Juno/Sometree
@
Hafenklang
March 15, 2001
Hamburg, Germany

Links:
Juno
Sometree

The hour grows late and the temperature outside drops. Sometree takes the stage. It's the first time I've been introduced, sound-wise, to this German band opening for Juno. During mumbled intermissions, they're quietly promoting their second full-length CD, Sold Heart to the One, which was recently issued over here on Cargo Records Germany. Their debut, Clever, Clever Where Is Your Heart?--taken, if memory serves, from an old Jawbreaker tune on the now-out-of-print Dear You--was released last year on the Magic Bullet label (America) and Soda Records/SNC-Empire (Europe). Some critics have likened Sometree's music to Sunny Day Real Estate, Hum and even Radiohead. The band isn't quite at that level yet, but the four-piece has a distinct sound and an astounding amount of on-stage energy. At one point during the set, I make a mental note to hunt around for some of their MP3s and, if they're as good as I think they'll be, pick up the CD.

About fifty people hang around for the headliners. The remaining crowd is a lethargic bunch--about as thrilling as lobotomy patients on heavy sedatives. Juno files in along with the bassist from The Prom, and frontman Arlie Carstens motions everyone forward; he gets a hesitant response.

Packed onto the small stage, Juno breaks into "Covered with Hair," a track from their long-awaited CD A Future Lived in Past Tense, which will appear on Desoto Records in May. Their dynamic presence doesn't seem to faze the audience. And Carstens' idiosyncrasies--head resting against the microphone, for example--only garner puzzled looks.

"When I Was in _____," a hard-hitting tune first introduced during last year's Bumbershoot (Seattle, WA), comes fourth in the set. Then Juno works its way into "All Your Friends are Comedians" and "Rodeo Programmers" from 1999's This Is the Way It Goes and Goes and Goes (also on Desoto). With guitarist Gabe Carter at full-throttle beside him, Carstens sings the lyrics as if he's never been so sincere. But tonight the newer tunes are the most stunning, combining the brilliant aspects of post-punk and raw emo-core that has become Juno's trademark sound. There is indeed a huge future for this band, and it won't be lived in anything but the present tense. If only this evening's crowd showed the appreciation the band deserves...

At half-past midnight, Juno is tired of pleading for signs of life from the audience. Like so many shows before, they close with the epic "Leave a Clean Camp and a Dead Fire." Exhausted, Carstens nearly stumbles offstage. From here the band is off to Prague and other romantic settings in the heart of the Old World. I hope the denizens of those cities offer up a warmer, more sincere welcome.

Juno's setlist:
"Covered with Hair"
"Help Is on the Way"
"A Thousand Motors Pressed upon the Heart"
"When I Was in _____"
"All Your Friends are Comedians"
"Killing It in a Quiet Way"
"Rodeo Programmers"
"The French Letter"
"You Are the Beautiful Conductor of This Orchestra"
"Leave a Clean Camp and a Dead Fire"

-Eric J. Iannelli