Man Man: An Interrobang of a Show

For weeks we've been waiting for the opportunity to share our latest obsession. Unlike previous obsessions with curling, competitive eating, or most recently Rock Paper Scissors, this obsession is more academic in nature. It concerns the rare, not yet standard punctuation mark known as the interrobang. It combines the exclamation point and the question mark to express both excitement and disbelief. If you've ever said "What!?" then you know how it should be used.

We bring this up because it came to mind during Thursday night's Man Man show at Neumos. It is incredibly hard to describe exactly what happened there since there was just so much going on. So let's start with the facts. There were five members, each equipped with their own microphone and their own drum. Along with the standard band instruments, Man Man utilized a trumpet, a saxophone, an accordion, not one but two glockenspiels, shakers, tambourines, a slide whistle, and the head of a girl in the front row. Hell, just about anything within a ten foot radius of the band's dense cluster at the front of the stage became a percussion instrument at some point during the show, which featured nary a pause between songs. The band didn't even leave the stage for their first encore, leaving the bassist to keep the audience occupied. The band was forced back onstage for a second encore by a crowd that insisted they return for more.

As far as stage presence, Man Man's energy was off the charts, increasing the contrast with Seattle's generally cool reception, the exceptions being the following:
- "Bandana guy" in the front row, who looked like he was having a seizure from all of his enjoyment,
- "Coma guy" next to "bandana guy," who stood mouth open in complete awe of the band,
- "The Chatter Girl" next to Seattlest, who couldn't help but to share her excitement with Seattlest about every.single.song. Ordinarily it would have been annoying as shit, but we were in a good mood and just happy to see someone have such a great time, so even when she asked if she was annoying us, we let her continue.

Man Man is touring in support of the Pitchfork-approved Six Demon Bag. We recommend you go out and buy it not because of the album itself, but because of it's role as Cliffs Notes to the live show (you should buy their first album for the same reaason). Next time Man Man rolls through town, expect Seattlest to be in attendance, jumping, yelping, and clapping with reckless abandon. If you're not careful, you might just catch us using your head as a bongo.

Image from flickr user dansays