Sunday, January 22, 2017

Mogwai @ The UC Theatre 1/19/2017

When I first listened to the latest album from Scottish experimental rock legends, Mogwai, I couldn't help but be reminded of the soundtrack of the 2010 remake of Tron, scored of course by today's disco -esque kings, Daft Punk. Mogwai's ATOMIC transports you to another time and place, mercifully suspending you in the murky unknown with futuristic, eerie instrumental melodies. It wasn't until after the fact that I learned that the album is actually based on a sound track: composed of reworked versions of  the music recorded for the sound track to the acclaimed documentary, ATOMIC: Living in Dread and Promise directed by Mark Cousin. 

January 18th was the first show of six U.S dates at The Theatre at The Ace Hotel  in LA. These aren't typical shows though: consisting of a screening of the film with Mogwai providing live instrumental accompaniment of it. The second show of the mini-tour gave Bay Area fans the chance to see this Mogwai ATOMIC performance at The UC Theatre in Berkeley on Thursday night.

Filtering into the 1,400 capacity theatre when doors opened at 7:00, people found places to stand because contrary to belief the show was not a seated one. With no opening act, the house lights dimmed, the film rolled and the show was underway at 8:00.



The experimental documentary on the world following the A-bombing of Hiroshima, referred to as our Atomic World, is presented as a collage of propaganda. Archived footage of news reports, stories, astronaut training videos and images were exclusively used to depict the dreams and nightmares that spawned the Atomic Age in which we now live.

Except for the glimpses I caught of them when I balanced on my tippy toes, I couldn't see Mogwai from where I stood in a dark corner near the back of the theatre but I could definitely hear them. For as loud and engulfing as they, it was easy to forget that Mogwai was there, performing the soundtrack live as the documentary played. The experimentality of both works of art  highlighted each other: if one had been more conformed the effect wouldn't have been as great. It would have been a totally different and probably not as an impactful experience if Mogwai wasn't there.

Intrusive vibrations from heavy bass hooks penetrated deep to the pit of your gut as you stood and watched with growing uncomfortability. Building angst with the continuous bombardment  of images was magnified by the booming soundtrack. You couldn't escape the feeling, even if you looked away from the screen in attempt to rest your senses and calm your nerves, the music relentlessly consumed you. And, that was the point, right? It's so easy to forget, if you  know for that matter, that there's an abundance of 15,700 nuclear war heads in the world which 1 trillion dollars will be spent on over the next decade. These are numbers that that should be known and not ignored and when you experience ATOMIC live, they can't be ignored.

This was very different than the last time I saw Mogwai at The Regency Ballroom in 2014 and not like any show I've seen. It was intense and loud, it stimulated senses as well as emotions and it was executed thoughtfully well.
It was chillingly appropriate to see this combo on the eve of Trump's presidential inauguration: I left  with an uneasy feeling yet I am thankful that I am aware of the ATOMIC world heading into the next four years. 

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