Have you recently married as a same sex couple in Arkansas? Perhaps you’re dismayed about the recent supreme court ruling allowing prayer before governmental meetings? If you fit both criteria Surviving the Golden Age has just the thing for you. Gaytheist‘s Live from the Banana Stand combines tracks from all four past recordings by America’s preeminent freeloving, freethinking power thrash group- all in one convenient live album.
Recorded on Halloween night at the mildly noteworthy secrete Banana Stand venue slash recording studio in Portland, Oregon the three members of Gaytheist, taunt, toy, and tease the audience through 13 (of course!) tightfisted tracks. Hot and heavy leads meet near flawless, unrelenting and inventive percussion to forge a riotous form of rock that’s still, oddly, very much danceable.
Featuring clever lyrics that reference everything you’ve come to love about modern living, the apocalypse, human centipedes, and the undying bond between two people in love the vocal delivery warbles between screamo, falsetto, and a wounded howling. Complete with pithy banter and a back and forth between the audience and band members Gaytheist have taken a routine project many groups excrete to sate fans between full length albums and made a success of it.
Live from the Banana Stand is quite a fine recording as far as mixing is concerned. Many live albums are only of interests to group aficionados and don’t parce well against studio recordings. Gaytheist was careful in post production not to focus too intently on the cliché of applause intro/outro which keeps the energy at a premium, creating the desire to make a live show the next time Gaytheist stops in your burb.
Rating: 6.5/10
MP3: Gaytheist “Post Apocalyptic Lawsuit”
Buy: iTunes
