That Also Was The Show That Was: Meneguar | Oxfam Cafe

Meneguar's planned 2007 releases are going to be barnburners, if the Brooklyn quartet's unstoppable set Saturday night is any indication. Top-lining a bill that included progressive beard-core foursome They And Their Children and screamo crowd-pleasers Ampere, Meneguar reinforced with its performance our long-held belief that the band should be huge and should be playing to gigantic crowds. We felt lucky to be within jostling distance of bassist Justin Wertz and guitarist Jarvis Taveniere, and expect it will become an increasingly rare opportunity. There is little math or sleight-of-hand to Meneguar's music -- just clever and powerfully delivered indie rock that concocts a winning formula by blending the earnestness of hardcore with the artful noise of storied acts including Archers Of Loaf.

Meneguar opened the show with a dynamic and seemingly unscripted jam (during which the band's furry-faced lead guitarist broke and replaced a string on the fly) and then dove right in with two tracks that were new to us. There followed a rollicking take on "A Few Minutes An Hour" from the band's so-nice-it-was-released-twice short record I Was Born At Night. More new material comprised the bulk of the rest of the set, although the single "Buried A Flower" -- and we think its b-side -- was given an energetic workout and the band closed strong with an electrifying version of "House Of Cats." The tune was delivered extra jagged as Mr. Taveniere broke a string during the penultimate song and was forced to improvise an approximate tuning solution with his remaining strings.

So what else did we learn? Well, Meneguar isn't a tall bunch, as it appeared we were taller than the four members. Also, if you look closely at our pictures of bassist Justin Wertz you will note -- as we did, since he and Taveniere had their backs to us 90% of the night -- that he rocks size 29 jeans. These inane sentences are basically a set-up for us to point to a Flickr slide show of our pics from the gig -- here it is. Meneguar, as we've previously reported, will issue a full-length titled Strangers In Our House and two one-sided vinyl releases later this year. The punktet plans a European and UK tour for the fall, and we are hoping they will also find time to make it back to Boston.

Meneguar -- "House Of Cats" -- I Was Born At Night
Meneguar -- "The Temp" -- I Was Born At Night
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[Buy I Was Born At Night and "Bury A Flower" single from Troubleman here]

Meneguar: InterWeb | MySpace | YouTube | GoogleVideo | Flickr

Related Coverage:

Review: Meneguar | I Was Born At Night (Reissue/Remaster)
Show Us Yours #7: Meneguar
YouTube Rodeo: Meneguar Unleashes "1,000 Actors"