Ann Arbor’s Bad Indians and Chit Chat join Grand Rapids’ Haunted Leather and Heaters to deliver Michigan Psych Night’s debut on Saturday in an Eastown house concert. But just what is it all about?
‘Just Come and Have a Good Time’: Ann Arbor’s Bad Indians
By Mary Mattingly
LocalSpins.com
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What is psych music?
A throwback to the ’60s, with echo-drenched vocals and distorted guitars?
An umbrella term for psychedelic rock, encompassing everything that might once have been considered garage music?
The upcoming Michigan Psych Night in Grand Rapids may help attendees decide for themselves.
“Just like any trend, it’s really catchy,” said Lindsay Sanderson, concert organizer at Eastown’s House of Pancakes. “It’s fun music; the more exposure it gets in the basement scene, the more people will be like, ‘hey, that’s cool’ and listen to it more.”
The House of Pancakes will host the first-ever, house concert-based Michigan Psych Night at 8 p.m. Saturday, headlined by Bad Indians and Chit Chat, both of Ann Arbor, supported by Grand Rapids psych rock bands Heaters and Haunted Leather.
Haunted Leather
The psychedelic rock showcase will cast an even brighter spotlight on a trend in rock that has steadily gained traction in Michigan. The event will also donate a portion of the proceeds toward restoring the Division Arts Avenue Collective, which was forced to vacate its quarters last summer.
Michigan Psych Night is the brainchild of Heaters bassist Nolan Krebs, who wanted to organize a concert to spotlight psychedelic rock bands.
“I started to become good friends with Haunted Leather. … They’ve been around for awhile,” Krebs said. “I talked to them and they were on board right away. I had an idea of what would happen, what bands would play. I took it to Lindsay and she was into it. It’ll be sweet.”
The House of Pancakes is part of a network of houses in Eastown that have been open about hosting house shows. Sanderson, herself a fan of the genre, was quick to agree to play host.
AN ‘UP-AND-COMING’ PSYCH SCENE WITH ROOTS IN THE ’60s
“The date (Krebs) had in mind was open,” Sanderson said. “I think it’s awesome, too, because not only is the psych scene up-and-coming, but it’s music I personally really enjoy as well.”
So, what exactly is this psych rock genre that seems to be catching everyone’s eye?
Today’s psych rock displays influences from the 1960s, when rock bands such as the Beatles and the Byrds started writing music meant to emulate and enhance the effects of mind-altering drugs. Similar to grunge surfacing in the ’90s as a response to the excesses of the ’80s, today’s psych rock bands reject the production of many popular tunes played on the radio.
Heaters
“I think there (is) a lot of electronic music (that is) produced and polished in terms of rock,” Krebs said. “I think psych rock is like taking a step backwards. Not in a bad way; it’s peeling back rock to its more raw form. … You can see all instruments and tell where sound is coming from. (Psych rock is a) stripped-down, older feel.”
“Heaters (is) definitely a throwback to the ’60s, down to their instruments, their tone, their attitude and attire. It’s straight out of psych rock,” added Matt Finch, a Heaters fan. “They know what they’re doing and they’re doing it well. … It feels like you’re going back in time (at a Heaters show). You feel loose, and you’re free to have a good time. They’re getting bigger and bigger.”
Jules Nehring, vocalist and guitarist for Bad Indians, isn’t so sure that psych rock is suddenly catching on or that it’s an accurate description of all bands lumped into that genre.
“Psychedelic music has been going on for a while now,” he insisted. “I saw Human Eye when I was in high school, and that was quite a psychedelic experience.”
BEVY OF YOUNG BANDS GETTING INTO THE PSYCH SCENE
Many of the bands described as psych seem to share similar characteristics: echoey vocals, guitar distortion and most notably, a raw sound.
“I’m not sure of many bands around right now that I’d consider psych besides Haunted Leather,” Nehring said. “It just seems like psych gets thrown around a lot these days. I think people are just looking for a box to throw certain bands in. Since garage has been over-used for the last decade, psych is catching on as a label that hardly ever suits the music it describes.”
Chit Chat (Photo/Marie Lin)
Nonetheless, Sanderson said Internet streaming websites such as Spotify have helped psych rock bands gain exposure.
“You find yourself listening to a whole slew of psych bands,” Sanderson said of Spotify. “There has been a huge explosion of bands coming about and getting more popular, especially around here. There are really young bands that are doing this rock and psych music that are high school kids. Bands come from all spectrums.”
The characteristics of ‘psych rock’ may be subjective, but all of the bands involved aim to put on a good show Saturday night regardless of labels.
“I’m not sure anyone should go to a show with too many expectations,” Nehring said. “Just come and have a good time.”
For more information, visit the event’s Facebook page at facebook.com/events/613906865344030. For the venue’s address, send Lindsay Sanderson a message at facebook.com/thehouseofpancakesgr.
Email John Sinkevics at jsinkevics@gmail.com.
Copyright 2014, Spins on Music
