Opening Act--------------------
The band billed as “Lurleens” began rocking soon after we arrived at Hi-Dive. It’s quite an oddity for a band to have two people with the same name. I can’t think of any off hand. For me to believe that an entire five-piece band could be named “Lurleen” would require some sort of religious leap of faith. Good thing for me I’m not as easily fooled as the suckers I normally go to concerts with. I was quickly able to shout, “Hey! Those are The Hollyfelds!” Just kidding. I had no idea who Lurleens or The Hollyfelds were before going to the show, so the joke was pretty much lost on me. Still, the fact that they were referring to each other as “Lurleen” and saying things like, “Hey Lurleen, let’s play another song off the new Hollyfelds CD, which you can all buy right over there” was nothing short of genius. This event was billed as a "Hillbilly Prom” and The Hollyfelds totally kicked our three teeth in to open the evening. Playing stringed instruments of all shapes and sizes all different ways, the got the evening off to a raucous start and had half the audience singing along to Dolly Parton’s “Jolene” to finish their set. If I were you, I’d go check out their CD release show at Skylark on Friday, April 3rd. Tell them Empty sent you. They won’t know what you’re talking about.
Headliner--------------------
Sporting cummerbund, overalls, and a Mohawk (a classy move), These United States took the stage and delved into their distinctive alt-bluegrass-meets-Coldplay-inspired set list. Having played a whopping seven shows at SXSW the weekend before, the band looked a little bit haggard (understandably), but was still able to deliver a stellar performance. Pretty much every song The Hollyfelds played was meant to get people up and moving around, which is not TUS’s forte, so the mood was a little more subdued than during the previous act. However, the highlight of the show was the birthday serenade for Ms. Angora Holly Pollo of The Donnybrook Writing Academy, who the poster outside told me presented the event. TUS front man Jesse Elliott led the audience in a round of “Happy Birthday,” followed by a cover of Tom Petty’s “American Girl” that had Ms. Pollo and 100 of her closest friends dancing their moonshine-laden asses off. Having given the audience all he had, Elliott looked like he was ready to collapse by the end of the set, a performance that can be appreciated by any fan of rock and roll.
The Venue & Whatnot--------------------
I must comment on the way the show ended for me, because is was one of the strangest end-of-evening occurrences I’ve had in a long time. So there I am, several beers and four or five Jimmy Beams into the evening, my buzz in full effect. I’m chatting up Father Guido Sarducci IV as I wait for my lady friend to powder her nose. All of a sudden the front door opens and a conga line of about 15-20 people dressed in sailor boy uniforms struts from the front of the bar to the back, then back out the way they came in.
“That was weird,” I say to Father Sarducci, “My lady friend is never going to believe that happened.”
As I see her making her way back to my area, the door connecting Hi-Dive and Sputnik flies open and the conga line comes back in. This time, they circle the dance floor and come past me again towards the front door. I don’t miss my opportunity for Hi-Dive-Hi-Fives this time and get about half of them before they exit. Father Guido and I look at each other shaking our heads at which point he spots TUS musician J. Tom Hnatow getting a drink and chatting up some patrons at the bar.
“Hey, isn’t Tom supposed to be on stage right now?” Father Guido says to me.
“I have no idea what’s going on. I’m leaving.”
And I did.
Link It Up--------------------
These United States
The Hollyfelds
Hi-Dive
Gigbot (photo)
The Donnybrook Writing Academy
0 comments:
Post a Comment