Show Review: Ritual Space Travel Agency
By Jeremy Holmes – 11/14/2000
It’s a shame that only ten people were present at the Swindlefish Saloon on Sunday November 5th. What just about everyone in Athens missed was the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania based band, Ritual Space Travel Agency. This eclectic five-man group featured a bass player, vocalist, guitarist, saxophonist, a kit drummer and a percussionist.
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They played an hour-long set for an audience that, at times, threatened to number in the double digits. Much to their credit, the band was not deterred. During their set RSTA provided the crowd with a wide spectrum of sounds, exercising their range of musical styles in a hit and miss set which contained components of jazz, pop, rock and ska. Many of the songs contained shifts in time signature, saxophone solos, bas riffs and drum beats that danced all over the map. Though they attempt to encompass numerous styles of music, RSTA are at their best when riffing on long, jazzy instrumental tunes. In songs like these, each member is given the opportunity to display their talents.
During the course of the show, the sparse Swindlefish crowd was treated to percussion and kit drum solos as well as several saxophone solos. The use of a five string bass provided several fun moments for the ear. The guitar was rarely the focal point of RSTA’s sound and it was only brought to the forefront during the harder, rock-influenced songs. Although each member of the band managed to hold their own on their respective instruments, the drummer and percussionist stole the show.
The nucleus of the band is, without a doubt, the drums. The band’s vocalist credited the drummers with writing most of the songs played during the set. In my opinion, the best aspects of the band’s sound are the complex rhythms and time signatures contained within most of the songs. These elements are a direct result the drummers creativity and flawless execution.
The pre-show publicity for RSTA described them as a jazz band. However that label doesn’t encompass the sound that RSTA harnessed on stage. The band jokingly described itself during the show as a mixture of Tom Waits, Sun Ra, Sepultura, Tiny Tim, Frank Zappa, Los Lobos and Sly and the Family Stone. Yet even this culmination of sounds is not an accurate description of RSTA.
Though it was a fun evening of music, the RSTA show was not without its downfalls. The wak points of the set included the lyrics to som songs and the band’s few attempts at rocking out. They lyrics tended to be repetitive and contrived. One song, called “Sinkhole of Freedom” contained only the monotonous words “sinkhole of freedom,” which became very old, very quickly. The band’s attempts at hard rock also provided some of the less fun moments of the show. After dazzling us with their jazz chops, the band managed to both set the tone for the evening and prove to the audience and myself that they “owned” the jazz sound. When the band moved back into rock, the music became simple, muddied, and uninspired. Gone were all traces of their complex, creative sound and instrumental showmanship. Luckily, the forays into hard rock were rare and finished quickly.
In spite of the absentee audience, Ritual Space Travel Agency put on a great show at the Swindlefish Saloon. They played catechy music, that wasn’t afraid to test their limits as musicians. RSTA showed a world of promise durning their show. Clearly, the band has a firm grasp on aspects of rhythm and time signature. The strengths and talents of the band’s members carry their jazz inspired instrumentals. The further this band’s songwriting strayed from typical hard rock formulas, the better they got. I can only hope that they continue to stray.
