Smoke, Spirit, & Sound: The Fur Coats on Easter 4/20

6-piece Portland psych pop/soul band, The Fur Coats, headlined the holiday mishmash show at Rontoms last night.

All photos from Brian Knapp (@discount_songs)

For those keeping score at home, Easter and 4/20 have not intersected since 2014, and it won’t happen again until 2087!

In accordance with the holidaze, the small patio stage on E Burnside was adorned in whimsical decor. Clay mushrooms sprouted next to the speaker monitor, a stuffed rabbit with pink eyes and low eyelids rode on a 6 foot long prop joint over the drum kit, and pot-leaf beaded necklaces snaked across the microphone stands. Throughout the course of the holy night, the energetic crowd was baptized in bass lines and saved by saxophones.

First up to the stage was Nick Gamer, another Portland local, and his band. The opener brought his blend of dark and dusty Americana to the chill of the night air. There was a slight sway to the crowd as the guitar cut through the overzealous fog billowing out from the stage. A thumping kick drum with a reverb-laden snare and a bluesy bass kept things in time with the procedural tightness of a well-oiled church band. The sentiments expressed in the songwriting were wistful, a clumsy search in the dark for a light that gradually dims as the night grows longer. My favorite track was the closer, Sedona, which really came alive on the stage with the help of Gamer’s band joining in on backing vocals and Betty Downey from The Fur Coats contributing with a swelling saxophone sound. The twangy track brought to mind imaginary montages of going after love no matter the odds.

After a short set break where some folks huddled by the outdoor heater and a few took smoke breaks on the sidewalk, the Fur Coats were up. I want to give a quick shout out to the fashion choices of the band. Each member of the sextet looked like they could have been starring in their own movie, and each in their own genre. However, the individuality of the outfits belied the cohesion of the group. From the get-go, there was an apparent chemistry and unity that only happens through years of playing together (along with the bonds of marriage and band-mates living together, according to their bio).

Lead vocalists Betty Downey and Chris Karl Hoganson

The banter on stage between songs created a light feel to the space, a breeze that allowed the audience to take flight with the soar of the dual saxophones. Those two woodwinds easily created a wall of sound, but one that was permeable, like swimming upstream to find your way back home. Humming bass lines handily created the groove within their self-described “groovy psych-soul hard-pop jams” The drums were bright and frenetic, with breakbeats stuttering along in syncopation. The steel lap guitar winded around the curves of each track effortlessly, while the keys and synth added a delightful softness a la Talking Heads.

“And you may ask yourself, Well, how did I get here?””

Within the expansive confines of each song, I felt uplifted, and not just because it was a high holiday. It was hard not to smile, even with the prevalent minor key feeling that persisted. There was a pervasive sense of deja vu, a familiar feeling in an unfamiliar place. Longing for a memory that didn’t exist, I was transported to a decade ago. A junior in college, I was dancing at house parties to bands I didn’t know, like it could be the last night of my short life. I experienced that same devout appreciation last night, and heartstrings were tugged that haven’t been touched in years. I didn’t need to know the words to know they were somewhere within me as well.

As the cozy crowd grew in frenzy near the end of the show, the stuffed rabbit was tossed into the air from the stage. Its stoned expression matched many faces in the crowd, appearing unfeeling while experiencing lift off. We tossed around the animal and we moved our own animal bodies, as the moment in time felt stretched like a morning yawn.

My personal favorite from the set was Sounds Like Fun, a groovy jaunt that marries the yelping coming-of-age feel of early Arcade Fire along with the roller-coaster saxophones of Rubblebucket.

You can check out The Fur Coats on Bandcamp/Spotify, where they have 2 EPs available. A music video is on the way this summer, along with a full length album currently being finished.

P.S.

Check out my fit for the show, the whimsy of my recently thrifted sweater was perfect for the bloodshot eyes of passerby.