I found the three conceivable stand-in members of Crosby, Stills, and Nash. Their names are Brad and Phil Cook, and Joe Westerlund otherwise known as the band, Megafaun. The Wisconsin natives along with their longtime friend Justin Vernon (Bon Iver) moved from Wisconsin to North Carolina as the band DeYarmond Edison which disbanded in 2006. After Justin Vernon left, they became Megafaun. Recently, the band has put out their second album Gather, Form and Fly (July 21, 2009) and have been touring with the Bowerbirds and Bon Iver.
Watching these fellas open up for the Bowerbirds (also from North Carolina) was a definitive show stealer to say the least. The Bowerbirds pessimistic mellow attitude of either too shy or not wanting to be there made the front row experience a little uneasy. I've never felt as forced as I did standing in front of Beth Tacular (accordian, bass drum, vocals) through their around 50 minute set to continuously do the indie sway, the white girl knee bend, and my very own instinctual metronome in the form of a tapping foot that Tacular's eyes seemed to be glued to. I like to think my amazing rhythm helped her keep the accordian solos intact but in reality she probably wondered why someone would wear horribly old shoes and stand in the front row pretending to be enthralled. I guess it was high expectations following the laughably entertaining openers, Megafaun. Nothing beats an overweight hairy sweaty man (Brad Cook) walking through the audience begging for hugs. Much to my bewilderment, there were many scrawny kids who loved to follow through with his proposal. The band requested an original composition by the measly audience members. We were told to draw on cards what we thought Houston represents so they could post them on their blog. One fan believed Houston represented a big hairy giant penis hanging King Kong style on the side of a sky scraper. I personally would have drawn a fat person due to the fame of being the fattest city in the U.S. The most impressive bonding experience the audience felt was during the final song by Megafaun. They unplugged their instruments, enveloped themselves in a circle of Bowerbird fans, and finished their performance with a Kumbaya-esque serenade.
TOUR DATES: * with Bon Iver / ^ with The Dodos
08-22 Art Center - Carrboro, NC
08-29 Saxapahaw Rivermill Outdoor Concert Series - Saxapahaw, NC
09-15 Cedar Cultural Center - Minneapolis, MN
09-16 House of Rock - Eau Claire, WI
09-17 High Noon Saloon - Madison, WI
09-19 Slowdown* - Omaha, NE
09-22 The Fillmore* - San Francisco, CA
09-24 Fox Theatre* - Oakland, CA
09-25 The Wiltern* - Los Angeles, CA
09-28 Rialto Theatre* - Tucson, AZ
09-29 Mesa Art Center* - Mesa, AZ
10-04 Paramount Theatre* - Austin, TX
10-06 Club Downunder^ - Tallahassee, FL
10-07 The Earl^ - Atlanta, GA
10-08 Grey Eagle^ - Asheville, NC
MP3: Megafaun - Kaufman's Ballad.mp3 (Gather, Form and Fly July 2009)
MP3: Megafaun - The Fade.mp3 (Gather, Form and Fly July 2009)
MP3: Megafaun - Find Your Mark.mp3 (Bury the Square Feb 2008)
MP3: Megafaun - Lazy Suicide.mp3 (Bury the Square Feb 2008)
