The music of Mountain Man is likely performed best in fields, on back porches, in yards and on prairies and mountain tops– or in church basements. The beautiful and harmonic three-part harmonies of Molly, Amelia and Alex ring the most true unamplified and untouched by the tech that can harm them. At the Longbranch Inn Underwater Peoples SXSW show, the women in Mountain Man did what they had to do in the face of technical difficulties: turned the technics OFF.
At first when the microphones were feeding back and interrupting my enjoyment of “Animal Tracks” I didn’t know how Mountain Man was going to handle it. There was nervousness on their faces. Their eyes darted back and forth around the room, from the mics and to each other and at Ari and Sawyer in the front row. And then, the women said “fuck this” and pulled the mic stands to the back of the stage and announced triumphantly that they’d be singing un-amplified. The entire room heaved a collective sigh of relief. After just a few moments the bar was mostly quiet and the crowd was on the ground.
Only power and beauty can do that.
I hope these pictures have captured a bit of the magic from that room.
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March 26, 2010 at 6:29 pm
Selomé
I have a few of these myself, hands down my favorite moment of south by.
March 31, 2010 at 4:30 pm
dipped in dollars » SXSW Performance: Mountain Man @ The Longbranch Inn
[...] After another long day in Austin, I found myself at a Mountain Man performance somewhere near 1am during the Underwater Peoples and Gorilla vs. Bear showcase. Delirious and exhausted, I was holding out to hear these lovely ladies. Due to technical difficulties, the trio decided to cast their microphones aside, instead choosing to perform acoustically while seated on the stage. The entire audience followed suit, huddled close to one another attempting to grasp every note. It was one of the most intimate musical experiences I’ve had, especially when considering that this scene took place inside a crowded Austin bar. Longtime fans and new converts gathered together in silence, a truly magical collective experience. Microphone Memory Emotion said it better than I ever could have here. [...]
April 1, 2010 at 9:04 am
Vikrant Dev
I totally agree with your observation of their music being pure and untouched by unnatural elements!…their melodies are hypnotic like Julianna Barwick’s.
April 22, 2010 at 1:36 am
Music Download » Mountain Man gets labels, opening for the Middle East in NYC
[...] Mountain Man gets labels, opening for the Middle East in NYC April 19th, 2010 | Tags: At first when the microphones were feeding back and interrupting my enjoyment of “Animal Tracks” I didn’t know how Mountain Man was going to handle it. There was nervousness on their faces. Their eyes darted back and forth around the room, from the mics and to each other and at Ari and Sawyer in the front row. And then, the women said “fuck this” and pulled the mic stands to the back of the stage and announced triumphantly that they’d be singing un-amplified. The entire room heaved a collective sigh of relief. After just a few moments the bar was mostly quiet and the crowd was on the ground. [Memory Microphone Emotion] [...]
May 10, 2010 at 3:34 pm
Mountain Man Life « Microphone Memory Emotion
[...] life. From the first time I heard Animal Tracks, to CMJ, to their beautiful church performance, to SXSW, Mountain Man has been nothing but beauty, love and inspiration. (See [...]