It would appear that His Name Is Alive were a late addition to the bill of this evening at The Forum. The band, previously scheduled to play the next day, only got to play for 20 minutes. Even with such a short set, they certainly wiped the floor with their support acts.
Those support acts were three local bands. The first two played an extremely heavy brand of rock, though the first had a slight Foo Fighters tinge when they calmed down. The third one played a heavier form of britpop than the norm. None of these bands would have been terribly noticeable if the volume hadn't made them impossible to ignore.
By contrast, His Name Is Alive peddled their brand of art-pop in a much more interesting way. They played a few songs from their latest album Fort Lake, slightly reinterpreting them for the live setting. Lead vocalist role was slightly reduced, and I wondered if she were having some throat problems. When she did pipe up her distinctive vocals were as piercing as ever. Bass player Chad Gilchrist took some of Oliver's vocal parts and his distinctive, if rather strained voice suited them well. The percussion consisted of bongos, played by second female vocalist Lovetta Pippen, drums, and various other instruments--nothing too unusual, but a nice understated addition. The keyboard ensured a strong dose of melody, and Warren Defever's guitar mixed the odd Hendrix riff with some artsy twists. The melodies were definitely the defining aspect for the band, and were what made them stand out on the evening--there was nothing too obvious, but neither were they too intricate to be catchy.
The sound was fairly tight, but the band seemed distracted and only had around ten listeners for their twenty minute set. The between song comments from Warren Defever, while limited, were amusing, and the balance of instruments was, at its high points, hypnotic. An interesting evening, and a band whose performance suggested that a more conducive environment could produce a wonderful show. Unfortunately this environment was less than conducive.
By James Stewart
