trick.
Drummer Charlie Wilson and bassist John M. Taillon joined Marka on stage to round out the lineup of Ada Jane. In front of a Marshall stack modified to spell his name, Marka played a distorted acoustic guitar, which produced a surprisingly rich sound.
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Magician David Harris - Photo by de Young
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Towards the beginning of Ada Jane’s set, Marka remarked between songs about the distracted patrons, “People sure are chatty in this place. It’s making me nervous.” It actually didn’t seem to affect the performance of the band, as Marka hopped and thrashed around the stage nimbly but haphazardly (at one point he even accidentally kicked one of his guitars off the stage).
Matt Jennings joined the band and began a procession of guest players and singers. It seemed that the more people got on stage, the mellower the songs became. Singer Larissa Anderson joined the parade, as did Chris Koza, Beau Kinstler and JoAnna James. Wilson gave up the drum set to Jennings and grabbed his clarinet for “Backing Down Again,” which got some honky-tonk flavor from Koza’s keyboards and Kinstler’s guitar.
Marka introduced “The Wayside” by saying, “This is the hit single, or as my friends call it, the Muppets song.” This song was definitely the highlight of the set, with a bouncy rhythm and an Elvis Costello vibe, and by the time the hand claps came in it was clear that this is delicious pop goodness.
The set ended with the Soul Asylum-anthemic “On Your Level,” where Marka sang, “I’m up for whatever” – a good statement to sum up a musically adventurous band.
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Eagle*Seagull - Photo by de Young
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If The Cure were on speed when they made Head on the Door, it would sound like Eagle*Seagull. Starting with “It’s So Sexy,” a pulsating love letter with lines like, “I want your tears/ I want your heart as a souvenir,” the six-piece Nebraska band left no part of the sonic spectrum untouched. Their songs often ended in cacophonous climaxes of tumbling distortion and screams and violin squeals.
Keyboardist and singer Eli Mardock fronts this dance punk band and has the vocal strength to cut through the dense, sometimes chaotic sound, which every once in a while lulls just long enough to let his often bouncy piano playing underscore his dark lyrics. In reading about the band, comparisons to Arcade Fire seem to appear often. I agree about the energy and musicianship of the band, but they lack the subtlety; though that is not meant to take anything away from their powerful arrangements and undeniable charm.
Location Info:
400 Bar
Artist Info: Ada Jane, David Harris, Eagle Seagull
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