Breaking down a killer foursome at The Blue Note: AJJ, Open Mike Eagle and more
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In a month when we've seen Modest Mouse, Cat Power, Father John Misty, The Head and the Heart, Guster and more come through Columbia, don't sleep on what might be the show of the summer.
Anchored by one of the great bands to ever come out of Phoenix, Arizona, a quadruple bill the final week of August is more diverse and inventive than most. Here's a look at each member of this wonderfully fearsome foursome.
AJJ
For nearly 20 years, Phoenix band AJJ has delivered ragged symphonies animated by a particular folk-punk alchemy. Think The Mountain Goats, Violent Femmes or They Might Be Giants reloading with a bevy of elder millennial pop-culture references and political observations.
The band's latest, this year's "Disposable Everything," is as caustic as it is beautiful, pushing back against the soul-suck of late capitalism and all its devices with vibrating guitars, vocals that traverse a spectrum from singer-songwriter stylings to full metal anguish, and genuinely lovely moments of despair and catharsis.
If we're all going to make it, we need more heartbreak, honesty and pissed-off humor from bands like AJJ.
Open Mike Eagle
Perhaps the true underrated genius of modern hip-hop, Chicago native Open Mike Eagle is a gifted tightrope walker. Interested in how memory and nostalgia, pop culture and pain work their way into the body — especially into Black bodies — Eagle's lyrics deftly mix the wry, rhapsodic and devastating.
From instant-classic records such as 2017's "Brick Body Kids Still Daydream" to last year's "Component System with the Auto Reverse," Eagle never sacrifices lasting insight for a moment's entertainment — or vice-versa. The True/False Film Fest alum's capacity for packing laughs, tears, knowing recognition and lingering questions into three or four minutes of inventive hip-hop is practically peerless.
Sad Park
Los Angeles rockers Sad Park nimbly weave together elements of emo, power pop and indie rock on their latest, "No More Sound," released this summer. Driving guitars frame Graham Steele's vocals, which can go from a post-hardcore howl to an artful croon within the span of a measure; these songs gesture toward typical musical paths before reveling in each strange and lovely turn.
Foot Ox
The Portland, Oregon act — billed as songwriter Teague Cullen and a cast of friendly characters — crafts a harmonious folk rock sound along their wonderfully idiosyncratic assembly line. Gilded melodies, gorgeous backing vocals, a spirited lyrical sensibility and deceptively intricate guitar parts work together until the fit resembles something distinctly West Coast, but with a deeper, wider appeal.
The Tuesday, Aug. 29 show takes place at 7:30 p.m.; tickets are $24-$45. Visit https://thebluenote.com/ for more information.
Aarik Danielsen is the features and culture editor for the Tribune. Contact him at adanielsen@columbiatribune.com or by calling 573-815-1731. He's on Twitter @aarikdanielsen.
This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: AJJ, Open Mike Eagle part of quadruple bill at The Blue Note
