mewithoutYou

In the era of downloads and iPods set on random, it's great to hear that someone still makes concept albums. mewithoutYou uses the titular <em>Ten Stories</em> of its latest CD to narrate a tale of a circus train wreck in 19th-century Montana. While the train of thought is easy enough to follow from song to song, the larger significance of the events isn't as clear. Nonetheless, there are many intriguing weird old American visions in a contemporary musical format (nary a pedal steel or mandolin in earshot). mewithoutYou's gift is for finely tuned shifts in dynamics, rising from chamber quiet to raging guitar choruses in an instant.<em><br /><br />mewithoutYou performs June 5 at the Turner Hall Ballroom.</em> <p align="right" style="text-align: right;"><br /></p>