While some locals may be going to a cabin on the lake for the long Labor Day weekend, others will be starting their holiday break by seeing Cabin on the river.
This Friday September 3, the New Albany Riverfront Ampitheater will play host to one of Louisville's most respected and up-and-coming bands, when Cabin headlines a show that includes opening act, Cincinnati-based indie band Enlou. Cabin is promoting their latest release, Among the Rectangles and Changeable Parts, which came out in June.
Front man and songwriter Noah Hewett-Ball is the only holdover from the band that released the strong debut Govern the Good Life in 2005. Between 2005 and the time 2007's warmly wonderful I Was Here EP came out, the band had gone through a wholesale change. Hewett-Ball reassembled the band to further explore the layered and melodic sonic landscape that had already become synonymous with the band.
Along with Hewett-Ball, violinist/keyboardist Sarah Welder, bassist Billy Lease, and drummer Dave Chale rounded out the quartet. Three years later, they are back for their first full length release together, and Among the Rectangles... is a record full of unique musical flourishes and thought-provoking lyrics. It's a bit like the mid-2000s Cabin on steroids.
The tunes and tempos on I Was Here drew some comparisons to Coldplay. Songs on the new disc, however, offer a unique combination of old and new Cabin, expanding their already distinct sound without losing it. They have maintained the catchiness of older songs like Dance With Me (no, not a cover of the Orleans hit from the 70s) but incorporated a fuller sound that infuses the old and new material and enthuses the band's fans.
Among the new songs, A Lie Worth Believing is a layered track that takes unexpected twists while retaining a melodic fluency throughout with an Edge-like guitar riff thrown in for good measure. Among the Rectangles begins as a piano-strings ballad in the mode of their gem Cover Your Eyes off I Was Here, but it soon veers off into new musical territory, and Blanket the Bonfire has a rich, atmospheric charm to it.
Innovative singer-songwriter Sufjan Stevens has called Cabin "a band you need to check out." But you don't need praise from an established artist to convince you of that. A few listens yourself should do the trick. Check them out for yourself Friday on the New Albany riverfront.
The show is free and open to the public. Enlou takes the stage at 7:30, and Cabin should wrap up around 10:30. Talk about an inexpensive and entertaining way to kick off the long holiday weekend.
