The back of my head is pictured in a photograph documenting Sonic Youth’s appearance at the Outhouse in Lawrence, Kansas, on November 5, 1986. The seminal band’s performance in the dank space altered my understanding of music. I’ve been chasing that high ever since.
The impactful evening confirmed my suspicion that the standard distinctions used to divide genres are unnatural. I’ve since embraced a multitude of sounds without reservation. Zachary Barthelman and Evan Verploegh have similarly expansive perspectives. The locally based duo disregard stylistic boundaries on Sound/Color.
Although he’s an indie-rock enthusiast, guitarist Barthelman channels the aggressiveness of the early recordings by the jazz fusion master John McLaughlin on Sound/Color’s two 26-minute tracks. Verploegh, arguably Kansas City’s most exciting drummer, echoes the sensitivity and power of Billy Cobham.
Alternately noisy and tranquil, Sound/Color erases the tenuous lines between post-rock and free jazz. The liberation I experienced 38 years ago at the Outhouse is revived every time I queue up Sound/Color.