The word’s out on lo-fi indie rockers Throw Me the Statue. Opening a triple-billed Tuesday show at the Middle East Upstairs, fans quickly filled the small room to capacity, eager for the band to take the stage. This was unusual. Of the dozens of shows I’ve attended there, I’ve seen this happen only once, and that show was immeasurably more hyped than this one.
If there were those in the crowd who hadn’t heard of Throw Me the Statue, you wouldn’t know it. The packed crowd’s attention was focused solely on the stage throughout the performance. People were so pleased, that when singer and songwriter Scott Reitherman announced the final song, old and newly converted fans even danced (danced!) to “About to Walk.” The far more danceable crowd favorites previously played - “If This Is It” (Huey Lewis cover) and “Lolita” - incited only head nods and wide smiles.
It’s tough to pin down why Throw Me the Statue stands out amongst the many similar groups in today’s indie scene. Tell me if you’ve heard this one before. Young guy makes bedroom recordings of carefully mixed stripped down guitars, beat machine, keys and various blips and bleeps. Guy adds a somewhat monotone, disengaged vocal with pop sensibilities. I suspect that part of the appeal is their complete lack of pretensions (maybe that’s a Seattle thing?). No gimmicks here, just a band enjoying themselves on stage. Though Scott’s singing is certainly low-key, he performed passionately, trading between the guitar and the floor tom, and playing each with eager enthusiasm. The keyboardist, also contributing vocals, encouraged the crowd to clap, and we were more than happy to oblige.
When Jukebox the Ghost took the stage, the keyboardist said, “Throw Me the Statue was shockingly good.” Though that sounds patronizing, he was quite sincere, vocalizing exactly what the audience was thinking. Jukebox the Ghost quickly changed gears by performing a rollicking set of high-energy piano pop. And you know that melophobe really, really, really likes piano pop. They impressively sustained that energy, with two complementary singers trading vocals while pounding the keys and thrashing the guitar.
After such fun, energetic sets, my friends and I expected the headliner Say Hi to disappoint. Fortunately, Say Hi was more of a downer than a let down. Touring with Jukebox the Ghost, Say Hi played somber, mellow pieces rich with fuzzy guitars and muddled mixing. Good music for an introspective sit at the bar. Bad music to follow two enthusiastic, catchy pop performances.
