Somewhere along the line, someone conjured up the term Math Rock to delineate a style of music that combines the immediacy and economy of Indie Rock with the intricacy and complexity of Prog without the hipster artifice of the former and the interminable bloat of the latter. Maps & Atlases certainly satisfies all of the criteria to be considered part of the Math Rock fraternity; the Chicago-based quartet plays four-minute songs not half hour suites; guitarists Dave Davison and Erin Elders play with a delicacy and ferocity that turns on a dime; and the rhythm section of bassist Shiraz Dada and drummer Chris Hainey provide a foundation that is as solid as bedrock and as slippery as mercury.
Maps and Atlases plays the MidPoint Indie Summer Series at Fountain Square with Soapland and Wild Talents. Go here to read Brian Baker’s full Sound Advice.
This article appears in Jun 8-14, 2011.