Local Band Roars Off Into Sunset With Go! Farewell

Milo
Go! Studios

Chapel Hill band Milo bid farewell to the live music scene Aug. 23. As band members prepare to leave for other states and occupations, they took time to give their fans a preview of their upcoming and last LP at Go! Room 4.

With openers Spiraling and Pilot Round the Sun, Milo played a lengthy and intense show to an audience that increased in size and energy throughout the evening.

Anticipation built as a small crowd filtered through the door and Pilot Round the Sun took the stage. All the way from Westchester, Penn., the band's bass, two guitars and drums melded into a bluesy punk funk.

Throughout Pilot Round the Sun's show, the crowd packed the room and cigarette smoke clouds took to the ceiling. By the time equipment had been moved about and Milo's five members manned their instruments, Go! was packed and fans were ready to say an evening-long goodbye.

But the show's tone was anything but mournful. Playing much of its new work, including songs like "The Ship Has Sunk" from its upcoming LP, Milo threw the crowd a punch of alternative rock. Ranging from mellow to frenzied, the tunes displayed a more mature Milo, far evolved from their early Loaded Gun demo.

Evoking Pearl Jam with lyrically driven rock stylings, Milo skipped over much of its early work, preferring to play from its early 2002 EP Even If You Knew the Language and its new body of work -- yet to be released.

Vocalist and guitarist Russ Baggett said the band is not playing its old material anymore. "If we played some of those songs, they'd sound worse than they could ever possibly sound."

Milo put on a hard-hitting show for old fans, even with new songs that some audience members hadn't yet heard. Showcasing its well-aged ability and connection to the audience, Milo seemed in its element at Go!, where the band played late into the night.

"We started playing here when this place opened up," said bassist Jeremy Buenviaje. "We kind of like to say this is our home. We always come back here."

And it's here, in the Chapel Hill area, that Milo finished what it started four years ago. But with the frenzy of well-wrought sound, intelligent vocals and a loyal crowd, the band's final show felt more like a hello than a goodbye.

The Arts & Entertainment Editor can be reached at artsdesk@unc.edu.