Back in February, Kishi Bashi was set to play with a string quartet at Brooklyn Masonic Temple. There was a burst pipe that had other plans, but after an hour and change delay, the self titled “K and Friends” did take the stage, albeit highly inebriated. While it seemed both the band and everyone in the audience thoroughly enjoyed the performance, it was followed by a altruistic invitation to a free make-up show on May 17 at Le Poisson Rouge.
Fast forward: Le Poisson Rouge, May 17. Tall Tall Trees takes the stage first for a handful of songs, formulating wildly imaginative sounds from a banjo that would make Hendrix proud– there is a certain guitar centric tone that I’m still not sure how he achieves on the banjo. Prefacing his last song by taking out his phone to record audio bytes of the audience for his next album. It was equal parts wonderful and hysterical.
Kishi Bashi got up on stage shortly after, initially serenading us with a fantastic rendition of “Manchester”. The entirety of the show had an unusually lax atmosphere, as though K. felt obligated to make it up to the returning Brooklyn Masonic audience. And make it up to us he did. The energy was so high, that the few timing mishaps that occurred were immediately recovered upon and chuckled away.
Rather than a traditional encore, K. re-took the stage, and proceeded to give us a music lesson on how he creates his loops and swoops.
What he may not have realized, is that he simultaneously taught us how to dance the Ishibashi.
Check out the photos from the show above, and enjoy last year’s album Lighght until this phenomenal artist releases more of his sensational orc-pop (it’s orchestral pop music…not pop music for orcs).
Setlist: Manchester//Bittersweet Genesis//I Am The Antichrist//Atticus In The Desert//Carry On Phenomenon//Wonder Woman//Q&A//In Fantasia//Conversations//Evelyn//Bright Whites//Philosophize In It//Mr. Steak//Music Lesson & Solo Encore