In my line of work, it’s always refreshing to see two bands in two days that REALLY impress me.
You see, it’s not that I book suckey bands; it’s just that I deal with SO MANY of them- that it’s nice to see bands that have got the whole package going on- music, look and attitude-
Friday night was a triple bill with The Cringe, The Thrives and the standout of the night- The Motel Creeps- from New York City.
The guys are all older- late twenties and early thirties- so that helps with the realism-factor. No pretensions in dealing with them.
And they’ve got ‘the look’ down as well. Nothing over the top- not quite “guyliner” and “hey, I picked all this out at the thrift store” clothing- they all wear black. All black. But not quite goth-black; more wearing what best represents the dark tones of music from their record – The Gifts of Happenstance.
I found them on MySpace- clicking through band after band after band- and they had a date open on the way to playing DC9 in DC on the 18th- and I had a slot open on a rock bill for Friday the 17th.
Musically- they’re quite evidently influenced by late 80′s/early 90′s new wave and brit-pop. Fans of Echo and The Bunnymen, Jesus and Mary Chain, The Cure, etc-
Vocalist Greg Welch absolutely crooned and bellowed in ways that were stronger than what I had heard online. If someone were to ask me who the strongest vocalist that I’d seen or heard at a show at ABC over the past several months was- Welch would get the honor. Hands down.
It’s rare that an unsigned band has this seamless synergy between memebers- Bassist John Vitelli and drummer Jim Connolly laid the speedy four-on-the-floor-almost-breakbeat rhythms that have seeped into way into modern electro-dance-jambands setlists. Guitarist Eric Butler effortlessly produces intricate and airy leads- and back to Welch- belts out heartfelt and massive vocals that kept the small but engrossed crowd at the edge of our collective seats.
Shifting gears to Saturday- we finally worked out a date with Midnight Spaghetti and The Chocolate G-Strings.
Figure, with a name like Midnight Spaghetti and The Chocolate G-Strings- they’ve gotta have SOME sort of panache- and panache they had!
Seven piece horn band from Harrisonburg VA, they played a set at Ceoltas during last years Millennium Music Conference and we’d been trying to work out a date since then-
Seven guys onstage absolutely LOVING what they do- dressed like a cross between pimps and nineteen thirties hustlers (sunglasses and all) they kicked out the jams and kept the crowd of around 200 on their feet all night-
Check back for MSATCGS dates soon-
Midnight Spaghetti and The Chocolate G-Strings official site
And now- back to our regularly scheduled programming…
