Young Widows are a three piece, post-hardcore band from Louisville, Kentucky. The band has been around since 2002, though their beginning was as another Louisville band, the metalcore gods Breather Resist. B.R. called it quits in 2005, and three of the four members stayed on to form Young Widows (not without first considering “Breather Resist” but as a three piece. Vocalist Steven Sindoni formed Pusher and is currently strung out, assumed dead.) Young Widows performed at the Bluebird in downtown St. Louis around the City Museum, many bars and clubs, and the Gateway to the West: the Arch.

The Bluebird is a dive. A small, hole-in-the-wall type of club that you wouldn’t notice just driving by. But that’s how most places are in downtown St. Louis unless they’re filled with trip-hop beats and flashing red and blue lights (like Rue 13 or Lush, for example.) But, like most other cities downtown on a weeknight you’d barely see any activity whatsoever especially at the clubs (and definitely early in the evening, like eight pm) except (maybe) at a random, hole-in-the-wall, rock club like the Bluebird. Unfortunately for myself, Young Widows and St. Louis in general, downtown activity is sparse at best, and completely abysmal at worst. This applies most tragically to out-of-town, independent-label, “never-heard-of-them-before” rock shows. In a city where Pink Floyd and Led Zeppelin cover bands can sell out multiple evenings at 1000+ capacity venues, and promoters don’t put on shows for local bands because they don’t break even; basically independent music doesn’t stand a chance. But tonight, everyone who wasn’t in downtown St. Louis at the Bluebird missed out because Young Widows were fucking awesome.

When I arrived at the Bluebird I did what all gear-o-philes and music/musician-snobs do: I judged the band based on their gear. Young Widows gear was back-lined, but not very well hidden by the opening act’s. Based on my first impression their gear appeared

#1) really freaking awesome in quality and
#2) really freaking cool how they set it up.

I knew the brands, and their gear was quality but not too terribly interesting. So you both have three cabs and two amps, big deal. Most three-piece acts have a difficult time balancing practicality with ingenuity while being visually exciting during performance. To battle the 2nd problem, most hardcore acts employ a single, instrumentless front man (which YW had while they were still christened Breather Resist). This is usually needed to keep the kids interested, but I am not a kid and I don’t need a overly enthusiastic figurehead in woman’s jeans up front flailing around or a muscle-head with a “Terror” shirt on or–better yet–no shirt preaching a/no message of no smoking, no drinking, no God or, you know, politics. I’m generally open minded, and bands can be passionate about their beliefs, but don’t shove it down my throat dude. Seriously, don’t tell me to be open-minded about why I shouldn’t be a Christian (or Muslim, or Buddhist or even atheist for that matter…), eat meat, buy Diesal shoes or what have you. So you don’t like what I do. Good for you, dude. Now play your next song. Fortunately (and despite actually having some cred that if they wanted to preach they could and I would listen) Young Widows weren’t confrontational, verbally abusive, or preachy at all, and are exciting enough as a three-piece that they don’t need an over-the-top frontman either.

Besides being a three-piece, Young Widows had another difficulty to overcome: they have just one guitar. Granted, some of the best hardcore bands have had only one guitar: Converge, Curl Up and Die, Botch, as well as most of the patriarchs including Bad Brains, Black Flag and Minor Threat. Usually these one guitar bands run into the problem of sounding “thin” or off balance and have to find a way to beef up their sound since they don’t have two chunky rhythm players projecting abrasive guitar noise from both sides of the stage. In order to sound fuller, the Widows had two sets of three 4 by 12 cabinets (custom Emperor Cabinets at that) on each sides of the stage. These were not your standard, square four twelve inch speaker cabinets set two by two. These cabs were tall and skinny, with the speakers forming a straight line, one a top the other. These cabs were interesting looking but I didn’t know the full extent of their interestingness until they started playing.

Before Young Widows set began, they requested the lights in the club be turned off. I saw they had a few desk lamps attached to their mic stands, and a white, glowing, UFO-looking foot pedal that I assumed was to turn on more lights. Towards the middle of “Took A Turn,” the first song of the set and also the first song of their new record Old Wounds my suspicions were confirmed when bassist, Nick Thieneman, stomped the pedal and the 4×12′s on the far left and far right of the stage lit up with four 12 inch speaker-sized work lamp lights in each. This is an idea my old band came up with but never properly implemented and it’s a very creative way to light your performance. (Here’s a decent pic of their set-up.)

When I played in Pilots, both my bass player and I stacked four amps on stage anytime we played. I had two on my side, and he had two on his side. The Widows did this as well, but instead of having both on either side, they split them up, both players having one on each side. This also accomplishes two seemingly contradictory things: it blurs the stereo image (by having bass and guitar on both the left and right) as well as creates many new stereo opportunities (which the Widows took advantage of.) Evan Patterson (guitar, vocals) ran a Peavey 5150 and a Verellen custom amp and each amp had its own pedalboard featuring Akai Headrush loop pedals on each. Sometimes Patterson would loop a riff on one side, then loops some fret and pick noise on the other, then play a lead over top of that while singing. He also employed (I believe) a Line 6 Tremolo pedal which has two outputs for stereo, “ping-pong” tremolo sounds. Both Patterson and bassist Nick Thieneman also employed overdrive pedals and A-B boxes at end of their respective pedal trains so they could silence one cab or both cabs while playing. This was one of the more ingenious tricks because of how much more control they had over their dynamic level. This is a trick I will steal in the future.

Young Widows pounded through all eleven tracks of their new record Old Wounds. While I was hoping for a song or two from their first effort Settle Down City, I was very satisfied by the length of their performance (especially considering how terrible the first band, Glass Teeth, was. Upon further reflection, and after listening to their demo, I think I kind of liked their set actually.) Young Widows sound like a freight train: power, rolling thunder and velocity with a consistent groove. Theineman’s thick, fuzzy, moving bass lines like the chug of the train itself in perfect sync with drummer Jeremy McMonigle and his constant kick and tom hits like the wheels the train rolls you over with coupled with Patterson’s telecaster wails and sometimes bright and chimey leads, other times thick and chunky chords that controls the train and billows such colorful smoke you’re left dizzy from the CO². Conducting the train was Patterson and Theineman both with partially sung, mostly shouted directions. The set was a-coming-down-the-mountain ending with the dead-on triplets of “Swamped And Agitated” that are both groovy, and menacing.

Another stand out track both on their new record and their live performance is Patterson’s solo performance of “the Guitar.” A song that begins with a simple two chord groove and melody. Patterson slowly builds the song, layer by layer, by looping each part he adds, and playing lead while singing. The song slowly pulls you in with its methodical, repeating “do-DUN-dun, do-DUN-dun…” and lyrics “got addicted at an early age.” Patterson’s lyrics in “the Guitar” are about falling in love with music, and we’re left unsure whether or not he desires to love it so, or if it’s requited. He speaks of learning, or more accurately, not-learning, how to play the guitar as a metaphor for his creative process. The feeling of writing a song, of creating a piece of art, is addictive, but for most, Patterson included, the process cannot be “learned” much like when he “got a guitar, but never learned how to play;” the music just comes out.

While St. Louis is the city most bands love to skip, myself and the several others at the Bluebird on Tuesday were incredibly grateful Young Widows didn’t, and that their pummeling, groovy post hardcore compulsion was indulged.

Links:
Young Widows official site
Young Widows myspace
Young Widows blog
Young Widows photos on Flickr