Same as it Ever Was: Why Mission of Burma deserves your respect

Rock musicians deal with the reality of aging in a manner of ways, with differing degrees of success. Some -- many -- just don't age well. Could be a damaged voice or slower hands or just a loss of passion. Others hang on better. Most of these, though, do so by adapting. Eric Clapton unplugged. David Byrne moved on from the twitchy post-punk of Talking Heads and now makes world-infused, mature electrified pop with his learned colleague Brian Eno.

Mission of Burma accomplished the rare feat of aging well without compromising. Last Friday night (7/22/11), MoB took its aggressive road show to The Mohawk. The band formed back in 1979, but a solid chunk of the audience looked like they hadn't been born then. Looking out over the crowd throughout the show, as the band cranked through nothing but up-tempo hard rock, it was pretty apparent that age doesn't matter. By the time they hit bassist Clint Conley's anthemic "Academy Fight Song," the fists were pumping at a rate that most bands in their twenties can't generate.

The show was no fluke. Mission of Burma had already accomplished another remarkable and rare feat in rock music: Coming back from a hiatus and making new music that holds up with their old work. After being forced to call it quits in the mid 80s due to guitarist/singer Roger Miller's worsening tinnitus, the band regrouped in the mid 2000s. Not only did they tour the old hits like plenty of bands do nowadays (Pixies? Pavement?), Mission of Burma also returned to the studio. In these cases, bands often make one or maybe two albums that sound like airbrushed versions of the original. Three solid albums in though and MoB seems to be back for real. The band played a bunch of their later songs during the show, including an electrifying "1, 2, 3, Partyy!" from 2009's The Sound The Speed The Light, and even a few numbers from their upcoming fourth comeback album, and really nothing fell flat.

How'd they do it? Who knows? It must be gratifying, though, to look out over a sea of people younger than you rocking out to what you do. It must also feel good for a band that played music that was "ahead of its time" to hang in there (or come back in the case of MoB) until your torchbearers come along and the public really starts to appreciate your body of work. So if you've wondered whether your favorite broken-up band might be just a bit too old to come back with cred, tell them to check out a Mission of Burma show. Then call Bob Mould and Grant Hart and tell them to make up!

Mission of Burma do "Max Ernst" and "Academy Fight Song" at The Mohawk

One last note: We also liked the opener, Ume. In short, think of Sonic Youth with a touch of Portishead and maybe Bjork. Ume on Spotify.