I Just Read About That…

[ATTENDED: June 7, 2023] Post Animal

I hadn’t heard of Post Animal, but when I read about them, I was really interested in checking them out.

They came out on stage–all five of them–and proceeded to blow me away with a fusion of what I heard as Rush meets King Gizzard.

The Rush component came in some of their extended, prog-like songs that ended in chord patterns that were very much Rush adjacent.  The King Gizzard part came from some of the frenetic guitar soloing.  And what was really really fun about them was that every song was really different.

Some were straight up riff rockers.   Some had multiple parts.  Indeed, I didn’t actually know how many songs they played before they spoke.  I thought it might be one fifteen minute song, but i believe it was actually three shorter songs.

They had four different vocalists (some who switched off during one song, I believe).

They opened with “Aging Forest” (said with a heavy echo on the vocals).  The song had a great big proggy riff (and lots of thumping drums from Wesley Toledo who seemed to have a very very drunken fan shouting out to him a lot) and then it slowed down for soft echoed, harmony vocals.  It was sung by the bass player Dalton Allison.

The song shifted to a trippy slow song called “Goggles.”  It grew heavier by the end and had some Rush flourishes.  It’s pretty clear that each of their albums has a different focus of style, all keeping the Post Animal vibe.

“Caught in the Trap” featured vocals from the guitarist on the right side of the stage–Matt Williams, who played lead guitar, too. This song was a bit poppier with a bouncy main guitar riff.   The biggest surprise came with “Safe or Not” which had a massive synth feel to it (Jake Hirschland on keys).  It felt very retro and unlike the other songs.  This one was sung by the other guitar player (Javi Reyes) whose voice seemed a little off to me (although I have since found that on record, his voice is processed, so maybe it was meant to be live, too).

The new song “Infinite Zone” was great.  I’m not sure if they played “Caving In” (they have been playing it at all their other shows so far, so I assume they did).  It’s a gentle ballad that segues into the rocking (with lots of drums) “Gelatin Mode.”  It, like the final song, “Dirtpicker” has a serious King Gizzard vibe with lots of wailing guitars (playing harmony parts) and rocking all over the place.

And in one of the cooler moments, Reyes hopped down on the floor right in front of me to wail the final solo of the song.  It was pretty cool.

I’ve become a big fan of the band and need to explore their discography a lot more, as there are gems all over it.

SETLIST

1. Aging Forest (new)
2. Goggles ≅
3. Caught in the Trap ¥
4. Safe or Not ⇒
5. Infinite Zone ♥
   [maybe “Caving In” here]>
6. Gelatin Mode ∏
7. Dirtpicker ∏