Apollo Sunshine Burn Down The Dise

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By Ed Burns

So, ya know how people thought blues-based rock died some time around the end of the 1970s? Bands like Deep Purple and Black Sabbath pretty much wrote every riff from a pentatonic scale that could be rocked. That creative well had been dredged dry, so it was thought.

But the boys of Apollo Sunshine apparently never got that memo – thank god. If you’re familiar with the band’s trip-folk inspired recordings it may be a surprise to see them channeling the spirits of Jimi Hendrix, Jon Bonham, and the like in their live shows. But in their March 18 show at the Paradise they rocked as hard as any of those hard rocking legends whose time, it was thought, was long since over.

It’s hard to talk about particular highlights from a show that included extended jams, a drum circle and more machismo than an Austin Powers movie, but one stand out moment was the band’s take on Bach’s Fugue in Eb Minor.

I know what you’re thinking: ‘He just spent the whole review talking all about how hard the band rocked, and now he says the highlight was some classical business?’ Yes! Jesse Gallagher holds the song down on keys, pushing his distorted organ sound to produce all kinds of squeaks and blips while weaving the songs main melody throughout. Teammate Sam Cohen, who normally plays guitar, picks up a bass for this number, giving the song a rock groove to allow for Gallagher’s freak-outs at the keyboard. Watching his fingers fly up and down the keyboard, twisting knobs, producing feedback and scratches is reminiscent of watching Keith Emerson at his most experimental. On this night, nothing brought down the house like Bach – go figure.

But of course, the band’s own material was pretty well received as well, especially the gritty version of fan favorite Magnolia, from the band’s self titled 2005 release. The boys turned up the amps to 11 for this normally unassuming, acoustic blues song, and turned it into a fiery romp. Cohen grabbed his guitar, his more natural home, and took the lead on vocals. His pleading and incessant howls brought a dirty kind of power to the song not found on the original recording. And drummer Jeremy Black lent the song a much straighter back bone than the original, bashing his kit during the song’s breaks.

The energy level couldn’t have been higher. The three members took their normally subdued and cerebral tracks to a much grittier, much more primeval place. I guess it shouldn’t be surprising: there’s no way just the three band members could directly translate all the thoughtful soundscapes found in their more recent recordings to the stage. You know a band is on their game when they can take raw material from their studio recordings and turn it into something completely different, and completely compelling on the stage. When it all comes together, it’s almost like watching Rock get birthed all over again.