The husband-and-wife indie-pop duo Mates of State might have been the most innovative group to play Sunday’s sold-out Fillmore show, but they landed the least amount of attention.
This squeaky-clean, all-ages crowd came to see emo emissaries Jimmy Eat World and Taking Back Sunday. So when Mates of State unleashed their buoyant, organ-drum electronica so early in the evening that half the show’s ticket-holders were still at home finishing Sunday dinner, those on hand for the set countered with polite yet subdued applause. It was one sign this San Francisco band might go over better in smaller rock clubs than large venues.
The band’s “Chopsticks”-sounding disco is reminiscent of Devo, Yaz or Stereolab filtered through an Atari video game or a 1970s-era PBS kids’ show.
Kori Gardner attacks her keyboards like a punk chick power-chording her guitar. And even though her singing duets with drummer-hubby Jason Hammel are less appealing than the tracks featuring Gardner’s Tinkerbell vocals alone, the band’s swirling electro-pop was still catchier to the casual listener than either of the better-known bands on this tour.
But the crowd was more fascinated than seduced. High-pitched squeals really kicked in when the suburban New York group Taking Back Sunday emerged from a dark stage amid a bombastic, Hollywood-style symphonic introduction. It mattered little that these hardcore emo-rockers construct a simplistic sound that some consider a watered-down Linkin Park or a less comedic Sum 41. Songs such as “You’re So Last Summer” and “Great Romances of the 20th Century” still prompted fans to snap cellphone photos and belt out lyrics along with the band.
The house was packed and revved by the time rock ‘n’ roll nice guy Jim Adkins stormed a stage flushed with blue light just after 9 p.m. His band’s expertly layered rhythms and heady melodies – punctuated by tracks from the recent release “Futures” – were welcome listening after Taking Back Sunday’s redundancy.
After a decade in music, Jimmy Eat World presents the most authentic songwriting on the emo-rock scene. It was a bonus that the band has cultivated a live presence that overpowers the familiarity of its pop-rock CDs.
Staff writer Elana Ashanti Jefferson can be reached at 303-820-1957 or ejefferson@denverpost.com.
