Photo By Patrick Lermitte.

The Joint Chiefs of Math with Guests Ideogram and David Ward

Wednesday, September 8^th 2009 @ The Railway Club

A helpful perk of the networking phenomena know as Facebook is that it keeps me in the know of when random, unproven indie bands are playing their first show. Normally I shrug off such an invite, but in this case, the sender, Harold Donnelly, had already proven himself with his work in his former band Orange Orange, whose 2006 record, Step into Ecstasy, is still on frequent rotation in my iTunes. I figured that any band that he was apart of was worth checking out, even if it was a debut show. Thus, I had my motivation for witnessing the Joint Chiefs of Math.

Now, despite my frequent trips into the heart and soul of Vancouver for shows, the Railway Club was one of the rare spots I had yet to visit, despite being a hipster hotspot. So needless to say, I was a little excited to test this venue.

Upon initial arrival, around 8:30 (as the invite said!) I was rather disappointed.

I looked around the venue, I saw basically an aged demographic (aged meaning forty or older) with one table of about six or seven thirty-somethings.

(Where were the skinny jeans? The high-top sneakers (save for mine)? The ‘vintage’ t-shirts with reference to kitschy mid-90s cartoons?)

At one point, I considered the possibility that I had arrived at the wrong venue, or on the wrong day. Despite being slightly embarrassed I decided to stick it out. Sure enough, by 9:30 (that’s right, an hour later), bands and people started to fill in.

The first act on the bill, David Ward, was a solo artist that was assisted by a friend of his. I wasn’t expecting too much, from having seen countless armies of acoustic balladeers play their sets in anticipation of inevitable post-performance groupies. Needless to say, I find the genre tired. David Ward looked the part of said balladeer, and having seen the crowd thicken immensely since I first arrived at the venue, I was ready to vomit in my mouth over how many girls would swoon to his songs.

As he grabbed the microphone, David boldly asks a crowd, most of which was composed of people there to see Joint Chiefs of Math, to “quiet down” so he could start his set. Naturally, no one listened, that is, until he started to sing.

To my surprise, David started with a soulful and “spiritual” a ca pella number, accompanied only the stomps and claps of his own feet and hands. Immediately, the crowd silenced, and remained captivated through the entire set.

The most notable thing about David Ward’s set, was his undeniable likeness (not so much in appearance but in his musical style and sound) to the late Jeff Buckley. From the thick, punchy chords and unlikely progressions he played on his Telecaster, right to the reverb applied to his vocals, the similarities between Buckley and Ward emerged more as his set progressed.

Other highlights of Ward’s set was a haunting version of Led Zeppelin’s “Gallow’s Pole”, which he carved from his keen sense of dynamics with his guitar, and a blues driven crowd pleaser in the pre-school classic “This Little Light of Mine”. After Ward won over the packed venue (myself included), there was a new found sense of optimism for the remainder of the night.

However, the next act, Ideogram, or H1N1 as they called themselves (a joke which was pretty lost on crowd) deterred from the energy that Ward impacted on the venue. The individual talent of the members in the band was pretty obvious, but as a unit, their set was rough, and a little awkward to watch.           The first song in their set was intriguing, keeping me interested to see how the rest of their set would play out. The first 75% of second song actually got me excited about where the rest of the set would go. By this time, Ideogram (H1N1 or whatever you want to call them) had confirmed that they were supposed to be a psychedelic post-rock group, utilizing unlikely influences (the second song opens with a pretty standard blues riff that transforms into ambience) to eventually reciprocate Mr.Beast-era Mogwai. Their back line was incredibly sharp with the bass player (sporting a six-string!) and drummer being airtight on their accents regardless of how epic their licks and fills were. The two guitar players had obviously contrasting styles that didn’t pose a problem until after the first two tracks. One of the players embodied the post-rock cliché of super-delayed tremolo guitar, while the other exercised the point-perfect dissonance of contemporary prog-rock (reminiscent of post-Frances the Mute Mars Volta).

From the last quarter of the second song (which was about six minutes in), the set when downhill, losing all interest of the crowd due to their excessive soloing and generally unpleasant composition, as well as their static, focused stage presence that disabled any interaction with the crowd. My fellow concert-goer Joe equivocated their set to “jacking-off on stage”. This self-pleasing ideology that Ideogram/H1N1 brought to their performance did little to inspire me, or from what I observed, most of the crowd, from following up with them.

By 12:10, Joint Chiefs of Math took the stage. Keeping in mind that this was their first show, and that the venue was packed, I promised myself to remain open to the possibility that their nerves would probably be maxed out. They took the stage, looking at one another, commencing in one last mental preparation before they launched into their set.

The opening of their first track “I Want To Go Down” was hit excitedly by the giddy members of the band, and throughout that opening number that excitement was infectiously passed throughout the crowd. The big drums, well-articulated guitar and bass, and countless sweeps of the keys implied that this band was well seasoned and well rehearsed (and that they were a bunch of liars for saying this was their first show!).

The remainder of the set now had a challenge: maintaining that energy throughout. Their second effort, “Animal Ritual” kept the crowd interested and involved with the band, as well it helped established certain truths about this band. Firstly, keyboardist Harold Donnelly is amazingly proficient and comfortable on stage, as he also dealt with the primary harmonies for most of the set without missing a note on his keyboard. Secondly, guitarist John Sponarski plays with obvious passion and precision without losing a full, whole-hearted presence on stage. And finally, the back-line of this band, bass player Ben Appenheimer and drummer David Gens, exceed the normal expectations of a standard support section, both of which subtly shine at several moments throughout the set.

Babyfaced vocalist Sam Fenn does a solid work as the primary vocalist in the band, consistently hitting his melodies without much trouble and has a charming onstage presence. However, at times Fenn seemed to lack the confidence that comes with being a frontman and seemed unsure of his abilities. But like I said, it was only their first show, and that kind of comfort on stage comes in time.

As the set progressed, the energy slightly faded away. By the fifth track “Minimum Wage”, the band seemed tired, and the crowd became a little restless (to be fair, it was after midnight when Joint Chiefs took the stage), and the band seemed a little hassled by slight technical problems that plagued them mid-set, especially with a  rouge guitar amp that seemed to blow out for Fenn. This break was beneficial for the group as it allowed them to regain their footing after jumping headfirst through a relentless first half of the set.

After the band and crowd got a moment to take a breath, the band began to finish the remainder of their set, starting with my personal favorite off of their Sister Swim EP,  “Eleanor”, a track that wears seventies and nineties pop-rock on their communal, flannel sleeves. Feeling rejuvenated, Joint Chiefs of Math rocketed to the end of their set on a very high note.

For the most part, The Joint Chiefs of Math’s debut show was a rousing success. At no point did this band look completely virginal to playing in the Vancouver indie scene, giving off the impression that they had been around for a little while. The kind of comfort this band had for a debut show at a packed Railway Club is prophetic in mapping out the future this band. Expect to see The Joint Chiefs of Math quickly realize their potential and assertively implement themselves as an undeniable staple to the Vancouver scene.