The Band Room is a very strange little venue, originally built for the valley of Farndale’s silver band; it is now used, between the occasional gigs, for jumble sales and children’s birthday parties.Megafaun are a hirsute trio hailing from North Carolina, consisting of brothers Phil & Brad Crook and drummer Joe Westerland. Their stock in trade is a kind of folky, bluegrassy, rootsy sound with an experimental streak a mile wide, which, on record can seem a little self indulgent at times. Live, however, this is certainly not the case, the more noodily sections acting as segues between songs.
It’s safe to say that I have never been to a gig where the setting and music were so perfectly matched. For the duration, I was transported to a barn somewhere in the backwoods of North Carolina.
During ‘Worried Mind’ from this year’s ‘Gather, Form & Fly’, the three of them left the tiny stage, and played unplugged, with the “Come ease your mind” refrain inspiring a mass sing-along amongst the small (the venue has a capacity of 100, but I struggle to see how that many people could fit in it!) and incredibly diverse crowd (from toddlers to OAP’s).
The song, and one of the most enjoyable gigs I have ever been to ended with Phil Crook lying prostrate in the middle of the crowd, thrashing at the strings of his banjo.
Perfect? By no means, but that’s what made it perfect.
They did play ‘The Longest Day’ (see album review). I didn’t cry. Because I’ve got balls.
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