In just over a year, Cymbals Eat Guitars has transformed from a two-person studio project into a four-piece, high-energy rock machine. Thursday night, the group makes a stop at the Majestic Theatre, opening for Los Campesinos!
But isn't your ordinary, underwhelming opening band, though. According to bassist Matt Whipple, it might be wise to bring a pair of ear plugs along for their set.
""We try to play as loud as we can within the limits of sounding good in a room,"" Whipple said. This approach is on par with the audacious, aggressive sound of Why There Are Mountains, the group's debut album that came out last year. While they can't recreate the exact sound of the album—one that features layers of guitar overdub—onstage, Whipple says, ""we try just to replicate the big emotions as accurately as possible.""
The terms ""loud"" and ""emotional"" aren't often associated with technicality, but Whipple claims, ""We're crazy professional about our set and the way a show goes—we're never satisfied with a show.""
Their performances, Whipple added, have progressively improved during tours with Bear In Heaven and The Flaming Lips, two bands known for their high-energy displays of music and showmanship. The members of Cymbals Eat Guitars consider it ""character-building"" to play alongside such esteemed bands, saying that they feel obligated to keep ""playing up to a certain level by playing with bands who are so amazing live.""
Although the band is often compared to the likes of Built To Spill, Modest Mouse and what Whipple describes as ""'90s guitar-centric indie rock,"" they've rode the new wave of ""holy grail Internet buzz"" to get to where they are now.
Thanks to the high praise that Why There Are Mountains received across the blogosphere, Cymbals went from playing for 10 to 20 people in small clubs to the Pitchfork Festival to opening for The Flaming Lips. And while Whipple admits that the buzz Why There Are Mountains generated hasn't brought massive commercial success, it, as he explained, ""changed our lives in that we get to play sold out shows.""
Interestingly enough, Cymbals Eat Guitars wasn't even a fully functioning band until well after the creation of Why There Are Mountains. According to Whipple, the album was a studio project for guitarist/vocalist Joe D'Agostino, who wrote all the songs on the album, and drummer Matthew Miller. All the other musicians used for the creation of the album were found on Craigslist.
With the additions of Whipple on bass and Brian Hamilton on keyboards, Cymbals Eat Guitars has improved on their first album's sound and developed a generous amount of new material that they're road testing, planning to use some of it for their next album. Concert attendees can still expect to hear a solid amount of material from Why There Are Mountains, but also get a preview of what's to come from the Staten Island group.
Most concertgoers wouldn't blink an eye at the opening band of a Thursday night Majestic show, but with a remarkable debut album, a newly invigorated lineup, and a tour schedule that includes two summer festivals, Sasquatch! and Lollapalooza, Cymbals Eat Guitars are much more than your average opener, making them just as worth paying attnetion to as the headliner.
Cymbals Eat Guitars will be opening for Los Campesinos! at the Majestic Theatre tonight at 9 p.m. Tickets cost $16 and are still available.
