They're certainly one of the most economic prog-rock bands around: As lengthy and as grand in scope as their songs are (they were able to squeeze only 11 into 70 minutes, with almost no banter or substantial pauses in between), there was no frippery, no long-winded soloing (no substantial solos of any kind, really), no tricky time signatures, and no multipart epics.
Instead, Curtis, his keyboard- and bass-playing brother Brandon, and drummer Josh Garza just locked into a groove and rode it, feeding off of one another's energy so that songs such as "The Road Leads Where It's Led" reached a stunning climax through simplicity and repetition.
The rack of lights that stretched all the way across the back of the stage might have seemed extravagant for a young band, but the effect suited Secret Machines well, throwing them occasionally into backlit shadow as they created their hypnotic stomp and thunder.
Although less than half of the set was devoted to the group's excellent debut album, "Now Here Is Nowhere," the new songs were strong enough to deflect any reservations about the unfamiliar material. That's an encouraging sign for the future. If closing with the driving "Nowhere Again" was a minor blunder, that's only because it would have been nearly impossible to top the preceding "First Wave Intact," which ended with a thrilling blast of noise and light, overpowering the audience's senses.
Despite taking more time to set up than perform, openers Moving Units were filled with nervous energy as they played an updated version of rhythm-driven postpunk. They were preceded by Autolux's hybridized Sonic Youth/Stereolab art noise.
