Afrosonics, Rosa dos Ventos and Henchmen for Hire @ Neurolux (12/17/13)

I caught Afrosonics' set at the Boise 150 Sesqui-Party back in July and liked what I heard.  Upbeat, multicultural funk--just the thing for a James Brown-enamored music writer who gets awfully tired of the same old surf-garage stuff.  I was also impressed with bandleader Dayo Ayodele's nonprofit Global Lounge, which seeks to help immigrants adjust to living in the Treasure Valley.

I got the chance to write a Boise Weekly feature about Afrosonics and Global Lounge.  When some free time came up on my calendar, I decided to come down and check out the band's new lineup.  I also looked forward to checking out two local groups I'd never seen before, Rosa dos Ventos and Henchmen for Hire.

I counted about 40 people at Neurolux when I arrived.  When Afrosonics played, I counted 65.  I'd like to think that my article helped persuade some of these folks to come down, but that's probably a little hubristic.

Henchmen for Hire opened the show.  This band's soul- and reggae-tinged sound had an adult alternative feel to it--Dave Matthews, Counting Crows, like that.  I'm sure that's enough to make some readers run screaming for the hills, but really, this group wasn't as bad as all that.  For one thing, their lead guitarist was sharp--terse, tasteful but capable of letting off some fireworks.  For another, lead singer Gabe Hess managed to deploy some soul mannerisms (some moans here, a little melisma there) without embarrassing himself.  The band sounded stiff and nervous at times, but a few more gigs should limber them up.  Also, any group that can do all right by Ben E. King's "Stand By Me" and Van Morrison's "Sweet Thing" (not to mention cite James Brown and Marvin Gaye as influences on its Facebook page) has its heart in the right place.

Rosa dos Ventos played next.  This Portuguese/Brazilian/Latin American music group sure didn't need to limber up.  Their horn-like keyboard, fluid rhythm section and snarling guitar hit so fast, tight and hard that they could've been auditioning for the JB's.  Kristine Nunes's warm, low voice had some impressive power, but like the rest of her bandmates, she didn't feel the need to show off her chops too much.  It took the crowd a little while to get on its feet, but the dance floor had filled in pretty well by the end.

Afrosonics closed out the show.  "Rhythm is the key," Dayo Ayodele said at the start of the set, and his band's funk/jazz/reggae-inflected grooves proved him right.  Malleable, hard-driving bass and drums weaved with manic guitar and quirky, dexterous keyboard solos.  The rough, friendly vocals added a nice human touch.  At times, the whole mixture called to mind one of my favorite groups, Sly and the Family Stone.  I don't know if the folks in radio-land caught Ayodele's closing admonition to support local music, but hopefully, they at least caught his opening shout-out to the late, great Nelson Mandela.

You can find info on these acts on Facebook and elsewhere online.

Wild Belle, Saint Rich and Hey V Kay @ Neurolux (9/19/13)

Some of my co-workers at the Record Exchange turned me on to Wild Belle (for a while, it made the regular rotation of CD's played over the store's stereo).  I liked what I heard enough to put this show on the calendar.  The chance to see Hey V Kay again was a nice little bonus (well, not so little, actually--I've put Gut Wrenching on the stereo a few times, and the listens re-convinced me of its excellence).

I counted about thirty-five people when I got to Neurolux.  When Wild Belle played, I counted about eighty.  And actually, the crowd might have been closer to ninety or ninety-five.  A very respectable turnout.

Hey V Kay opened the show.  A few songs into the set, a friend who'd never seen Karen Havey before asked me why she isn't huge in the music scene right now.  I didn't have a good answer.  "Middle-Class Sweetheart" and "Call It" (the song she debuted at the Crux show last June) sounded as tuneful and hook-laden as I remembered, and Havey's gorgeous vocals did well both by them and by her older songs.  Not only did my friend get to hear Havey's "Wicked Game" cover, she got to hear her "Toxic" cover too.  I guess I know what to get my friend for Christmas now...

Saint Rich, a five-man band from New Jersey, played next.  I came up with two different ways of describing this group's mix of ringing guitars, slinky rhythms and nasally, deadpan vocals.  The first is a sweeter, friendlier Strokes.  The second is a less interesting Soft White Sixties.  Which one you prefer will probably depend on your affection for 60's hard rock (and possibly for Delicate Steve, two of whose members are in this group).

Wild Belle closed out the show.  Whenever one of my co-workers plays something... not quite to my taste, shall we say, I just try to remember the good stuff that they've introduced me to.  Like this, for instance.  This Chicago group's blend of skanking reggae grooves and sunny, soothing pop fit together like rum and Coke.  Natalie Bergman's honeyed, lightly smoked vocals topped it all off.  The dance floor was packed and bubbling for the entire set.

You can find info on these groups on Facebook and elsewhere online.  Special thanks to Neurolux and the Record Exchange.

Finn Riggins, Jared Mees and Lionsweb @ Neurolux (8/1/13)

As I've written elsewhere, Finn Riggins was the band that sparked my interest in the Boise music scene.  After I saw them play the VaC one night (opening for tUnE-yArDs, if I recall correctly), I thought, "Wow, if a band like this calls Boise home, what else could be out here?"

This band represents another first for me: I wrote my first Boise Weekly feature about them recently.

So with all of this going for them, no way was I going to miss their last show for the foreseeable future.  As an added bonus, this concert presented me with a couple more firsts--specifically, the chance to see Portland musician Jared Mees and local act Lionsweb for the first time.

The audience at Neurolux already numbered about sixty when I arrived.  When Finn Riggins took the stage, there were so many people that I didn't even bother to count.  Unsurprisingly, I saw quite a few familiar faces in the crowd (Kelsey Swope, Sun Blood Stories, Lori Shandro, Sam Stimpert, Stephanie Coyle, etc.).

Lionsweb a.k.a. Bronwyn Leslie kicked off the show.  I'd heard good things from quite a few people about this local musician.  As soon as she launched into her a capella opening number, I realized that they weren't jiving.  Leslie's bluesy, powerful voice silenced all of the chatter in the room within seconds.  Her vocals and her haunting, Appalachian-esque songs sounded just as impressive bedecked with her simple guitar and piano (even if the chatter picked back up by the bar).  Andy Rayborn contributed some tasteful clarinet.  Some oddball black-and-white montages by Tyler Walker complemented the music's ominousness.

I'm lucky that I got to see her here; she and Kelsey Swope will be going on tour soon with their new project, Psycho Adorable (which, incidentally, I also wrote about in the Weekly).

Jared Mees played next.  When I interviewed him for the Finn Riggins piece, Eric Gilbert urged me to check out Mees's music.  Said he thought it'd be just my thing.  I doubt that he said that because Mees runs Tender Loving Empire, the label which Finn Riggins is signed to.  Anyway, he wasn't wrong.  The slight whine in Mees' rough tenor just added a little flavoring to his conversational delivery.  His punky folk/country tunes and smart, no-bullsh*t lyrics hit the part of me that admires Patterson Hood and Jason Isbell.  "Hiccup drunk in a pickup truck" has to be one of the best rhymes I've heard in a good while.

Finn Riggins' performance wasn't the most intense I've heard from them.  The set's casual feel didn't seem like a bad thing, however; it was like they were saying, "Hey, we're not going anywhere."  Besides, it's not like they didn't sound good: Lisa Simpson's pregnancy didn't seem to have affected her pipes much, Eric Gilbert's keyboards clanged and droned nicely and Cameron Bouiss was as smooth, precise and hard-hitting as ever (I feel kinda bad that I didn't include more about him in the Weekly article).

Anyway, what came through strongest during this set was the groove, the rapport both between the three bandmates and between the band and their audience.  This was especially true at the end, when Jared Mees came onstage to play a loose, loping jam with Finn Riggins.  The crowd cheered and whooped when the band finished and Bouiss wrestled playfully with Mees on the floor.  A good farewell (for now).

You can find info on these acts on Facebook and elsewhere online.  Special thanks to Eric Gilbert and Duck Club Presents.

Soft Metals, Psychic Rites and EVILS @ Neurolux (7/30/13)

I'd never seen any of the three acts on this bill before.  That, of course, gave me all the reason I needed to check this show out.  It helped too that the bill featured Psychic Rites, a band that I'd missed at Treefort, and Soft Metals, a Los Angeles-based group that makes my kind of electronic music (i.e. subdued, moody, sexy).

I counted about forty people when I got to Neurolux.  When Soft Metals played, I counted about the same number inside.  Pretty good turnout for a Tuesday.

EVILS, the new project of First Borns' Christopher Smith and Erik Butterworth, opened the show.  With their driving basslines, straight-ahead beat tracks and snarling guitar, they sounded closer to the Sisters of Mercy than to Joy Division (though a couple of slower numbers made me think of "The Eternal" and "Day of the Lords").  This didn't bother me--I've got a soft spot for Floodland and Vision Thing.  But while the music was enjoyable, it somehow felt a little static.  Maybe they'd do well to beef up the bottom end of their sound.  Or maybe they just need to play a few more gigs.

Psychic Rites played next.  Stasis wasn't this group's problem.  Their bouncy, throbbing beats pushed their chiming guitar and layers of synth hooks forward.  Meanwhile, their lead singer spent a good deal of time hopping around the stage.  The only rub was the caterwauling vocals.  While they did have a certain rough charm, they also seemed to throw the music off slightly.  Then again, I felt the same way about Annex Madly at first.  Besides, the lyrics that I caught had a nice off-kilter humor to them.

Soft Metals' set felt a little off.  Not that the music wasn't good; the chant-like tunes, Ian Hicks' bubbling beats and Patricia Hall's cool, siren's-call vocals were plenty enticing.  The swirls and colored shapes on the screen behind the band augmented the music's hypnotic quality.  But in spite of some bobbing and swaying, the crowd's reaction seemed too subdued.  Maybe the music would've worked better at, say, China Blue during Treefort.  Still, the duo received some good cheers and whistles at the end of the set.

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 keep it going, click the yellow "Give" button and donate.

The Soft White Sixties, Sun Blood Stories and Northern Giants @ Neurolux (7/28/13)

In a way, I'd been waiting for this show for about nine months.  I'd seen the Soft White Sixties each time that they'd played Boise, and I'd walked away from each show convinced that they were a great band.  So I put this show on the schedule the second after I saw the Facebook event page for it.

I counted about forty-five people when I got to Neurolux.  When the Soft White Sixties played, I counted about eighty, sixty of whom were inside.  Part of me wondered if my little preview for this show helped bring some of these folks down, but that was probably just hubris.

Anyway, I bought a copy of the Sixties' new album Get Right as soon as I arrived.  As I took it back to my car (didn't want to risk having it stolen or damaged), I saw and heard Andy Rayborn practicing outside.

Northern Giants (formerly known as Modesto) opened the show.  At first, they sounded terrific: grinding metal, swaggering funk, terse solos, more nuanced vocals.  After a while, however, the songs started to blur together in spite of the sharp arrangements and solid chops.  I love my RAWK as much as the next guy, but this felt like a bit too much of a good thing.  Maybe these guys could vary it up some.  A couple soulful 5/6 numbers, perhaps?  Or some folky, acoustic stuff?

Sun Blood Stories played next.  I don't quite know why, but this group sounded colder, darker, more menacing here than they have in the past.  At times, I coulda almost sworn I was listening to Sabbath.  That wasn't a bad thing, I think--it could've just been a sign of how polished and confident that they've become.  In any case, Brett Hawkins added some nice little embellishments to his drum-work, and Amber Pollard showed off a pretty fearsome growl.  Meanwhile, Ben Kirby's gritty moan and yowling slide and Andy Rayborn's screeching sax sounded as strong as ever.

The Soft White Sixties's set confirmed my belief that this is one of the best modern rock bands.  While he slid all over the stage and yanked the mic stand around a la James Brown, Octavio Genera's raspy, honeyed croon evoked Al Green's sly tenderness.  Between the locked-in groove, the new guitarist's ripping solos and touches like the bass-and-drums breakdown on "Knock It Loose," Genera's bandmates sounded more than ready to play larger venues.  The band's smart blend of pop, soul and hard rock got the crowd dancing and cheering (especially the girls).

I sure will miss the days when you could see the Sixties play for $6.  There can't be many left.

You can find info on these groups on Facebook and elsewhere online.  Special thanks to Eric Gilbert and Duck Club Presents.  If you like what you've read and would like to help keep it going, click the yellow "Give" button.

Boise Weekly Review: Lauren Mann and the Fairly Odd Folk, Holly Johnson Loves You, Starlings Murmurations and Kevin Schlereth @ Neurolux (7/25/13)

photo by Tyler Carney

“You guys can join us up here if you want,” Lauren Mann told the 15-person crowd at Neurolux near the start of her set.

No one moved. However, the song that followed the Calgary musician’s invitation earned a round of loud applause.

In spite of a meager turnout, Lauren Mann and the Fairly Odd Folk delivered a polished, enthusiastic performance on Thursday, July 25. The audience responded by whooping, whistling and clapping to the beat.

***

To read the rest of this review, go to the Boise Weekly's Cobweb blog.  Special thanks to Tyler Carney for his photos.

Boise Weekly Review: The Maldives, Star Anna and Jan Summerhays @ Neurolux (7/23/13)

photo by Tyler Carney

When The Maldives played Neurolux last July, lead singer Jason Dodson wore a Neil Young T-shirt. That seemed a bit redundant, given the Seattle band’s folk/country melodies, steady tempos and terse, yowling guitar solos.

Dodson’s shirt read “Mississippi Records” this time around, at Neurolux July 23, but the music still suggested that he and his bandmates have worn out a few copies of Harvest and After the Gold Rush.

In spite of the derivativeness of their material, The Maldives turned in an enjoyable performance. But the two openers, Jan Reed Summerhays and Star Anna, were far more distinctive.

***

For the rest of this review, you can go to Boise Weekly's Cobweb blog.  Special thanks to Tyler Carney for his photos.

Adventure Galley and Blurred Vision @ Neurolux (7/2/13)

As faithful readers know, I don't mind seeing a band I've never heard much about.  Quite the opposite.  And hey, with a name like Adventure Galley, it almost felt like a dare to go see them.

I counted about thirty people when I got to Neurolux.  About forty-five people were there when Adventure Galley played.  A pretty good turnout.

I sat at the bar for a while, wondering why the show hadn't started.  Then I realized that local DJ Vestral was doing his set.  It wasn't too bad at all--your straight-ahead booming, bombastic clubbin' stuff.  I recognized one sample from a TV commercial.  Nobody danced, but that was probably less the music's fault than the unsuitable sunlight and blood alcohol levels.

Blurred Vision's set surprised me.  I haven't cared much for these guys in the past, but they sounded better here than I remembered.  It could have been due to a better mix or better acoustics.  Whatever the reason, I could hear more little layers and rhythmic wrinkles to their simple synthesizer riffs and stomping, steady beats.  Their detached, heavily filtered vocals stood out more as well.  Not that the lyrics seemed particularly important; I did appreciate having my rational mind tickled, however.  The flashing lights, smoke and lasers were nice touches too.  I still prefer Cloud/Splitter and Edmond Dantes, but pretty good nonetheless.

Adventure Galley played next.  At first, their airy synth drones and squiggles seemed a bit like the fluff on the lead singer's pirate hat: cute and fun but not especially crucial.  However, as their material progressed from a blend of surf, disco and New Wave to a more straightforward, Killers-esque dance-rock, they felt more integral.  In any case, their strong beats, snarling guitar, charmingly cheesy keyboards and pleasantly rough vocals got the dance floor to fill in pretty nicely.  If this group comes back, maybe they can get the Dirty Moogs to open.

You can find info on Blurred Vision and Adventure Galley 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.

Garage Voice, Wellspring and Honor and Starlings Murmurations @ Neurolux (6/30/13)

With their alt-gospel sound, Garage Voice was one of the most interesting bands that I saw last year.  When I saw that they'd be coming back, I jumped at the chance to see them again.  As an added bonus, the bill included Wellspring and Honor, a group I hadn't seen in well over a year, and Starlings Mumurations, whom I could probably stand to see a couple dozen more times.

I counted about fifteen people when I got to Neurolux.  When Garage Voice played, I counted about twenty-five.  So it goes on a Sunday.

Starlings Murmurations opened the show.  Kristy Scott seemed even more confident this time around.  She played while standing, and her singing had an extra ease, depth and nuance to it.  Her guitar playing felt stronger and steadier as well.  All of this gave her music added power; at times, she even reminded me a little of Sera Cahoone.

Wellspring and Honor played next.  This group sounded much more together than they did at Grainey's Basement fourteen months ago.  Slashing riffs met with curling basslines and rumbling drums.  They still didn't quite seem to hit at the same time at points, and Marco Montero didn't seem to have the pipes or the conditioning to belt and stretch out like he wanted.  However, that didn't detract much from the appeal of their well-crafted songs.  Put them at eighty-five or ninety percent of the way there.

Garage Voice sounded a little different than I remembered.  Not that they sounded bad--their music just seemed to have a much stronger soul/R&B feel here.  Stax and Motown devotee that I am, this didn't bother me at all.  Tommy Paginot's clean vocals and fiery guitar blended with Bruce Pearson's spooky, jolting organ and Patrick Toney's tight, swinging drum work.  I worried for a while that no one else was paying attention, but I noticed a few people going up to talk with the band afterwards.  Hopefully, there'll be more next time.

You can find info on these acts on Facebook and elsewhere online.  Special thanks to Wes Malvini and Evil Wine.  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.

Sallie Ford and the Sound Outside and Finn Riggins @ Alive After Five; Radiation City, Sallie Ford and the Sound Outside and Death Songs @ Neurolux (6/26/13)

I'd liked what I'd heard by Sallie Ford and the Sound Outside, but I'd never seen them play live.  When I saw that they'd be playing Alive After Five, then, I marked it down on the calendar.  I just hoped that I'd take enough notes before converting into liquid form.

There were so many people when I got down to the Grove that I didn't bother trying to count them.  I'd guess that there were at least a couple hundred folks.  When Sallie Ford played, there were maybe a couple hundred more.

I got there in time to catch about half of Finn Riggins' opening set.  Lisa Simpson's voice and guitar sounded as melodious, Eric Gilbert's keyboards as textured and Cameron Bouiss's drums as propulsive as ever.  It made me smile to see about a dozen people dancing, especially a couple of young girls and an elderly Asian lady with a tan Army hat.  The set's last song, "Pannin' For Gold," went out to Eric Gilbert's mom, who couldn't make it to this gig.  Nice fella, that Eric Gilbert.

Sallie Ford and the Sound Outside played next.  Rarely do formalists have both the heart to fully embrace their chosen traditions and the smarts to put their own stamp on them.  One part Wanda Jackson, one part Liz Phair, one part the vinyl-collecting librarian of my dreams, Ford is one of those few.  Originals such as the swaggering "They Told Me" and the sassy, surf-tinged "Bad Boys" sounded right at home next to the cover of Loretta Lynn's "Fist City."  Ford seemed a bit subdued, but her pinched, squealing snarl still struck a nice balance between geeky and sexy.  Her bandmates pitched in with strong, swinging rhythms and yowling guitar.  And if their "Heart of Glass" cover didn't quite fit, who cares?  It's a wise formalist who knows when to leave formalism alone.

Miraculously, I stayed close enough to solid after Alive After Five to make it down to Neurolux.  The show there excited me because it featured Death Songs, an act I hadn't seen in well over a year; the Cave Singers, a Treefort 2012 act I'd missed; and Radiation City, one of my top 10 Treefort 2013 acts.

Unfortunately, I learned when I got there that the Cave Singers' van had broken down, forcing them to cancel their appearance (lotta that going around, seems like--the same thing happened with the Nekromantix about two weeks before).  Radiation City and Death Songs were still on board, however, and Sallie Ford and the Sound Outside jumped on the bill to fill things out.

Death Songs played first.  I likened Nicholas Dellfs to Skip James in my review of his April 2012 performance at the VaC.  Hearing his eerie, quavery tenor and ominous but catchy tunes here, however, I thought that he sounded a bit too pop for that analogy to work.  I toyed with comparing him to Travis Ward at first, but Dellf's sharp cover of Townes Van Zandt's "Lungs" brushed that one aside too.  Works for me: I dig Skip James, but nowadays, I play "Snake Song" and "To Live is to Fly" more than "Devil Got My Woman."

Sallie Ford and the Sound Outside played next.  Third time's the charm: I don't know if it was the air conditioning or the beer or the two-set warm-up, but Ford stepped up her game considerably here.  Her vocal attack had more bite ("You may thinkofmeas just some littlegirlyoumet..."), and her interactions with the crowd felt more open and comfortable.  She even told a joke: "Don't have phone sex; you might get hearing AIDS!"  Meanwhile, the band sounded as smooth and strong as they did a couple of hours earlier, and the enclosed space seemed to give the music more concentrated force.  The dance floor filled up early on and stayed full for the duration of the set.

Radiation City closed out the show at Neurolux.  Their shiny tunes, chiming guitar and misty keyboard sounded just as dreamy, but their lithe, bouncy rhythm section sounded much funkier and more rocking than I remembered.  Also, while I'm loath to call someone's singing "soulful" (really, the word gets used way too damn often), Elisabeth Ellison's moans, coos and wails all but demand it.  "Heart of Glass" would've made more sense coming from them than from Sallie Ford.  Given the savvy elusiveness of their lyrics, however, "Happiness is a Warm Gun" worked just as well.

You can find info on these groups on Facebook and elsewhere online.  Special thanks to Eric Gilbert and Duck Club Presents.  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.