When Jandek played Indianapolis for the first time back in 2006, it was crazy enough to see the guy himself, on what would turn out to be a still-going, cult-expanding (disintegrating?) tour. As he still apparently does, he picked up some local Indy people for support, and here’s part of what I wrote about it then (don’t judge–I cranked this out late at night before forgetting the whole thing):

The band played about 9 or 10 songs with a surprising and satisfying amount of range and differentiation between them. Each song started with Vollmar and Johnson finding a basic rhythmic structure, which Jandek would recognize, followed by Smith and Janes, who were there mostly to provide texture. Vollmar, who caused a bit of concern re: his chops before the show, proved to be an incredibly competent improviser, often emerging within songs as the most striking feature. He alternated between rhythmic styles well—from a John McIntire-ish horizontal splay of ride cymbal and snare on the opening song, to a stunning Buddy Rich-style polyrhythmic march on another, and many, many stylistic shifts in between. Johnson veered eerily close to funk vamps on several numbers, which, when combined with Smith’s flute, channeled Eric Burdon-era War, or Gil Scott-Heron’s early 1970s backing bands, which made for a strange friction when Jandek was simultaneously singing lines like “if I unscrew your head, are you full of sand?” The third and fourth songs were sort of revelatory in this regard—Johnson and Vollmar locked into a thing that reminded me of On the Corner, over which Jandek worked out a blues lament: “Good bye mama, I must go over, to see what’s on the other side.” We’re not talking Sonny Boy Williamson here, but we are talking something I clearly did not expect to hear.

So if that set recalled Gil Scott-Heron or War, Jandek’s set on Sunday in Houston (his hometown) resembled our boy auditioning for Freakey Styley-era Red Hot Chili Peppers, or else jamming with a bassist who really likes Larry Graham a lot. It’s absolutely fucking bizarre if you’re even remotely familiar with Jandek, and probably pointless and lame if you’re not (just like, well, Jandek). But if you are familiar, wait until about :50 into this clip, when the camera pans around the crowd, and you can get your cognitive dissonance on while watching people freak with each other to Jandek, as he seemingly intones “what do you want? Do something!” Thanks to Marc M. for the tip.