"Drums drums drums drums drums," shouted Emily Kokal, over the din of an impromptu drum battle that was ringing out between bassist Jenny Lee Lindberg and drummer Stella Mozgawa. It was the end of a ten minute jam of the song "Elephants," and the close of Warpaint's stellar set at Emo's on Wednesday night, the second set of theirs I had seen. "We have such a strong rhythm section," Kokal confided to me after the show, "that sometimes it's tough to get any attention." She wasn't complaining, though - that stellar rhythm section had eyes trained on Warpaint all week in Austin. The third time I saw them play - opening up Pitchfork's daytime showcase on Friday - they packed Emo's inside to capacity by noon, a practically unheard of feat.
Both sets at Emo's were riveting, slight tweaks giving them each their own flavor. On Wednesday night, Lindberg and Mozgawa wore matching red onesies, taking on the roles of playful Thing One and Thing Two as guitarists Kokal and Theresa Wayman did the grown-up work. They got up to mischief, finishing the set each holding a drum stick and smashing down upon cymbals to conclude half an hour of powerful music. On Friday, Kokal was in the driver's seat, hair mussed and voice groggy. Warpaint woke up along with the crowd, songs growing from dreamlike haze to wide awake rock over the span of the set. Both times, though, the girls looked comfortable and happy, and they delivered on their promise. This band is doing everything right, and they seem to know it.
