Scenestar

ARTICLE BY JAMIE SKOWRON
PHOTOS BY VERONICA MUNOZ

OCT. 31 | RIVERSIDE—Hallow's Eve 2012 was the backdrop for the upcoming Armageddon, and all our Mayan calendar fears become apparent as headlines of whole cities being destroyed by hurricanes, floods, and earthquakes were all over the media airwaves. If there was one place you could choose to be at the end of the world, how many would choose to have Omar Rodriguez-Lopez be the soundtrack to their annihilation? In lieu of any feasible evidence that the world would be ending this Halloween, many people decided to experience a new musical endeavor called Bosnian Rainbows.

And yet again, the audience at a Rodriguez-Lopez (The Mars Volta, At The Drive-In) event gets blown away like a lone tree in a field enduring a nuclear blast. If there was a perfect day to experience this live performance, it was Halloween 2012 with Bosnian Rainbows at The Barn on the UC Riverside campus, a cramped 150 capacity, standing-room only venue. Bosnian Rainbows is comprised of Rodriguez-Lopez (guitar, vocals, and keys; The Mars Volta, At The Drive-In), Deantoni Parks (drums and keys; The Mars Volta, KUDU, and Dark Angels) Nicci Casper (keys and synth; KUDU, Dark Angels) and Teri “Gender Bender” (vocals; Le Butcherettes). Unlike many of Rodriguez-Lopez's other live performance concepts, this outfit seemed to be locked-in with the full intention of progressing as a solid band. During this Halloween performance, Rodriguez-Lopez took time away from the magnanimous chunk of music to explain, “This is a new project.” And at another date, he said, “There are no recordings yet, so don’t harass the merch booth.” Although not even an EP has been publicly released, the presence of shirts tells everyone that Bosnian Rainbows is here to stay—at least for a while.

As a member of the audience, I feel there are two ways to experience and validate a live musical performance of any artist: open eyes/open ears and closed eyes/open ears. Although you are still the same person, standing in the same spot, these different perspectives draw incredibly different mental images, which instantaneously race through your mind as you listen. Through this process, a system of validation can properly be distended upon a performance and “the talent” can be clearly seen as either a simple entertainer or an extravagant artist. This performance alone (as if Rodriguez-Lopez's last two decades weren’t enough) howls against any incredulous banter as to whether it can be deemed art or entertainment. Each song told a cohesive and beautifully destructive story.

From the first song's build-up, tears rolled down my cheeks as the band played the strings of our collective heart, soothing our deepest sores and exorcising our collective demons. Last night's aural journey was new and exciting musical material to everyone and fully utilized current Mars Volta members (Deantoni Parks on keys!) in different ways. Parks played on a minimalist kit, including only a hi-hat, a bass drum, a snare, and a keyboard on which he developed not only the rhythms, but also the harmonic first layer to this kaleidoscope of music. Parks's role in performance is just as crucial to the panoramic sound as anyone else's, and he stands as an overall musical master, not just a drummer. His other projects also display his versatility, from teaching jazz at Berklee College of Music to KUDU and Dark Angels, in which he is bandmates with Casper (keys). Casper is armed with two keyboards, and he not only provides layers of synth and atmosphere with one keyboard, but he also is the standing bass player in the band with his other keyboard. Sealing up this surrealistic siphon of emotion is Teri “Gender Bender” on vocals, storming the stage with the presence of Iggy Pop and Janis Joplin. She is best known for Le Butcherettes, which is under Rodriguez-Lopez Productions and produced by Rodriguez-Lopez. Her performance in Bosnian Rainbows, however, shows that she can keep up with Rodriguez-Lopez's level of musicianship. Last night's set was some of the most innovative and beautiful pop music that has ever been created, and hopefully it proves to be more than just a stint. Very few artists have ever become so prolific, and it's always refreshing to hear musicians push the edge of acceptance.