Music

April Showers, Mae Flowers

musical miners Mae to visit Stout

Kyle Shaffer |

All too often, pop music seems to be a genre in search of something. The perfect hook. The elusive meaning. The necessary balance. Artists burn themselves out pushing the musical envelope while never really settling down in front of a mirror and asking, “Do I like this?” There’s something about a band being comfortable in its own skin that you don’t even have to like as a fan; you just have to respect it. Virginia natives Mae are a group altogether cozy in their acceptance of musical creation as a process. The band isn’t some lethargic sloth, but rather their maturity and tact give them a sense of grace in the records they put out. Any fan will cite 2003’s Destination: Beautiful as the album that started it all, but will likely herald 2005’s The Everglow as the feather in the group’s collective hat. Various B-sides and a few Warped Tours later, the band has been touring in support of 2007’s major label debut Singularity, a collection of songs that sees the band painting with the same colors, but using broader strokes. Regardless of whether the new material is more “accessible” and what that implies, the group continues to put out creative work that aims at something beyond itself. It will no doubt be a show worth experiencing as UW-Stout hosts not only Mae, but Madison-area openers The Box Social in The Great Hall.

    Mae + The Box Social • Wednesday, Oct. 22 • Great Hall, Memorial Student Center, UW-Stout • 7:30pm • public $12, students $8 • 232-2432