Margot and the Nuclear So and So's

It’s been less than a year since Margot and the Nuclear So and So’s brought their newly trimmed lineup to MidPoint and tore up the Southgate House with a righteous tumult indicative of the more streamlined Indie Rock on their third album, last year’s self-released Buzzard. The album itself was an uplifting end to a rough period; the band’s headquarters in Indianapolis suffered fire damage in 2009, they were dropped by Epic (considering the turmoil over the previous year’s Animal!/Not Animal, it was probably for the best) and much of the band jumped ship.

Eventually, frontman Richard Edwards moved to Chicago and reanimated the So and So’s with bassist Tyler Watkins and guitarist/violinist/pedal steelist Erik Kang and, along with a virtual who’s who of Indie Rock guests from the Windy City, crafted Buzzard, a buzzed-up, stripped-down departure from the cinematic Chamber Pop of their earlier work, particularly their stellar debut, 2006’s The Dust of Retreat.

This year is turning out to be equally momentous for Edwards and the band. They just finished a long U.S. circuit with The Twilight Singers, which was wildly successful by all accounts, and they met and exceeded their goal through the Pledge Music website to acquire a sufficient recording budget to begin work on their fourth album, provisionally titled Rot Gut, Domestic and slated for a 2012 release.

According to Edwards’ blog, tracking was completed in July so there’s a fairly good chance that Margot and the Nuclear So and So’s — Edwards, Kang and Watkins, now joined by keyboardist Cameron McGill, guitarist Ronnie Kwasman and renowned producer Brian Deck on drums — will be trying out some of the new material on their current round of touring.

The So and So’s have always had a good fan base locally, given their Tristate proximity, and their latest rejuvenation could make this gig a don’t-miss event.