The last time I was really taken with recorded music was in the fall of 2000. Kid A> changed everything. My headphones were awash daily with Grand Theft Autumn’s newest signing, The Lassie Foundation. And one late September evening, I accidentally stumbled upon perhaps the best band that I have ever seen live: Macha.
I went to check out Joan of Arc at The Highdive, mainly out of spite for my ex-girlfriend, who I knew would be there with her super-duper indie kid friends. When I arrived, I found myself in the club and just in time for their direct support, a band from Athens, GA whom I had never heard of before.
My ex never showed up, and that was the best thing that could have happened because I would have been distracted. By the end of their set, I was floored. Glockenspiel, marimba, vibraphone, hammered dulcimer and Rhodes piano were blended with whispered vocals and a rhythm section that could only be described as “on point.” They only had their newest record with them, a collaboration with Austin “slowcore” act Bedhead, called, Macha Loved Bedhead.
It’s rare when a song can honestly stir up your emotions to the point of actually seeing a glimpse of the way you felt the first time you heard it. When I hear this song, and I can actually feel the emotions I was having at the time. This synesthesic reaction, even to the day, makes it one of the greatest songs I have ever heard.