I Just Read About That…

[ATTENDED: February 12, 2025] Mike Polizze [rescheduled from November 21, 2024]

When this show was first announced I didn’t know if I wanted to go, plus it turned out to be on the same night as the Babymetal show that my son and I were going to.

Initially Pink Mountaintops were supposed to open for this show.  Then a few days ago I saw that it was going to be Purling Hiss.  I was really excited to see Pink Mountaintops (who I haven’t seen before).  There was no notice or explanation of their departure from these shows.  But they were replaced by, as many of the posters say Purling Hiss (Solo).

Purling Hiss is Mike Polizze.  He was the only person on the first few records and the latter records add a drummer and maybe someone else.  But it’s not wrong to say this is Purling Hiss solo.

Polizze had opened for Kurt Vile recently and I enjoyed listening to his set.  And it proved to be quiet similar to this set opening for J Masics.

Mike had an acoustic guitar and a bunch of pedals–mostly a looping pedal, a distortion pedal and a wah wah.

And wow, was he loud.  I anticipated J would be loud, but I think that Mike may have been louder–or his equipment wasn’t mic’d as nicely so it sounded harsher.

Mike looped his guitar chords and then played solos using varying degrees of distortion and volume.  I really enjoyed the amount of looping he did and I was close enough to watch him using the looping pedal–tapping the pedal to add a solo section to loop with the chords, etc.

I saw Purling Hiss a number of years ago (as a band), but I don’t know much about them.  I know that the Purling Hiss albums are very very noisy, with layers of distortion removed, it was clear how simple these songs were–not a bad thing.  He was able to loop the chords, sing over them and then solo over the chords as well

Follow You Around was super catchy.  Up next was a Spaceman 3 cover of Walking with Jesus.  The printed setlist said Walkin/Almost, so I’m not sure if he added parts of Almost Washed My Hair (which is really noisy on the record).  Run From the City continued the noisiness.

Things settled down a little for the far quieter Eyes Reach Across and Cheewawa which come from his solo album.  These songs featured fingerpicking and softer singing and reminded me more than a little of Kurt Vile (they are both from Philly and have played together).

He checked his watch and announced one more song.  My Dreams starts quietly but then ended in a length guitar solo.  I’m guessing he didn’t have enough time to play the last song on his list (Too Much Think), but he had enough time to jam a solo out.

It’s hard to imagine how Pink Mountaintops would have worked in this set up, since J’s gear was on stage during Mike’s set as he stood to the side of J’s microphone to play his songs.  It was a good set and a perfect opening set for the solo Mascis set.

1. Follow You Around ⇑
2. Walking With Jesus (Spacemen 3 cover)
3. Almost Washed My Hair ? [on setlist not sure if played]
4. Run From the City ∠
5. Eyes Reach Across ⊗
6. Cheewawa ⊗
7. My Dreams ≅

⊗ Long Lost Solace Found (2020)

PURLING HISS

≅ Breeze (2017)
⇑ High Bias (2016)
∠ Public Service Announcement (2010)
? Purling Hiss (2009)