Shallow Palace, NBT 1.15.09

click to view gallery

I've heard a lot of people complain that Columbia's music scene is only three genres: emo, hardcore, and indie rock. They wonder what happened to bands that just make good old-fashioned rock and roll. However, Shallow Palace makes at least one band that does fit this bill: guys playing songs that are as much about attitude and having fun as they are about pretentious lyrical odysseys or carefully-chosen costumes.

"It's hard not to get taken in with Spawn on the skins and the other guys tossing their retro-length hair along with the music.”

Shallow Palace enjoys another distinction among Columbia bands: these guys are one of the most democratic groups out there today. Greg Slattery is the group's frontman, if they have one, but he shared lead vocal duties with George Fish on at least one song. Microphones were placed across the stage so that all five guys could sing along with the group's rave-up anthems and participate in drunken banter with the crowd. The group subverts its individual talents to the vision of the song as a whole, which is often not the case with people as skilled as these guys are. Josh Bumgarner is a bonafide bad-ass on electric guitar, but he was content to trade licks with Fish (also a skilled lead player) on short solo sections.

Animal, 'The Muppet Show'

As well as this band plays as a whole, I gotta give you the dirt on the real force behind Shallow Palace: drummer Mike Spawn. Kid is a fucking animal! He looks like he's possessed by some kind of drum demon, and it's infectious. It's hard not to get taken in with Spawn on the skins and the other guys tossing their retro-length hair along with the music.

This show marked the band's first back in South Carolina after their recent mini-tour in New England. The band's gear was a little worse for the wear, as George struggled all night with hum and static from his amp. I know it was bugging him up there on stage, but honestly it almost fit with the music. They have three guitars, so often they are just taking a riff in layers and whipping your ass with it. The amp noise just added a little lo-fi dimension that fit with the garage rock sound.

Some of my favorites from this set: the opener, "Jesus Christ", is a straight ahead rock song that you will swear you've heard before. I was trying to figure out who they were covering, but David assured me that it was an original song. It's just one of those that's so catchy it seems like you've always known it. "Mad World" is a great song, but I was a bit confused by the treatment SP gave to it. I am most familiar with the R.E.M. version, which is melancholy and brooding, but these guys turned it into an uptempo, fan-favorite singalong. It must be the Shallow Palace spirit -- songs can't sit around and be sad when they meet these guys.

The band played their last song and went to switch off their amps, but the crowd was having none of it. They begged for an encore, which the band agreed to -- on one condition. Josh used the microphone to his advantage and bypassed the line at the bar, ordering shots for the band. After Josh downed his shot (and George's), the guys finished with "BBBSA", which featured a particularly strong vocal performance from Greg: lyrical, quiet, intense.

click to view gallery

Setlist:
Jesus Christ
Around the World
Morte De Mond
Understand
Mad World (Tears for Fears cover)
Turkey
Too Hot
AFUEGO
Charlie, No!
Y.T.1.2.B
BBBSA

For More Info, visit: myspace.com/shallowpalace