all words and photos: Martin Locraft

If it weren’t for the 14th Street traffic, I would’ve sworn I was in the middle of a Tennessee field, waiting in line to get into Centeroo. Dreadlocked hippies left and right, the young-and-in-love, haven’t-shaved-their-pits-in-a-few-months crowd was ready for a steady dose of Montreal’s finest obscurely-lyricised pseudo jam band.

OK, so I didn’t know anything about Thee Silver Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra and Tra-la-la Band – known from here on out as TSMZMOTLLB – until I received an e-mail about their show a few weeks ago. I actually don’t know much more about them now, to be honest, but without any plans to kick-off the holiday weekend, I decided to give them a shot.

Was it worth it? You be the judge.

Standing in the aforementioned line – which was moving slower than a geriatric with a tennis-balled walker – I was subjected to an impromptu beat-boxing session. I use the term “subjected” because the foursome in front of me was certainly no Rahzel (in fact, they weren’t even a poor-man’s Blake Lewis). If I wasn’t such a decent person, I would’ve considered pressing charges, as I’m pretty sure they defamed at least some part of my character during their 5-minute rendition of “24-hour Laundromat.”

After dabbing the blood from my ears, I finally made it through the doors with enough time to enjoy a couple of Sierra Nevadas at the Red Room bar. At approximately 10 PM, after what seemed like an eternity, the doors to the main stage opened and made way for the herd of concert-goers ready to get down and funky. Unfortunately, their enthusiasm would have to wait, as they would first sit through a painfully-boring Vic Chestnutt set.

(Alright, so I didn’t know anything about Vic Chestnutt, either. I’ve heard he’s been around for quite a while and has graced the stage with some serious legends, but his tunes just weren’t for me. If there was an energy meter at the Black Cat, there’s a good chance it would’ve been somewhere in the negatives between 10:15 and 11 PM).

I couldn’t tell if the ruckus applause at the end of Chestnutt’s set was genuine or one of “phew, thank God he’s done,” but nevertheless, it was time to move on. TSMZMOTLLB was about to hit the stage, and people were pumped… and I have to admit, they had pretty good reason to be.

In case you weren’t keeping track at home, this was TSMZMOTLLB’s 167th live show. I know this because they told me. After doing some You-Tubeing, I’ve noticed that they open every show by saying “Hi, we’re TSMZMOTLLB, and this is our XXth show… we hope you enjoy it” or something to that effect. Pretty nice way to welcome us into their world, I must say.

The first song on their setlist, entitled “I Built Myself a Metal Bird, I Fed My Metal Bird With Wings of Other Metal Birds” – their song names are unbelievably long, too! – began in good enough fashion. When frontman Efrim Menuck began singing, however, I’ll be the first to admit that I was a little turned off.

Borderline spoken-word, the opening lines of the song were “I built myself a metal bird / I fed my metal bird with wings of other metal birds.”

Clever, eh?

Fortunately, the show would get much better lyrically (and musically). A 7-piece band including two violinists, a cellist, two guitars, a stand-up bass and a drum kit, TSMZMOTLLB can certainly rock. Sprinkled throughout the night were not-too-long jams that would make even the stiffest cat tap his feet, and while not knowing a band’s catalogue can sometimes detract from their live show, it did not in this particular case.

This was no sing-along, as TSMZMOTLLB is evidently a more instrumentally-leaning outfit. When they did incorporate vocals, however – which isn’t as rare as I may be leading you to believe – it was not uncommon to hear a very impressive 4- or 5-part harmony. Throw in some back-and-forth chatter between songs – including (but not limited to) a “fuck you, asshole” to a local writer who slammed their music, a quick rant about healthcare in Canada vs. the States and a funny little number about spelling – and Friday night’s show was quite entertaining.

And while seeing a bunch of Canadians play music during Memorial Day Weekend wasn’t exactly the most patriotic gesture, being exposed to their eclectic style and passionate performance was most definitely good for the soul.

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