The Secret Machines 11/01/2005

Did you hear? The multi-tiered dance-o-rama of Webster Hall in New York City was briefly turned into a spaceship last Thursday as the hometown (via Dallas) Secret Machine’s achieved liftoff. One of the most exciting bands to come along in the last 5 years with their fusion of sound and showmanship they seem primed to hit another level when their next album drops (supposedly in March of 2006 and currently titled Ten Silver Drops).

Playing a stand alone club date, a benefit for the Red Cross, the Machines aired some new material and a few old favorites to a receptive, if tame, crowd. The Secret Machines have been steadily gaining respect with their form of vibrant musicianship and mind blowing live shows. While a majority of today’s rockers are shoe gazers with no frill setup’s, the Machines (Brandon Curtis on keyboard, bass and vocals, brother Ben Curtis on guitar, and Josh Garza drums) use fog, high tech lighting, and fiery playing to ignite their gigs. When the house lights dimmed the red and blue stage lights shined alive and a techno prerecorded beat floated out as the boys took their places and strapped in.

For those unfamiliar with their sound, The Machines are the communion of Animals era Pink Floyd and "Levee Breaking" Led Zeppelin spit-shined to a metallic sheen for the new millennium. The drumming of Garza is primal; his kick drum rattles the teeth of babies who haven’t even been conceived yet. The big sound would fill up MSG, and seemed to shake the gold off the walls of Webster Hall. Most songs on the night segued into each other via the skin pounding or Ben Curtis’s acid washed six-string drone. Ben does not play many leads or searing solo’s but rather melds the sound sprinkling in effects and doses of wah wah.

The band relied heavily on newer material from their latest EP, and soon to be released LP, playing only four songs off their acclaimed album, Now Here is Nowhere. Some of the newer tunes received warm ovations, but the crowd was much more reserved on newer tracks like "Better Bring Your Friends" then on older tunes like The Road Leads Where It’s Led. Highlighting the night was the particularly exhilarating set closing pairing of "You are Chains>Nowhere Again" which eased into the club and then exploded into the night.

The encore brought out the Dylan/Cash cover of "Girl from the North Country," which works better in theory then in actual practice. "First Wave Intact" then blasted the spaceship SM into the heavens and never looked backed as Brandon Curtis switched from bass to keyboard and back again throughout the tune. The brilliance of their sound tonight was obvious from the get go and "First Wave Intact" sealed the deal.

The only thing holding the band back is the lack of a dense back catalog of music yet the new songs played tonight seem to be leading them down that path. It will be interesting to hear the new album and how they evolve, but as of now the Secret Machines live show is soaring, hop aboard the mothership when it enters your universe.