Band that's adored by the old, thee new and the naked

By Russel Baillie

Mercury Rev knew they had done something right with their last album when the pictures of naked women started arriving.

"Before, a lot of guys liked our records, guys who had bands," drawls Sean "Grasshopper" Mackio-wiack, guitarist in the 11-year, four-album American left-field outfit who play in Auckland tonight.

"But Deserter's Songs is a lot more romantic or something and a lot more women seem to like us. So it's been pretty strange.

"On our Website we've had women sending us nude photos. Now that's never happened before."

There have been more seemly responses to the once much-troubled group who, with Deserter's Songs, released what many consider was the album of last year.

R.E.M., for example, invited them on tour. Mackiowiack is speaking from Los Angeles the day after one of their 10 dates together ("We met them last night, they're really nice").

But why the swing from the noisy experimentalism of their previous efforts to an often semi-orchestrated sound, a bit Beach Boys-in-space, a bit 90s guitar-pop psychedelia?

"It was more that we were choosing things better. In the past we would have a tonne of what we thought were good ideas and we'd sort of leave them all going at the same time."

But on Deserter's Songs they even had room for guest turns by drummer Levon Helm and saxophonist/keyboards man Garth Hudson of the Band fame.

It was a case of getting up the courage to approach the veterans, who live not far from Mackio-wiack's and singer-guitarist Jonathan Donahue's hometown of Kingston, in the Catskill Mountains in upstate New York.

"They're all still up there and they still play, and occasionally we would see them around town and we were always a bit intimidated to go up and talk to them.

"We knew this guy who's their engineer, so we asked if we could hook up with them. We gave them some of our records and they liked them, so we set it up."

The Band members' presence also connects some dots between Mercury Rev and rock history - that idea of rock as cosmic American music.

"Whether it's the Band or Gram Parsons, they were people who took a lot of the different things which made up rock 'n' roll in the beginning - country, blues, jazz and European folk songs.

"The Band were definitely out there on their own making their music, and that's what Deserter's Songs is too, sort of. It's like we're out there. We're sort of alone. This is different to anything else that is going on."

If there's more harmony in Rev's music, then that probably reflects the state of the group itself.

Mercury Rev have survived tumultuous times. Before Deserter's Songs, original singer David Baker left and the band foundered.

"After [third album ] See You On The Other Side we sort of split up and there was a point where Jonathon and I didn't speak.

"So when we did get back together for a while we didn't even talk about music - we'd just go to the bar and have a few drinks.

"When finally we did go into the studio it was cathartic about our relationship and the whole band's relationship ... putting it back together from it falling apart."

The Auckland visit is the last show of about 150 the band has done in the wake of Deserter's Songs, and Mackiowiack is promising fans quite a night to finish on.

Oh, and should you wish to show your appreciation afterwards, you can always send those private snaps to www.mercuryrev.net.


Who: Mercury Rev

Where: Powerstation, Mt Eden Rd

When: Tonight