Ty Segall’s international tour with The Freedom Band took hold of New York City’s The Bowery Ballroom last weekend. Segall’s career as a leading psych-rocker in the underground scene has spanned over the past 10 years and morphed from fuzzy, low-key, and lo-fi to an ambitious, experimental, grizzly rock n’ roll sound. This tour, Ty Segall and The Freedom Band promised full album sets, providing a look-back into the catalog of Melted, Goodbye Bread, Emotional Mugger, as well as the Manipulator. Quip ventured out to last Thursday’s show for a revisiting of Goodbye Bread as well as a complete performance of his latest release.

The California rocker rang in the show with strong openers from his newest album, the strikingly guitar-less, First Taste.  Sonically, First Taste bears evidence from Segall’s classic inspirations of T. Rex and Zeppelin but manages to deviate from his previous repertoire into an almost clean edge. Without guitars, songs from First Taste take on more structure and form. The album lends itself a dynamism that is less widely featured in earlier releases, going from heavy rock tracks to lolling ballads and back again in just under forty minutes.

For the live play, the frontman did, in fact, indulge us with his guitar stylings, when he wasn’t seated at the drums. Segall plunged into heavy bangers “Whatever” and “I Worship the Dog” to get the crowd riled up for a rough start with riot moshing under red light. The Bowery Ballroom’s smoky open space encouraged the raucous audience to crowd surf and dive into the scuzzy jam sounds of prolonged instrumentals.

The light shifted with the mood and change of epoch as Segall and The Freedom Band geared up to play Goodbye Bread under flashes of blue light. Even from the balcony, audiences could be heard chanting along with lyrics from the 2011 release. Coincidentally, Goodbye Bread was the album that got me on Ty Segall in the first place when he played a festival in my hometown for the local radio. Playing live at the Bowery last week, he brought more electricity and rage into the garage album. Classics like the title track and the heavy “Where Your Head Goes” sent the crowd into a frenzy.

Ty Segall has a great reputation for his live shows, and there’s no question to the contrary. Segall brings that classic hard and fast garage punk energy to the scene onstage. If you missed his sets this round, rest easy – the prolific artist has been consistently putting out new music and touring since 2008. Five back-to-back double-album shows in Brooklyn last week prove Ty Segall has the stamina to keep our heads exploding, and shows no sign of letting up.

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Once inside, passing The Metro’s gift store and walking up the black and white stairs, the venue reveals its wonderful glory. Seeing the main bar full of people trying to get a drink, I headed towards the upper deck. Fortunately, I was one of the lucky few granted a chair and small table while everyone else stood throughout the night. Looking onward the base of the stage was covered in a layer of fog with a huge grey billboard saying “The Growlers” in crimson red. Peaking over the edge, the main floor was packed shoulder-to-shoulder from the stage to the bar. Others made their way to the balcony tussling over a decent view. The crowd grew restless as they waited over an hour. But all was forgiven as fans burst with enthusiasm when the band took to the stage.

The Growlers wasted no time, right away the guitarists and bassist threw the straps over their shoulders and drummer (Scott Montoya) clicked his sticks together to kickstart with “Heaven in Hell.” Using the instrumental opening as an entrance, Brooks Nielson causally waltzed his way to the microphone. Draped in a blue overcoat and Chuck Taylors, Nielson took control of the rowdy crowd. The mellow vibes of “Naked Kids” kept the crowd relaxed as they swayed side-to-side. Once his vocal cords were all warmed up, Nielson took off his coat exposing a red bowling polo. The echoing waves of pedal effects blended well with the green strobe lights as the band performed “One Million Lovers.” The Growlers continued their romantic poetry with the bittersweet song “Black Memories”  giving the couples an opportunity to reconfirm their devotion to each another.

Being on tour promoting their new album, The Growlers performed the title track “Natural Affair” and recently released single, “Foghorn Town” back-to-back. Right after that, they did a funkier rendition of their hit song “Empty Bones.” The cowboy-reggae song had less reverberation than usual giving it an upbeat tempo. Bright red lights engulfed the band as fans clapped in unison singing along to the chorus. During “City Club” Nielson awkwardly strut across the stage shaking hands with fans. One avid follower handed the vocalist a small plastic rose. Grasping it tightly, Nielson affectionately danced backward with the item before guitarist Kyle Straka grabbed it with his teeth for his solo. The band played for well over an hour and a half. Yet yearned for more screaming the typical chant, “one more song!” The Growlers were happy to oblige. For the encore they performed “I’ll Be Around” and “Going Gets Tuff.” While squatting down and lighting up a cigarette Nielson joked, “ You don’t know if you’re too tired or too drunk. Especially when you’re too old.”

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