The Contortionist, Intervals

Nov 13 @ 1720

After trading my extra ticket for two well whiskeys, I got into the venue in time to hear Intervals blow their load with the catchy “Sure Shot” halfway through the set. Unrelated, but it is with great sadness that I must report that 1720’s well whiskey has changed from Old Forester to Old Overholt.

They continued on into “Belvedere” which sounded like an early 2000s pop song. I was waiting for Ja Rule to come out and yell "BABY GIRL PUT IT ON ME" at Ashanti.

Between songs, the bassist noodled around with the “Seinfeld” theme.

"That’s not the first time we did that bit," frontman Aaron Marshall noted.

“Leave No Stone” feels like you're fighting Donnie Trump in a mech suit, but you're very confident and once you defeat him, the ozone layer will be restored.

The metal “Alchemy” was cut short due to technical difficulties with their laptop. The band jammed on a “Seinfeld”-esque theme while Marshall checked on the computer. They managed to come back for more metal with “Mata Hari,” but were unable to play last song. Marshall thanked the audience for coming and said he was just happy to be out of the basement.

I did love that there were only two bands playing that night. Most shows are exhausting after three. This was an adult rock show.

The Contortionist's stage lights went on and Whitney Houston’s “I Will Always Love You” blasted because metal bands love to be ironic. Blending in with the Whitney track, the band opened with “Language I.”

Vocalist Mike Lessard proved his worth by singing different octaves than what’s on the records, floating through the notes like a fallen angel, ready for redemption. He has the presence of a humble Ghost of Christmas Past. Getting a steady clap going for the bridge of “Reimagined,” Lessard lead us into a capella, finishing the song.

Nailing all the higher notes when he pleases, “Clairvoyant” soars not only vocally, but it’s nice to hear the venue sound guy did his job getting a good mix on instrumentation, all without being unnecessarily loud.

During “Language II” I cannot understand how Lessard has managed to have an even better scream, while still jumping back to sultry singing.

After a 15 minute intermission, their second set was softer tunes with some VH1’s Storytellers introductions. Some of these songs take on a different life stripped down. Like you pickled them. Lessard sang like a ghost haunting a house where his wife left him.

Halfway through this second set, Lessard announced they’d be playing a cover. The unique requests began. “FREE BIR–!”

“It’s not ‘Free Bird,’ I apologize. No– not ‘Tom Sawyer.’ Those are all very close guesses. Everyone around should be very impressed with your guess."

It might be odd that this band would play anything in pop music’s 4/4 but then Lessard sang a sensuous, nostalgic “1979” by the Smashing Pumpkins.

Gracefully closing out the night with “Monochrome II: Pensive,” Lessard crooned "I wish you the best, babe" before the song climaxed inside each and every one of us, without a condom, like we wanted.

I waited in line for $45 sweatpants with The Contortionist logo on them because they know their audience.