Noise Pop 2009: No Age Played Bottom Of The Hill, Bob Mould Joined - Pictures, Review

To sell out the Bottom Of The Hill is one thing, to sell out Bottom Of The Hill at one o'clock on a Sunday afternoon is another thing entirely. Today at Noise Pop's afternoon show, that's exactly what No Age managed to do. Not only was it a completely rewarding foray into No Age's distinctive hard core/punk/sonic experimentation, but it was a fantastic rock show (with a surprise guest!) to boot.

The show was straight ahead from the first song, and the band actively encouraged the crowd to get rowdy. In return, the band did their part to present an unrelenting, steady stream of breakneck rock songs. The crowd responded in turn by moshing, crowd surfing, and generally letting loose.

While a No Age show evokes a certain vibe reminiscent of the hard core scene, there's no question that the band also offers a fair bit more. It's a combination of a number of factors: more complex melodies, a wide arrangement of atmospherics and pedals, and more diverse rhythms. This results in a show that, while still rocking, also manages to offer a bit more depth and enjoyment of the compositional talent in the band.

To top off the show, the band welcomed Bob Mould onto stage and the crowd (and the band for that matter) proceeded to go apeshit. It was so clear that all the musicians were psyched to be playing together, and what's more the crowd was loving every minute of it. Despite the fact that the band seemed to see fit to have the tracks with Bob wrap up the gig, the crowd was having none of it and the band finally gave in for one more tune. Randy Randall surfed the crowd, and the rest was history.

Many more pictures at the HAD Archive.