Watershed w/ The Receiver, LC Pavilion, 1-11-08

Before Friday, it had been quiet on the Watershed front for quite a while. Even though the band released the live album Three Chords and a Cloud of Dust II in September, the last time the much-loved local rockers played their hometown was in August 2007, and that was the only show of the year. The two principal songwriters have been conspicuously absent: Singer/guitarist Colin Gawel has been managing Colin’s Coffee in Upper Arlington (though he occasionally can be found playing with his side project, the League Bowlers), and singer/bassist Joe Oestreich has been teaching at a college in Washington while doing some writing for literary journals and Esquire.

For a band that majors in loud, messy, catchy rock-and-roll and has been known to hit the road for long stretches, one show in 365 days is a distinct change of pace. So Friday night at the LC was a comeback of sorts, a chance for the band to reacquaint itself with hometown fans who have been (im)patiently waiting for a triumphant return. But the question that seemed to be on everyone’s minds, the elephant in the room, so to speak, was: After almost 20 years, does Watershed still have it, or is the band finally past its prime?

Fortunately, the time off has only reinvigorated the band, because the seasoned professionals sound as good as ever. It certainly wasn’t perfect, but Watershed doesn’t really aim for perfection. The band thrives on spontaneity, and there’s a certain amount of sloppiness that comes along with that. There were some flubbed chords and missed notes--Gawel’s voice in particular seemed to be going towards the end of the night--but Watershed’s contagious energy and onstage charisma made the dents and scratches all seem like part of the show. I’ll take some minor infractions in exchange for an invigorated performance.

There’s nothing sloppy about Watershed’s songwriting, though. Taking lessons from Cheap Trick, the Kinks and the Replacements, the band doesn’t write a song that you can’t sing along to by the second chorus. But what separates Watershed from the power-pop herd is that Gawel and Oestreich actually write good lyrics to go along with those choruses. Neither are afraid to write with sincerity but perform with playfulness.

The two singers use the dual vocal attack successfully and sound their best when both are contributing. Oestreich showed his impressive range and clarity on “5th of July” and “Anniversary,” especially during the latter’s refrain: “She's telling me now/This thing has run its course/Eight years for what/A shotgun divorce.” “Suckerpunch” and “Mercurochrome,” both fist-pumping rock songs, sounded particularly fresh and vital.

Watershed drew a respectable crowd, especially for a Columbus band, but at a venue like the LC, it still felt sparse. A smaller venue might have suited the band’s return better.

Opener The Receiver was at the complete opposite end of the spectrum from Watershed, sonically and in its performance philosophy, which made for a bizarre pairing. While Watershed’s specialty is off-the-cuff rock, the Receiver’s show was entirely programmed, utilizing computers playing looped instrumentation. Singer/multi-instrumentalist Casey Cooper stayed on bass most of the night while his brother, Jesse Cooper, manned the drum kit, so the rhythm section ruled the night. The band played droney, Radiohead-inspired tunes with a thick, liquid sound. I liked it.

The Cooper brothers aren’t ones to rush into a song. Most of the tunes had some sort of instrumental prologue to introduce the song’s personality and set the tone. Every song in the set had a distinct ebb and flow to it, with minor tones throughout; even the cathartic sections had somber overtones as Casey slid around them in a delicate timbre.

The band had its set videotaped, and the cameras were inordinately intrusive on multiple occasions, which will probably make for a good video but was really annoying live. I also prefer my rock a little more free-form, not so precisely orchestrated, but the brothers Cooper impressed nonetheless. I’ll be looking to hear more from the pair.