All photos by Omar Kasrawi
It was the New York homecoming nearly nine years in the making as a sold out crowd at the Mercury Lounge welcomed back Longwave, nearly nine years after their last show.
You could feel the excitement electrifying a room full of loved ones and fans bristle in anticipation. Everyone was seemingly ready to sing along with Steve Schiltz and do their best air guitar to Shannon Ferguson’s licks (Full disclosure: I totally count myself amongst those crowd members.)
But, after such a lengthy time off, one does not simply jump straight to the headliner. You need to let that anxiousness build to a fever pitch, which is just what openers Tiger Mountain and Heaven were ready to do. First up was the electronic collective known as Tiger Mountain. This is the latest project from Boris Skalsky and Paul Wood. Fittingly enough, Skalsky’s music first introduced me to Longwave years ago when he was creating some of the moodiest and most poetic indie rock riffs in his old outfit Phaser (Just go listen to “Sweet Marie” and try not to sway and weep).
If memory serves correctly it was when my friend Eric Benjamin (Playing guitar in Anne Summers back my old D.C. days) dragged me to a gig they were supporting Phaser at. And it was at that show that I was told to go check out Longwave’s debut Endsongs. I should probably also say thank you to Skalsky because it was when I checked out his later outfit Dead Heart Bloom at Mercury Lounge a few years back that I first saw Black Pistol Fire, and anyone who knows me, knows how much I’ll barrack for them as the greatest rock duo out there today.
But enough of the past, for now, as Tiger Mountain brought the full force of their nerve-wracking and pulsating beats – the kind that would fit in a modern art museum’s latest multimedia installation or as part of the theme songs to early 80’s Michael Mann movies. The soundscapes were lush and impressive, managing to do what seems absent from so many electro acts these days – evoke an emotional response from the crowd.
After that, it was time to switch gears to the Brooklyn-based psych-rock sounds of Heaven. Heaven’s sound had an up-tempo vibe that fueled by lead singer and guitarist Matt Sumrow. All the while the band toed the line between pop-fueled rhythms and ethereal, almost shoe-gazy, vocals.
And then it was time. And Schiltz and company wasted none of it getting straight into the classic indie-rock songs that could only be described as Longwave-esque. The kicked off their first night back with that oh so familiar guitar screech from “Wake Me When It’s Over” and as soon as the bass and drums kicked in, everything seemed to feel right.
The band last played together back at the Bowery Ballroom on November 14, 2009 and you could feel a sense of comfort and joy wash over the crowd the moment they started playing. It was almost as if a collective, “Is this really happening?” was being experienced by everyone in attendance. The night was full of those major movie moment soundtrack songs that define Longwave. Whether it was the late night driving track “No Direction” (the kind that you put on when you’re a deserted highway at night looking to see how far you can push your car’s pistons) or the emotional rollercoaster that is “Tidal Wave”, it all made for one danceable rock-filled night.
This incarnation of Longwave features Schiltz and original guitarist Shannon Ferguson along with drummer Jason Molina (who joined Longwave after the release of their third album) and newcomer bassist Christian Bongers. And listening to them play you’d never have guessed it was nine years since their last show. You could see and feel the excitement across Schiltz’s face. He may have joked with the audience about how you tune a guitar after so long but he told me that stepping into the Mercury Lounge that night was as intimidating as I thought it would be.
“I didn’t really feel anything. I thought, right, here we are again. I guess my amp will go here,” Schiltz said over email. “Yeah, I did feel a bit nervous before we played. That was unexpected. It wasn’t until I went out into the room while Heaven, our friends who played before us, were playing, and the room was packed, that I thought….Oh, this is going to be fun.”
The band, hard at work at new album (that Schiltz says is nearly done), reformed after he and Ferguson decided it give it another go nearly a year and a half ago. “Really, it just felt like, right. These are my old friends, and we get to play music together again.”
And the result was just what the crowd wanted. There could be worries after seeing an old friend after so long. Will you still connect? What will you talk about it? Well, with a blistering 14-song set that night, all those doubts were erased as that old friend sounded just as good as where they’d last left off with their fans.
And Schiltz agreed, “I was surprised how physical the show was, for me. Not that there were any big gymnastics or anything…But, it was very satisfying to hit the big guitar dynamics, loud and soft. And I didn’t realize how much I’d missed singing.”
Find a full photo gallery posted below, along with the setlist.
Tiger Mountain:
Heaven:
Longwave:
Longwave setlist:
1. Wake Me When It’s Over
2. No Direction
3. Satellites
4. One By One
5. Sirens in the Deep Sea
6. DJR
7. Transmisser
8. Stay With Me
9. The Devil and the Liar
10. Day Sleeper
11. Tidal Wave
12. River (Depot Song)
13. Life of the Party
14. Life Is Wrong
Join the conversation