Maps & Atlases With The Globes at the Vera Project Last Night

Drew Reynolds

Maps & Atlases made a lot of rabid new fans last night -- the Chicago quartet wowed the crowd of mainly curious underagers at the Vera Project last night, playing about a 50/50 split of their older, mathier songs from their early EPs and their newer, pop-friendlier tunes from the recently released full-length Perch Patchwork. In a high-energy and humble performance (lead singer Dave Davison thanked the audience, the Vera Project, and their label Barsuk records about 5 or 6 times throughout the set), guitarist Erin Elders also played a snare drum and keys, bassist Shiraz Dada also played a bass drum and the claves, and drummer Chris Hainey -- who is one of the most talented drummers I've ever seen live -- also played the glockenspiel. Davison stuck to his guitar, but he didn't really need another instrument, because with his strange and otherworldly vocals, his spectacles that have a tendency to slip down his nose throughout the performance, and above all his mane of shaggy hair and beard and mustache, Davison is essentially Indie Rock Jesus.

After they finished the set, Maps & Atlases led the crowd outside, where, with Elders on acoustic guitar, Hainey on a snare and some bongos, Davison on his electric guitar unplugged, and Dada with his bass plugged into a tiny amp, they played beautifully stripped-down versions of three more songs -- "You and Me and The Mountain," "Banished Be Cavalier," and "Pigeon." Davison then solo'd on "The Ongoing Horrible," tapping the frets and the body of the acoustic guitar and fiddling with the tuning pegs, creating a slide-guitar sound. His vocals sounded crystal-clear and reverberated under the stars -- it was a seasonally appropriate and amazingly intimate performance.

Personal Bias: I'm a little obsessed with this band.
The Crowd: Lots of kids, which is great -- Maps & Atlases' main fanbase consists of techy college nerds; expanding is good!
Random Notebook Dump: The Globes have been opening Maps' tour -- maybe it's because they've been playing consistently every night, but they sounded even tighter and more energized than they usually do. It was a knockout set, and the crowd loved them.