The weekend was busier than all of last week combined. Friday night saw three power trios of the Little Rock scene hit the stage at White Water for what was a marvelously fun time.
The Reds (pictured) were up first. They have a nicely mixed brand of garage & indie rock. Jason Thompson knows how to play his drums, Graham Cobb had a good handle on his guitar, and John McAteer really tied things up nicely with his bass and vocals. I had never seen them prior to this particular night, but what I saw I liked. They kept up high energy and their songs were all fun to listen to. The coolest thing about their whole gig was having a mutual friend with McAteer, one who he hadn't seen in something like 18 years, and hearing a song written about that person. It was neat talking about that after the show.
Moving on though, The See took the stage next. I'm eagerly awaiting their debut EP, Bars of Gold. You can listen to it here if you aren't familiar with them. I highly recommend you see tehm live to get a feel for these guys. It's often times harder to truly see what an artist is like without seeing them live, and well I'm usually always energized and ready for awesome things after one of their shows. I still have to say Storytelling is my favorite song that isn't on their EP, but I'm not letting that discourage me. They have several new songs and are sounding more cohesive as time goes on.
Finally, Friday night wrapped up with an awesome set from Jonathan Wilkins. He was accompanied by Matt Floyd of Smoke up Johnny and Mike Motley who you've seen playing around town in one of several bands over the years. I'm slightly at a loss as to why so many people left or wandered upstairs when Wilkins started to play. He seems to be a crowd favorite from what I can see, so it was a bit confusing. However, he played like he was playing for a full house, and his voice was as strong and primal as ever. I love his bluesy rock sound and it's only gets better with back up. I always keep my eyes open for new shows, and if you don't have a copy of his latest record, Highway Robbery, you ought to.
After a long night and little sleep, I wandered over to North Little Rock to see what this Whale Fire show was going to be all about. Apparently, 107 Liquor of Sherwood is sponsoring these block party-esque events in conjunction with Saturdays that the Arkansas Twisters & Travs both have games. With the cooperation of downtown North Little Rock, the block between 3rd & 4th Streets on Main Street were closed between 4:30 and 6pm. There was stage set up facing the river nearer 4th street. I got down there a little after 4:30 and was greeted to Whale Fire already playing. There were I'd say around 40 people when I got there and it had dwindled down to 20 or so by the time 6:30 rolled around. Whale Fire went through their whole collection of songs, played a few new ones, and also threw in a few covers for good measure. The sound was surprisingly better than I thought it'd be, and I'm looking forward to seeing a few more shows like it in the near future. I found a site that had the dates for the series of concerts, but it doesn't list which bands are playing at the moment. I'm supremely interested in keeping up with this because I think it's an awesome idea. Anyways, I saw several people who I'd never think would be Whale Fire fans, but they proved me wrong. The show was free, got people out in the nice weather, and I think it's safe to say that we all had a great time. Now if only the boys of Whale Fire had that EP out. I know T & I are looking very forward to it.
I have photos from both events that are coming very soon.
--L
Well I guess I need to explain the title of the post before everyone goes crazy wondering what it's all about. "Storytelling" and "Yul Brynner" are two of the songs that a local trio, The See, play. I have mentioned The See in passing, but I really do hope great things come their way. They have several shows booked in the near future and I urge people to check them out.
The See consists of Joe Yoder, Dylan Yelenich, and Tyler Nance. Each one is musically gifted in their own right and combined they make some really interesting music. I've now seen them five or six times, and each time I notice something a little different about them. Whether it's Nance twirling a drumstick during a pause or Yelenich's exuberant bass playing, they know how to keep people's attention. During this specific show, Yoder fell over, lost his guitar pick, and started slamming his knuckles on his guitar to keep the song going. I had no idea he hadn't planned it at all because it seemed to have come so naturally to him, and when a musician can convince me of something ridiculous like that, I'm hooked. These guys have a fantastic stage presence that I haven't seen a whole lot of lately which is really refreshing.
I saw them the other night at On The Rocks, which is not typically a place I go, but I like to support up and coming Little Rock bands. I got to talk with the guys before the show and wanted to hear what they had to say about their music. They described it to me as post-punk meets indie rock. I know it's a large spectrum to fit any band in, but I love the fact that it is fully open to interpretation. The Arkansas Times called them "a noise band." When I think of noise music, I literally think of just noise with no vocals. However, because I don't listen to that genre, I could be completely off. There are definitely elements of noise to the music though because Yoder plays with various levels of feedback on several songs, and there is a metal string of beads incorporated with the cymbals of the drum set every once in a while. In the proper context, controlled noise can add so much to a song, and I like what has been incorporated so far.
I was told that they want their music to be somewhat confusing to the audience, and I have noticed that it is to some extent. If I hadn't been paying attention when I saw them, I could have easily missed several songs because they fit together and complimented each other so well. My curiosity has been peaked and I look forward to new and exciting musical concepts from them.
--L
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