Being the first of three bands at First Ave. is not an enviable job (in this case, opening for Magnetic Fields and Yo La Tengo). These acts are usually reduced to playing short and uninspired sets in front of an even less enthusiastic audience. It was therefore a nice surprise to see that Mollycuddle drew the biggest and most enthusiastic first-band crowd I have ever seen!! And, Mollycuddle stood & delivered, with a very good set.

It can't possibly have been only a bigger venue and better sound, it seems that this is a band that performs better under pressure. Don't get me wrong, I've always liked them (cf. reviews below), but this was definitely a NEW & IMPROVED Mollycuddle. Tighter arrangements, more drive, just a great performance.

Also, they had included a lot of newly revived material, wonderful symphonies of noise that they haven't played before when I've seen them. I noticed especially "Special K", "Again", and, after my all time Mollycuddle favorite "Exit 152" they closed the gig with "Pink".

By the way, thanks for the comps, Tommy! Good work!

May 15, 1997:

This was a CD Release Party, celebrating the six-track EP Non-Fiction. Of course, I had already bought it and found, with pleasure, that they had retained their charmingly noisy sound in the recording. Though the sound quality, of course, is greatly improved.

The web-promotion of Mollycuddle by the label, by the way, shows the influence that Tore's Official Concert Guide is starting to yield. Just look at the excerpt below, then read my review of the last cuddle-concert I went to. Are the similarities a coincidence? I think not.

"Anchored by a strong, percussive rhythm section Mollycuddle's most distinct character would have to be the boy/girl vocal interchange which brings together Tommy's manic screaming with Sara's effervescent voice." (GRP New Releases)

City Pages, although not exactly known for good music journalism (I'm still upset that they would characterize the Morcheeba gig as "a snooze". They must have been at the wrong show) had this note on the upcoming show:

"Guilt-Ridden Pop, a province of the TRG record empire, is one of the more aptly named labels out there, specializing in moping, hoping, angst-relieving guitar pop best heard inside a locked bedroom. This week GRP celebrates two new releases: Recently Okay, the second disc by St.Paul soundscapers Dwindle, and Non-Fiction, the debut EP by Mollycuddle. Both bands play a double release party Thursday at the 400 Bar. Command Module opens..."

All this, of course, is just to conceal the fact that I don't have much to say about the show. After suffering through the opener, which was, without a trace of competition, the single most boring instrumental band I've ever heard in my life, it was Mollytime once again. In addition to my old favorites (see below), they played some new material that was in the same, good vein of unceremonious noise-pop. My apologies to Scott (and to Guy too, I guess), but I didn't see much of a difference from the last show.

In other words, I think it would be pretentious of me to try to expand upon my review from last time. We came, drank, had fun, and left. What more can you want?

Oh, and we missed Dwindle again (much to Tommy's chagrin). We'll catch them next time, OK?

February 27, 1997:

It is always nice to go and see friends play, so a we got together a little group of English graduate students to go and see "Tommy's band", Mollycuddle.

Of course, one of the less nice things that might happen is that you hate the show and have to either lie or jeopardize your friendship afterwards.. Fortunately, that would not be necessary in this case. The first song, "Fail", reminded me of my favorite Norwegian band, Motorpsycho. Which is funny, because I borrowed Blissard to Tommy once, and he wasn't all that enthusiastic. Nevertheless, they did sound like them now and then. The second number they played, for example, had a melodyline eerily like "Plan # 1".

As the concert progressed, it became clear that there is a distinct Mollysound at work here. Like Motorpsycho, they often create a massive symphony of noise that is chillingly punctuated by irresistible pop hooks. But Mollycuddle emphasize more of a dynamic between the bare and melodic, and the fuzzy and chaotic, a rollercoaster of indie rock accentuated by the contrast between the clear, warm voice of Sara and the more raw and powerful voice of Tommy.

Which reminds me, it was fascinating to see how each of the band members behaved in a manner parallel to their role in the music: The rhythm section was solid as a rock, the drummer and bass player moving only minimally. Tommy was jumping all over the stage, really getting into it and screaming into the mike. Sara was calm, almost serene, as if floating with her voice atop the music rather than being a part of it.

My favorite songs this night were, apart from "Fail", "In View" and "Exit 152". All in all a very charming acquaintance, with informal banter with the audience between songs. I won't repeat a certain radio station's mistake and call them cute, but... how about cuddly?

Strangely enough, considering my associations above, Tommy said to me after the show that I would probably like the next act, Dwindle (Soma had also played, but we were too late to catch them), since I like Motorpsycho. True, they did remind me of some of the lighter stuff on Timothy's Monster and Blissard. But, where Motorpsycho is charmingly chaotic, boisterous and experimental, Dwindle was polished, mellow and melodic. Which is fine. The reason we left after a couple of songs had nothing to do with the band, we just wanted to shoot some pool.

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This page originally designed by: Tore Hogas, March 1997, at the University of Minnesota