When I learned about this show, I looked Jessica Hernandez and the Deltas up on Spotify. I found an EP entitled Weird Looking Women in Too Many Clothes. Interesting, I thought. Then I played a couple songs. Very interesting, I thought. So, on the calendar this show went.
There were about thirty-five people when I arrived at Neurolux. When Jessica Hernandez took the stage, I counted over fifty. Very respectable.
Cutting Cages opened the show. As Nirvana and Sleater-Kinney have showed, there's nothing like a good drummer to help you channel your angst. New recruit Brandon Walker's jazzy rumble on the "With Or Without You" cover couldn't match Larry Mullen's straight-ahead one-two beat. However, his frantic work on the originals lent some release and forward motion to the group's pained vocals, cool saxophone and elegant guitar. The mix sounded a bit cacophonous at times, but that kinda suited the messy emotions of the lyrics.
Local band Bread and Circus played next. Their Facebook page has an explanation for their name: "A musical metaphor for superficial means of melodic appeasement. Bread & Circus for the masses!" Smart enough and unpretentious enough for me. This group's steady tempos, fat bass, tingling mandolin and pleasantly unvarnished vocals create a nice hang-loose feel. Some sharp guitar soloing added some kick.
Jessica Hernandez and the Deltas closed out the show. They hailed from Detroit, but their music sounded just as much like Stax as it did like Motown. Between Hernandez's strong, smoky vocals, the quirky lyrics and her bandmates' forceful trombone and tough, Latin-tinged funk, this group would've made a killer double bill with Pickwick. The dance floor got good and lively as this set progressed.
You can find info on these groups on Facebook and elsewhere online. Special thanks to Eric Gilbert and Radio Boise. If you like what you've read and would like to help keep it going, click the yellow "Give" button and donate. Even $5 would help.
Local band Bread and Circus played next. Their Facebook page has an explanation for their name: "A musical metaphor for superficial means of melodic appeasement. Bread & Circus for the masses!" Smart enough and unpretentious enough for me. This group's steady tempos, fat bass, tingling mandolin and pleasantly unvarnished vocals create a nice hang-loose feel. Some sharp guitar soloing added some kick.
Jessica Hernandez and the Deltas closed out the show. They hailed from Detroit, but their music sounded just as much like Stax as it did like Motown. Between Hernandez's strong, smoky vocals, the quirky lyrics and her bandmates' forceful trombone and tough, Latin-tinged funk, this group would've made a killer double bill with Pickwick. The dance floor got good and lively as this set progressed.
You can find info on these groups on Facebook and elsewhere online. Special thanks to Eric Gilbert and Radio Boise. If you like what you've read and would like to help keep it going, click the yellow "Give" button and donate. Even $5 would help.
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