Talkdemonic returns

The local avant-garde beat-based indie band known as Talkdemonic is getting ready to make their return to the stage after taking the fall off. Lisa Molinaro, who is one half of Talkdemonic, recently returned from touring with The Decemberists.

You may have seen Talkdemonic on tour with Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, The National, or Menomena. You may have even seen Lisa Molinaro with The Decemberists on Late Night with Conan O’Brien. That’s big time, about as big time as Portland rock can ever hope to be.

The band is comprised of Molinaro on viola and synths and Kevin O’Connor on drums, synths, keyboards, bass, guitar, accordion and everything else. It began in 2002 as Kevin O’Connor’s solo recording and grew over the years to incorporate live shows. Molinaro began playing with him in 2004, which added a layer of drama and mystery to O’Connor’s already distinct sound. Talkdemonic has released two albums, 2005’s Mutinysunshine, released by Lucky Madison Records, and last year’s Beat Romantic, released by Arena Rock. The duo is currently working on a new album.

They play a mesmerizing mix of instrumental chamber folk and hip-hop. The band has dubbed their genre “folktronic hop,” which is as fitting a description as can be given. The hip-hop influence seems to be primarily in O’Connor’s rock-solid sure-handedness at the drum kit. And while hip-hop is definitely an influence, this isn’t music that’s about to be mistaken for a backing track to Jay-Z or Ghostface Killah- there’s many more interesting melodic ideas at work here. Think of Bjork’s Homogenic, or maybe Thom Yorke’s The Eraser for musical similarities.

But Talkdemonic is different, of course, as they’re not afraid to incorporate acoustic guitars and live drums into the already broad musical palette. They’re actually more like an ass-kicking bastard child of New York’s guitars ‘n’ laptops band Ratatat, and the instrumental indie chamber rock of Arcade Fire side project The Bell Orchestre.

For live shows, the band incorporates a laptop to play some beats, synths and guitar samples, over which O’Connor plays with a powerful mastery of his instrument. Just look up some of their live videos online. You’ll see O’Connor not only at ease behind the drums, but also playing brilliant and melodic parts that are frequently more interesting than the average indie rock band’s. One of the benefits of instrumental performance is that it allows Molinaro and O’Connor to play freely and share the spotlight that would normally be taken by the stage-hogging singer or the acrobatic guitarist and his hott lixx.

On a typical Talkdemonic song (if there is such a thing) such as “White Gymnasium” from Beat Romantic, we first hear a banjo playing a repeated line with a kick drum and hi-hat keeping in time, which soon breaks into a full beat with a bass guitar and second banjo added to the mix. Midway through the song, there’s a breakdown of accordion and flute doing a variation of the banjo melody. Then the full band comes back in with multiple banjos, bass, flutes, the strolling accordion and, of course, O’Connor’s distinctive, thoughtful drumming.

This song flows seamlessly into next track “Axe and Red Sweater,” which is based on laptop beats and an acoustic piano line. And that’s the thing about Talkdemonic that is so great. You never know which instruments are going to turn up in a song. It’s entirely likely that you can hear several songs in a row without hearing the same instruments in any of them. The duo shows great taste when deciding which instruments should play which melodies and counter-melodies in their music. There are some truly beautiful moments and some surging, John Bonham-ish moments in Talkdemonic’s music. It’s really good, moving post-rock, and as fans around the nation wait to see what Talkdemonic will bring us in 2007, Portlanders get an early glimpse this Friday.

Talkdemonic

with Dykeritz and Leti-Angel

Friday, Jan. 12

Doug Fir, $10