Rock is not dead, well at least in the sense that there are a few bands in today's time that attempt to hold strong onto the defining characteristics of a genre that set into motion so many events including, but not limited to, most likely the conception of those kids that rule the "social" airwaves.

One such band that is successfully trudging through the sea of plaid shirts and bangs on boys goes by the name of Wolfmother. They actually hail from down under (Australia), but have made quite a following in the States. On a recent tour surrounding a Lollapalooza performance, the guys hit a stage in KC and proceeded to tear it up.

At first glance, one might swear they see the likes of Hendrix, Clapton and T. Ramone on stage. And when the music starts it's the precision and talent that end up only furthering that belief. With the perfectly placed light boxes and the amps turned up as loud as possible, the set officially began and the real members came into view.

The night was riddled with selections from their new album Cosmic Egg like "New Moon Rising", "California Queen", and opening selection "Cosmic Egg". Now being a title track, there's a certain level to live up to, but with "Cosmic Egg" it had no worries on the level of excellence as it was one of the most entertaining songs of the night. A bit of Clapton-ish guitar work meshed with the pure uninhibited bass groove that had some kind of control over everyone's hips. Sure the note movement was fairly simple for most of the song, but that didn't stop the skill from outpouring from Andrew Stockdale's (lead vox/guitar) fingers. The darkness of the chord progression even bordered on a notion of some Marilyn Manson feelings.

A few new songs moved into a hit that everyone went ape for, "Woman". Having gained the band much recognition, this song was an obvious necessity for the set. Throughout the song the vocals teetered from normal singing to gut-formed belting and sat next to some Led Zeppelin guitar work. It was a number that definitely secured its hold on the aforementioned genre and the audience as well. As a few delicate guitar chords came out so smoothly over a soft hint of drum beats, the lyrics: "Have you been to the carnival" somehow created smiles on each person in that venue. And as the song "White Unicorn" showed it's full worth, it quickly became one of my favorites for the night. When a band can create a song that is so good and so reminiscent of a past time, that one would bet money it's a cover, then you know you've made an excellent number. This song would've won over fans in the '80s, just as easily as it does now.

Meandering through a few more selections from the new album, it became obvious that the set was coming to an end and that the crowd was waiting for something… specific; myself included, there was an extreme eagerness to hear a certain note progression. As Andrew climbed on top of the drum set for the end of "Colossal", he remained up there and proceeded to [almost calmly] bring in their most popular song, "Joker And The Thief". And by the time the remaining members joined in with their parts, the entire crowd was jumping. Seriously such a simplistic progression of notes, yet the way that Wolfmother does it so precisely on those electric guitar strings and then the way the drums come in so powerful in their marching band procession, it makes this song undeniably amazing. This is a song that creates Rock Band fanatics and converts novices into expert guitarists.

Stepping out before the encore was a personal decision. Because ending the night on the creme de la creme was the best way to do it. Now that night rings through my head with pure content.

-Rachel Fredrickson

Wolfmother
August 9th, 2010
Beaumont Club
Kansas City, MO

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