Loud enough to feel
The Tattler reviews ‘noisy art rock’ band Klept’s El Rocko appearance
A fellow Tattler had seen the eye-catching poster pictured above advertising for a show at the El Rocko Lounge. As lovers of live music, we decided to attend, though we didn’t really know who they were or what they’d be playing. In fact, the band name doesn’t show up anywhere on the poster. As such, during the walk to the occasion, we speculated on what we might encounter.
Our arrival at the event answered none of our questions.
To the left of the entrance were two small carousel horses just beyond a collection of mobile fences (the latter of which were later deployed to handle the lines outside). The walls were adorned with 70s pictures and memorabilia. The chalkboard in the corner had an Iggy Pop quote and a drawing of the artist, to boot. The ceiling and lighting were more modern-influence than anything else in sight. And the ambient music played before the show was country.
Further at odds with anything I was prepared for was the variety of clientele hosted therein.
There were SCAD students, temporary guests of Savannah, obvious first dates, a charming elderly couple. Dudes dressed like cowboys. Women dressed like models. A bachelorette party. And what one might assume were the regulars, dressed neither to impress nor understated, hanging at the bar before they knew a band was going to be playing.
It was all a righteous experience of clashing stimuli.
After the band set up, they hit us with a rendition of a Jimmy Buffett song that was grand, dramatic, and even a little bit eerie, leaving one feeling as though they had just been on a harrowing sonic journey. The rest of the set felt as though Nirvana had travelled through time to experiment with modern technical equipment. Some tracks ventured in style close to early Metallica thrash. Others had such a resonating bass that the drink in my hand was vibrating with the music. Ending their show, the lead vocalist reminded us to follow them on social media before cementing their indifferent mood with, “or don’t; we don’t really give a shit.”
Describing their genre as “noisy art rock,” Klept seems a faithful inheritor to the long-standing tradition of the garage rock band. The music was loud enough to feel but not enough to hurt (ear plugs were available to anyone worried over hearing loss). Their outfits, a melding of 70s disco and 90s grunge, could have been thrown together on a thrifting tour. And their blasé attitudes toward their following — which is easily interpreted as putting their craft over their fame — echoes that same authenticity spoken of by Kurt Cobain: “I’d rather be hated for who I am than loved for who I am not.”
Meandering about after the set ended, many patrons remained for a beverage or two. Between overheard conversations of them being “too loud” and “not loud enough,” I considered the event on the whole a success. Not a person present seemed disappointed in the performance. As I left with my ears still ringing, I reflected on what might’ve actually happened that night.
I say simply this: Savannah got another live music show. Though there may have been many before that night and there will surely be many to follow, such live events are sparsely scheduled these days. That these rockers got us off our butts to enjoy loud music among our friends and community is good; that we enjoyed it as much as we did is great.
Klept will be playing Aura Fest on Oct. 9 at the Sentient Bean (on the south side of Forsyth Park). If you have a heart for grunge, garage bands, or authentic musical experimentation, give them a look.
Barnard Street Tattler 