mr. Gnome, Interviewed & Playing Tonight (+ Other Folks, Too)

I’ve raved before in this here thing about Cleveland’s mr. Gnome and their idiosyncratic, hypnotically awesome amalgam of noisy rawk, metal sludge, ethereal vocals, and trip-hop groove, but dammit, I’m going to do it again right here, at least briefly. The band’s playing tonight (Thursday, April 8th) up at Rudyard’s, and trust me when I say that it will be fucking amazing.

I caught them at Rudz their first(?) time through town, back in the spring of 2008, and it was honestly one of the best performances I’ve seen. The amount of energy the duo throws off on the stage is ridiculous; drummer Sam Meister‘s arms move so fast you’d swear he had six, all the while hitting so hard you can feel the thwack in your skull, and Nicole Barrile gets her deceptively pixie-sized self (honest, the guitar’s nearly as big as she is) up on a little stepladder so she can more effectively pummel you with loud-ass metal chords and then croon you sweetly into a narcotic daze. It’s really, really, really great.

I missed their last show in town, sadly, but I’m hoping they’d gained a bigger crowd for that one than the first — they’ve played Rudz every time they’ve been here, so hopefully that’s a good sign. Seriously, this needs to be a packed show; this is one of those bands I will force on people I hardly know, so long as they’re at least a bit open-minded when it comes to their rock. I tried to take some photos when I saw ’em last, although my then-crap-ass HP camera made things way blurrier than I’d have liked; the set’s over on Flickr, should you feel like seeing it.

This time I was actually able to chat a little with Barrile, a neat little conversation that I wish could’ve been longer (this is what I get for delaying shit like this ’til the last minute) but was cool nonetheless. Check it out on over here, then make your way up to Montrose tonight for the show. (The interview includes a couple of free-free-free MP3s, btw, for “Slow Sides” & “Vampires,” both off recent full-length Heave Yer Skeleton, which I reviewed back in December on over here.)

FYI, the original lineup I saw had Fired For Walking opening, as they’ve done the past two times mr. Gnome’s been here, but now they’re off the Rudz schedule and don’t list it on their own Myspace, which leads me to believe they’re probably not playing tonight. It may well be an all-mr. Gnome evening…

Alternative Time:
I feel almost sacrilegious even suggesting another show to go see this evening, but damn, I have to. I feel compelled, as a giver of music-related information. So, if you’re not going to be up at Rudz tonight (and you really should; I may be attempting to escape the house for this, and if I can, you can), here’s other neat-sounding stuff you might check out:

Ani DiFranco/Buddy Wakefield @ Warehouse Live
Hello Shark/Attic Abasement/The Former Machine (mem. of The Western Civilization) @ Super Happy Fun Land
Soso Design/Ani DiFranco Pre-Party & Poster Art Show, featuring GRRRL Parts @ Warehouse Live (6-9PM)
It’s a Block Party on Sterrett Street, featuring Young $quaddy & DJ Good Grief @ 1305 Sterrett St. (free!)
Haters Make Us Famous, featuring GRRRL Parts, Damon Allen, & Angie @ Boondocks