Saturday: Don Caballero at Meridian

By Nicholas L. Hall Fri., Feb. 6 2009 at 5:11 PM

Categories: Playbill

Perhaps Damon Che should have simply joined Creta Bourzia, rather than assimilating the Pittsburgh band into Don Caballero v 2.0. The allure of riding his own famous coattails certainly had something to do with the decision. It didn't hurt that the Bourzia boys were Caballero disciples, no doubt thrilled to be courted by their math-rock messiah. Problem is, the new Don Cab is preaching a different gospel.

While there are still nods to classic Don Cab via smatterings of syncopation, and occasional needlepoint guitar work, Che and his new family are moving in a markedly different direction, and one which is likely to confound unwary fans. The new Don Cab plays like your average hipster's iPod, running the gamut from post-punk, to jangly nouveau alt-country to straightforward indie-rock.

Though this may sound a bit disjointed, with such sudden and frequent shifts in style and momentum, it really serves as a philosophical extension of the sonic signatures of math-rock. Intentionally or not, Che has landed on a striking sonic conceit. Plus, the band is really damn good in each of its Sybil-esque incarnations.

With MM/DD/YYYY, 8 p.m. Saturday, February 7, at Meridian (Red Room), 1503 Chartres, 713-225-1717 or www.meridianhouston.com.

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