Concert Review: Travis Morrison

Travis Morrison and the Hellfighters

The Jackpot Saloon

By RICHARD GINTOWT

It wasn’t so long ago that the Dismemberment Plan was on top of the world. Powered by a tight-as-hell rhythm section and the offbeat lyrics and delivery of Travis Morrison, the band was a huge draw in Lawrence and one of the staff favorites at KJHK. Hailing from the same D.C. scene that spawned Fugazi and Jawbox, the D-Plan channeled some of that spastic energy into songs with incomparable hooks. Emergency & I (1999) and Change (2001) merited a wave of critical acclaim and indie fandom, and my friends and I were right there riding shotgun.

Five years after the Plan’s dissolution, Morrison is now touring in support of his second solo record All Y’all. It came out last August on Barsuk Records, but I’m guessing the publicity department didn’t give it a huge push because I didn’t find out about it until this week. Pitchfork rated it a 4.5 out of 10 – a substantial improvement over the spiteful 0.0 it attached to 2004’s Travistan (further proof that Pitchfork should be held in the same esteem as Eliot Spitzer and Crystal Pepsi). Both records have a lot to offer if you can suppress your hopes for another D-Plan album. Morrison has mellowed out a bit, but he’s doing cool stuff with auxiliary percussion and tastefully-integrated electronics.

All Ya’ll is Morrison’s first release with the Hellfighters, a four-piece ensemble that backed him last night at the Jackpot Saloon. Attendance was disappointingly sparse, but that may have had something to do with the late Tuesday time slot. Morrison seemed cheerful nonetheless, smiling through most of the set and urging the 25 people in attendance to buy T-shirts (“I’d pay $90 for one. If I wasn’t in the band and I could get one for free, I’d take out a second mortgage.”)

The Hellfighters haven’t yet developed the jaw-dropping synergy that propelled the Plan, but they’re a suitable vehicle for Morrison’s left-of-center compositions. Integrating cowbells, congas and big-bottom synth bass, the ensemble gives Morrison nearly as much creative latitude as the D-Plan. The All Ya’ll material sounded fresh as a kitten, and a handful of new songs hinted at even better sophomore release from TM & the Hellfighters. Highlights included the funky “Not Supposed to Like You” and “Saturday Night,” which unfolds much like the best D-Plan songs: slow-building verses abruptly upended by mammoth choruses.

It’s a shame that two great post-Dismemberment Plan projects – TM & the Hellfighters and Maritime (which briefly featured bassist Eric Axelson) – now struggle to draw crowds in a town where they once held sway. Here’s hoping Mr. Morrison and crew encounter enough enthusiastic audiences to inspire many albums to come.