Love Comes to Town: Pianos Become the Teeth takes a bite out of Manila.

Love Comes to Town: Pianos Become the Teeth takes a bite out of Manila.

by rick olivares pics by janlor encarnacion

It’s a cool Sunday night. There’s still some arctic cool in the air. So, you will have to forgive anyone ensconced inside Mow’s who could have thought that they were inside a sweat shop because it was bloody hot and steaming. 

Baltimore emo rockers Pianos Become the Teeth were in town thanks to indie promoters Sleeping Boy Collective for an intense one-night show at Mow’s. The opening acts – Warrior is a Child, Typecast, Dobrev, TNG, and Tim Awa – all performed electric sets that hardly anyone budged from the standing-only floor lest they give away prized real estate and a front row view. By the time Pianos Become the Teeth – vocalist Kyle Durfey, bassist Zac Sewell, guitarists Michael York and Chad McDonald, and drummer David Haik – took what passes for the stage, the place was crammed with some 200 people. And it is one of those rare occasions where every band in the line-up rose to the occasion. After Typecast delivered an awesome performance, people wondered who could top that?

The main act, of course. And that was 50 minutes of moshing, pushing, sweaty palms and sweat soaked shirts, and throaty and impressive sing-alongs to Pianos Become the Teeth’s music. One patron had to go out never mind if he was losing his spot in front. “I need some fresh air and to clear my head. Even if just a moment.”

He paused then said excitedly “I saw the set list. The last two songs are a killer. I have to go back in.”

The songs. 

Truthfully, a Pianos Become the Teeth album or show is like a war against silence. The songs drip with emotion and of stories of real people and experiences that rend, tug at the heartstrings, and uplift. Especially with the songs from their fourth album, Wait for Love (on Epitaph Records), that feature a band dealing with adulthood and family. The album has the feel of Death Cab for Cutie’s classic Transatlanticism; except this is more emo done more melodically.

While some fans were shocked (some put off) at the departure from their super-charged songs of a decade ago, the men of Pianos Become the Teeth cannot fathom the criticism. “We cut two records – Old Pride and The Lack Long After – where we strung up a bunch of riffs and screams in making a punk emo record,” wondered York. “I, we, are immensely proud of those records. But we will not write songs like that again. They are like a time capsule. That was us then; this is us now.”

The now is Pianos Becoming the Teeth celebrating the first-year anniversary of Wait for Love’s release on the road. 

They might have shifted from the screamo emo to a more melodic sound but it is no less powerful. The songs don’t follow the typical verse-chorus, verse-chorus structure. In the words of York, the band writes a song with a beginning and the end. “The challenge,” he points out, “is making it interesting to get there.” The approach and somewhat post-rock feel has allowed for more textured sonic landscapes; giving to a more cinematic feel. And it gives more latitude for Durfey’s words and vocals to penetrate further into one’s consciousness.

And they do. 

Six hours before they took the stage at Mow’s, Pianos Become the Teeth’s vocalist, Kyle Durfey and his bandmates sat down to talk and reflect about the album and their initial sojourn to Asia. “It is a pleasant surprise to learn that we have fans in this part of the world,” he said with a pleased look. Then he chuckled: “It seems we have more fans than our own home town.”

Touring has given the songs on Wait for Love more life. 

“Before, we’d tour for a month after an album’s release,” interjected Haik. “But one year into this, we can now see what works and doesn’t. In the process, we make the songs better.”

“There are subtle changes in the various nuances of the songs,” further explained Durfey. “It’s something we wished we thought of or saw when we were recording them, but it is with more clarity that we see them now. And I think the changes have made them stronger.”

If not sung with more passion and gusto.

When Pianos Become the Teeth launched into their first song of the evening, “Charisma,” the fans in one joyous and sweaty mass joined Durfey in singing, “And what a way, and what a way, and what a way, you won me over!” 

Clearly, it was going to be a special show. 

Like that Spidey-sense of déjà vu or the music video for “Houses We Die In” when the band rocked like a hurricane amidst the roiling emotions of a death in the family. 

When they played “Fake Lightning” in the middle of their set, that song which opens Wait for Love, the propulsive drumming of Haik provided the impetus for a crowd still giving it their all despite the stifling heat (Sewell remarked after the show that all the beer he drank prior to the show was sweated out). With one salvo, they joined in, “So come, confess something dire and nothing less, and hold your breath, hang your head, this language like acid in your chest, we wait for love, and it’s getting so late.”

By the time the 50-minute 14-song set was done, it was close to midnight. Durfey and company all drenched in sweat smiled and made their way to the back room to hydrate and rest. The 200 folks sauntered out into the sleepy metropolis, still on holiday, with smiles and amazement written all over them.

The long Wait for Love was worth it.