Instru-mental: Animals As Leaders, Intervals, Plini Bring The Madness to Los Angeles

By Andrew Bansal

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December 15th 2016, The Mayan, Los Angeles CA: In support of their fourth full-length studio album ‘The Madness Of Many’ which was released earlier this year, modern prog masters Animals As Leaders embarked on a six-week North American tour in November, headlining an all-instrumental lineup with support acts Intervals and Plini. Ever since they first broke out of obscurity in 2010, Animals As Leaders have enjoyed unwavering admiration from their Los Angeles fan-base, and towards the very end of ‘The Madness Of Many’ tour, they arrived here to perform in front of a packed house at the Mayan in downtown LA on a rainy Thursday night, making a return to the same stage they performed on with Devin Townsend almost exactly two years ago. The steady rain certainly did not deter any of this crowd from attending, almost everyone having made their ticket purchases well in advance, and with the kind of musicianship eventually exhibited on this stage, no one regretted braving the weather for this show.

Doors opened at 7 PM, and promptly at 8, the show started with Plini taking the stage. As the story goes, Plini is a solo guitarist and music composer based in Sydney, Australia, who got noticed by the right people and got invited to be the opening act on this tour. But since he composed and recorded all of his music solely by himself, he needed a live band to play it on stage, and guess what, Aaron Marshall happens to tour with a live band to help him bring his solo project Intervals to life, otherwise he’d very much be in the same boat. So, both bands decided to share all members, and Plini and Aaron Marshall simply switched lead guitar positions for their respective sets. Plini was first, with Marshall as the second guitarist and the Intervals rhythm section of Simon Grove (bass) and Nathan Bulla (drums). With nearly 40 minutes of highly dynamic, brilliantly crafted instrumental tunes which exuded elements of modern prog as well as jazz fusion, Plini created a longlasting impression on the audience and received a well-earned applause after every song. Some people even touted Plini as the best opening act they’d ever seen, and one couldn’t blame them for saying so. Showcasing expertise on his instrument whilst presenting music with substance, Plini is proving through this tour that there is more to him than your run-of-the-mill flashy solo guitarist, and some in this LA crowd might even agree that he was the better of the two opening acts. Very much an ideal start to a great evening.

Plini
Plini

After the opening set, Aaron Marshall, Plini and the rhythm section stepped off stage for 20 minutes and returned as Intervals, except with Aaron Marshall taking center stage as lead guitarist, of course. Marshall, based in Toronto, Canada, started Intervals in 2011, and has had full-time band members in the past, even using a vocalist on some of the material. But the latest album ‘The Shape Of Colour’ (2015) was instrumental, and as it stands in 2016, Marshall is the only member of the band. The set they’re playing on this tour is also fully instrumental, in keeping with the theme of the touring package, and rightly so. Intervals is a well-known entity to this crowd of modern prog nerds, having appeared on many tours of this kind in the past. With their relatively heavier and faster tunes in comparison to that of Plini, Intervals put forth an enjoyable set, which included some songs Marshall described as “old”. The rhythm section probably played a more prominent role in the Intervals set than in the one prior, and sparks flew from the stage as these four musicians combined to present some tasteful heavy prog. Very rarely would anyone witness this type of a touring lineup wherein the exact same group of musicians play two completely different sets, and it was uniquely entertaining to witness what transpired on the Mayan stage before it was cleared for the headliners.

Intervals
Intervals

After the Intervals set, as the audience was bombarded with traditional holiday songs, setting the perfect contrast to the headline act’s music, the calm before the storm that would soon ensue. At around 10:10, the PA finally faded out to silence, much to the relief of many in attendance, the stage lights went black, and amidst wild cheers, the three members of Animals As Leaders quietly stepped up to take their positions. This tour was christened ‘The Madness Of Many’ obviously because this band released a new album of the same title, but based on the reaction of this LA crowd, you could say it is fitting in more ways than one because this gathering at the Mayan lost its collective mind as soon as Animals As Leaders began playing. It was sheer delirium. The mosh pit opened up, and guitar nerd type folks that don’t really go to metal shows, or don’t go out at all, were utterly confused with what was happening. Meanwhile, several people from the back of the general admission floor started rushing to the front and cutting past anyone and everyone they could. New tunes or old ones, it did not matter, this Animals As Leaders set truly instigated the madness of many here.

Unlike most other bands, Animals As Leaders played their oldest tunes ‘CAFO’ and ‘Tempting Time’ very early on in the set, which was the right move as they could ride that momentum of the crowd’s excitement to play the newer, lesser known material after. Plus, let’s face it, the most annoying aspect of playing on stage has got to be the constant song requests being yelled out from members in the audience who don’t know how to act at a concert. This band didn’t let any of that happen here as their most popular tunes were presented early. But they stopped ‘CAFO’ about two minutes in and started it over, as there was yet more confusion in the crowd, but this is Animals As Leaders we’re talking of, and there was no way they wouldn’t play their biggest hit perfectly right.

Animals As Leaders
Animals As Leaders

This set clearly showcased the band’s musical journey from the 2009 self-titled debut through ‘Weightless’ (2011), ‘The Joy Of Motion’ (2014) and the 2016 effort ‘The Madness Of Many’, and guitarists Tosin Abasi and Javier Reyes along with drummer Matt Garstka have proved themselves as highly versatile musicians constantly striving to evolve and never shying away from creative experimentation and adventure. The debut album, in my humble opinion, is still their best work and truly stands the test of time, but years down the line, the other albums may grow to the same stature. Fans always come out to support this band, specially in LA, regardless of what album(s) they prefer, because they know the band will deliver material from their entire career as they’re doing on this tour.

This set of fans would not have complained had the band played a longer set, but the 12-song, 70-minute set was timed just about right for it to make maximum impact. The two guitarists were at the peak of their powers, seemingly always saving their best for LA, and while the word “beast” may be an overly common word used to describe drumming performances, Matt Garstka perhaps deserves it more than most, as he showed through this set with plenty of sparkling moments of his own. Animals As Leaders never disappoint, and this was a typically spectacular performance from them. Most crucially from the audience perspective, the general admission ‘pit’, or the “under 21 section” as it is called at the Mayan, was the best place to fully experience this concert and to feel the madness.

In conclusion, if you ever perceived instrumental music as boring, try seeing Animals As Leaders, Intervals and Plini play a show together and revisit that thought.

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Animals As Leaders set list:
01. Arithmophobia
02. CAFO
03. Tempting Time
04. An Infinite Regression
05. Do Not Go Gently
06. Nephele
07. Ka$cade
08. The Glass Bridge
09. The Brain Dance
10. Physical Education
11. Inner Assassins
12. The Woven Web

Remaining Tour Dates:
12/16/2016 – Orangevale, CA @ The Boardwalk
12/18/2016 – San Francisco, CA @ Social Hall SF

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