Low @ The Record Bar

Last night I was privileged to take in one of the best shows I have ever heard! Low performed at The Record Bar in Kansas City, and we drove three hours to join them.

The room was good, the crowd of about 75 people was attentive and responsive, and the music was excellent. After cancelling the end of their tour for The Great Destroyer last year due to mental health issues, Low came back with all of the complexity and creativity I could hope for. They seem to be backing off of their recent pop exploration a bit and revisiting the dissonance and tension they've been mining for the last few albums. They also reached way back to 1994 for a rendition of Lazy off of their very first album, I Could Live in Hope. They played a couple other old songs that I think were on EPs, three or four from Trust, a bunch from The Great Destroyer, and then they threw in a few new songs for good measure.

I think the highlights of the night for me were a frighteningly gripping performance of On the Edge Of, and then a fun second encore with strobe lights and a deafening version of When I Go Deaf. Alan seemed much more relaxed and willing to improvise than I've seen before. He repeatedly tiptoed the line between artful distortion and out of control feedback, always pulling back from the edge to burst back into recognizable song just in time. Previous shows have always appeared quite scripted, and Alan commented a few years ago that he doesn't know how to solo. I think he's breaking out, and I don't think I was the only one to enjoy the experience.

If you get a chance to see them yet this tour, it's worth your money. I think they're currently at the top of their game. Speaking from experience with mental illness, no one knows how long it will last.