CONCERT REVIEW: Lost in the Trees and Plants and Animals @ Johnny Brenda's, June 8

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CONCERT REVIEW: Lost in the Trees and Plants and Animals @ Johnny Brenda's, June 8

POSTED: Wednesday, June 9, 2010, 9:26 PM

Filed Under: Music Concert Review

Tom Tiballi

Lost in the Trees

Though Johnny Brenda's didn't boast one of its signature shoulder-to-shoulder crowds, Lost in the Trees filled the space with a mix of orchestral strings and nit-and-grit. Building on the strong foundation of Ari Picker's intimately crooned vocals and intensified by the whole cast integrating rambling, rumbling cries of their own, the North Carolina ensemble's short set steadily grew more complex as it progressed. At times, the sheer magnitude of hyper orchestrated cellos, violins, bells, steel strings, solid drumming and a tuba served as a glaring reminder of chords left unresolved too often, but this extravagance is also one of the band's unique strengths. Underneath lavish orchestration and the near hits-and-misses that come with going completely over the top lies an honesty in Lost in Trees and what they are trying to do. After all that hub-bub, they ended simply, unplugged and a capella on the floor of the club. Think of your older sister's surprisingly adept high school band concert that you never would have gone to if a glitzy trip to Friendly's afterward wasn't part of the deal; what you heard in the pursuit of something sweeter sticks with you a lot longer than a Reeses' sundae ever could.

Tom Tiballi

Plants and Animals

Around 11 p.m., Montreal's Plants and Animals rolled out a bunch of Gibson guitars onto the stage and promptly started tearing them up. Songs generally started in a muddy mix of booming chords, riding on the back of the tremendously talented drummer's poundage, as the tune slowly crept out of the woodwork, going a long way to set up massive, goose-bumping melodic explosions. With harmonies where they needed them, silence when it said more than sound would and a 1-2 combo of shredding guitarists liable to go off at any minute, these three Canuck fellas have definitely got their compositional shit together, and it showed in every song they played. The crowd drew closer with each tune, and the band ruled us well past any hope of getting to Spring Garden in time for a train back across town. But all is fair in rock and roll. Standout face-melter of the night: "Tom Cruz."

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