A stormy night for Pillaging and Plundering

I don't quite know why, maybe it was my skull-covered outfit or the rain that fell in sheets over downtown Athens, but I was in the mood for some dark tunes on Tuesday. Whatever the reason for my desires, the bands on the bill at Max Canada delivered with several tasty morsels for the ears.

First up was recent discovery, Androcles and the Lion. I quite liked their sound when I saw them a couple weeks ago, and it was rather a nice treat to catch them again. This time around, they gave us a few rockin' songs tinged with darkness. Good stuff, indeed.

And then it was time for none other than the awesomely-named Atlanta band Pillage and Plunder. Way back in the day, before the idea of writing a blog had ever even crossed my mind, I saw these guys play during a Crumbling Arches show, and through a rather wacky series of events, I found myself at their very first show in Athens this past Tuesday. Now, to be honest, even if I had never heard of them before this show, their crazy style would have definitely caught my attention anyway. A very unique - one might even call it somehow vampiric - darkness pervaded their songs coupled with a bit of an old school cruise band vibe. But that's not even the most distinctive feature of their sound. I can honestly say I don't think I've ever heard faster tunes in my life than those played by Pillage and Plunder. It was wild! And their energy... Holy jeez! They join the ranks of the few bands I've seen over the years that used the entire stage as their rock playground. I could totally see their songs being used as the soundtrack for a movie scene involving a main character rushing through dark streets towards some meaningful purpose. Then the band wound to an end on quite an awesome note with a newer tune that proved to be my favorite song of the bunch. Their sound was insane, to be sure, but I liked it.

As the last band on the bill, Arturo in Letto lightened things up a bit with a touch of upbeat, indie rock interspersed with some undeniably adorable banter. And there's no doubt about it, lead singer AJ Weiss has a very sweet voice. With an added hint of electronic keyboard tones, it was quite a joyful end to a rain-soaked night.