Unless he was making some sort of joke that no one caught on to, The Cloak Ox’s lead singer Andrew Broder claimed that Portland’s Wonder Ballroom is his “favorite venue to play in the entire world.” It’s a good venue, to be sure, but might not be many people’s first guess when it comes to listing musicians’ top places to play. Either way, on Thursday, January 23rd Minneapolis, Minnesota’s The Cloak Ox delivered a performance that felt like the Wonder Ballroom was their favorite place to play, so, apparently Broder was telling the truth.
Their set consisted mainly of songs from their most recent album, 2013’s Shoot the Dog such as “Yesterday’s Me”, “Josephine”, and “Pigeon Lung”, but some songs were also present from their debut release, 2011’s Prisen, such as “Vacuum Cleaner” and “Wax Museum”.
At first glance these guys sort of come off as “just another indie band,” but seeing them live helps you to realize that they’re a bit more than that. They are a rock band, but at times they are also a folk band, at others they are a jazz band, and still at others they are a blues band.
Regardless of whichever genre these gentlemen fall into, they are just plain old proficient musicians. It is a rather large treat to watch Mark Erickson play the bass. One minute he’s playing a jazz riff and the next moment he’s on the ground making some crazy sounds with his pedals. Opening for a band like Volcano Choir (QRO live review) is a tall order, and unfortunately attendees often come to a show with the mentality of “let’s get the opener over with so we can get to the main act,” but bands like The Cloak Ox shatter that to pieces.
