Author: Clark Scally
A powerful religious service reverberated through the pillars of the Center for the Arts, Eagle Rock (CFAER) on February 18. The non-profit run CFAER hosted a sold-out show featuring world class talent including OM, Sun Araw and Sir Richard Bishop. The neo-Romanesque architecture added to the concert’s vibe, artistically resembling an organized religious mass. A lot of wine and free root beer was served from the open bar by the merchandise table. The venerable OM headlined with their drum & bass duo performing mantra-doom metal, which is inspired by interfaith hymnal music from around the world.
The show began with a performance several thousand years ahead of its time. Sun Araw, a three piece experimental psychedelic electro-rock dub band, improvised over the original studio work from their latest album “The Inner Treaty.“ The group incorporated intricate instrumentation using handcrafted synthesizers, an electric guitar and a bamboo saxophone, a tiny woodwind instrument resembling a sawed-off clarinet. “These guys are totally like that band from the bar scene in Star Wars,” Jack Baker (sophomore) said in response to the delightful space-age buzzes and beeps. When asked about the group’s influences and whether Star Wars, Kraftwerk, and Lee “Scratch” Perry played any part, Sun Araw confirmed two out of three of those in an email interview. “Also, currently, Passport,” said a member of the band.
The next performer, Sir Richard Bishop, sat down on stage and proceeded to melt faces with his guitar shredding. His elaborate solos seemed to go on forever but left the audience yelling for more. “You all seriously want me to start singing? Fine, I’ll fucking sing,” Sir Bishop said, who proceeded to sing hilariously blasphemous songs about smut and the pornography industry that would make Frank Zappa blush. Since 1979, Sir Bishop played with the experimental punk-rock band Sun City Girls and released over 50 albums via cassette, vinyl record and compact disk.
Once the profanity ceased, it was time for the reverent OM to clear the air for the final act. They started off their set by cutting the volume down low and gradually built to a thunderous, teeth-trembling roar by the end of the concert. “Throughout it all they had an extra third man on stage doing everything you can imagine: raucous tambourine playing, ethereal modded vocals, [and] shrill guitar noise,” Baker said in an official announcement on the KOXY campus radio website. That third man was Robert Lowe of the Lichens, who adds the exotic sounds which help make OM’s spiritual songs sound wholly pantheistic. OM, who formed out of the rhythm section of the metal band SLEEP, is notorious for playing long songs. In 2007, they performed in Jerusalem for over five hours. When learning OM was only playing for 90 minutes, fans were disappointed. “Oh, so they’ll only play two songs?” a member of the audience jokingly said.
OM’s reputation is such that when they perform live, it has the appeal and draw of a sacred pilgrimage. The audience was very diverse from fashionable couples to nomadic young patch-punks clad in their characteristic denim coats. “I’ve seen SLEEP three times,” Devan Fuentes of Oakland said. “I couldn’t miss this show. I drove all the way down here to LA last night, nonstop.”
Their passion for musical exploration translates to tremendous power onstage. Unfortunately, the original members of both OM and SLEEP have struggled with rehab and a hiatus in recent years. This performance, with only one original member, shows OM’s mastery of many musical genres remains healthy and whole.
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