A Midwest Trifecta of Psych-Folk Saturday at OT

Listen Up Toledo  |  08/19/2010 7:00 am

The Industrial Midwest is a weird American melting pot. It's a mixture of blue collar work ethic, stomping factory noise, and tranquil rural landscapes. Mixed in there somewhere is the abandoned psychedelic '60s culture that brought innovative, dreamy art, literature, and music to the people. Since our fall from early 20th Century prosperity, there is a new generation of artists, writers and musicians who've gone looking for their roots. Ironically, what they are creating is a brand new root structure based in our indefinable past, and focused hopefully on our future.

On Saturday, August 21, three musicians will showcase what at least a piece of the New Midwest sounds like. Toledo, please welcome your new Rust Belt troubadours: The Saw Had Eyes That Sea (Detroit), Chris Bathgate (Ann Arbor), and The Caterpillar of a Moth (Toledo).

The Saw Had Eyes That Sea is the whimsical experimental folk-pop project of Paul Zink, a shaggy-haired happy-go-lucky multi-instrumentalist that you might recognize from some of Toledo's most innovative bands, including The Hat Company and The Homeville Circle. Centered around Zink's love for the amplified contorted saw, these mellow, haunting songs boast mysterious psychedelic song structures held brittlely together with lyrics that border more on poetry and creative writing than your average stock catchy melodies. (Above, right).

Chris Bathgate is one of the most popular acts on the Ann Arbor/Ypsilanti folk circuit. Bathgate is a denim-clad Michigan son who is known for his delicate, yet powerful voice, knack for crafting soulful melodies, and backing it up with raw, but beautiful arrangements. With four albums under his belt, Bathgate is a seasoned songwriter with a set of lyrics that explore our internal and external worlds in consistently surprising ways, shedding light on the dark shadows of ourselves and our cities. (Pictured left).

The Caterpillar of a Moth makes its debut this night, the solo project of psych-folk outfit The Homeville Circle's mastermind, Justin Longacre. With a head full of pastoral folk hymns, poems that look past Toledo's dingy exterior into its ethereal yesteryear, and to the triumph and power of The Great Lakes, Longacre is arguably one of the craftiest songwriters in the area. Thankfully, he too has a heart and mind for spacey psychedelic music past and present, and understands the nuances of how chaos becomes heart-breaking beauty. In Longacre's work, there is a constant theme of desolation transcending into unbridled, almost overwhelming positivity. (Below, right).

In all three of these acts, there is a consistent theme of searching, of longing, and of uplifting. Each explores our once-grand landscape for the ghosts of factories, of industry, seeking tirelessly to capture the mystic vision, the darkness and the light alike, that defines our lives here, yet is always just out-of-reach, always just a glimpse in the corner of our eye. In each, we learn something new, but are awakened always to the same truth: In the sleepy lull of the Midwest, if you just close your eyes, you'll be surprised at what you can see.

The Saw Had Eyes That Sea, Chris Bathgate, and The Caterpillar of a Moth play the Ottawa Tavern (1815 Adams St.) on Saturday, August 21. Doors are at 10 p.m. Music begins at 11 p.m. No cover. www.otavern.com

The Saw Had Eyes That Sea
http://www.myspace.com/thesawhadeyesthatsea

Chris Bathgate
www.myspace.com/chrisbathgate

The Caterpillar of a Moth
(Justin Longacre of the Homeville Circle)
http://bugguide.net/node/view/82
http://www.myspace.com/thehomevillecircle