A somewhat surprisingly large crowd — given the variety of other shows last Saturday night (U2, Man Man, Guitar Wolf) — came to the to see garage rock band . Sadly, I arrived too late (don’t ask) to hear openers , a great Sub Pop act from Milwaukee, whose SXSW appearances, and elsewhere, have been excellent, by many accounts. Their energetic CD, “Thatap How We Burn” is highly recommended.
Energetic, but uneven, described the set by Nashville’s , who played next. Touring in support of the soon-to-be-released, already well-reviewed by Pitchfork (if that helps) album “We Are The Champions” they came roaring out of the gate, sounding like a two-man version of Blue Cheer. The brother act (singer-guitarist Jake and drummer, Jamin Orrall) followed that with a far slower, long freak-out piece that changed the pace dramatically, dashing some initial momentum.
Clearly there were people who came specifically to hear JTB, while still more were drawn in by their excellent playing (a mosh pit even broke out a few times) and Jake Orrall’s showmanship. He came off-stage, played out into the crowd and later, even crowd-surfed, again, while still playing. After a bit, he fell or was dropped (remember, it was Saturday night) and still didn’t miss a note. The brothers have some great, infectious, highly energetic songs and really took off about 25 minutes into their set, only to follow that peak with a few slower numbers that again slowed the momentum toward the end. No matter, Jeff the Brotherhood, as evidenced by the setap numerous high points, are definitely worth keeping an eye on, as they develop.
Led by singer-guitarist Craig Fox, Cincinnati’s Greenhornes are better known, among some, for having their powerful rhythm section (drummer, Patrick Keeler and bassist, Jack Lawrence) appropriated by Jack White to form the Raconteurs (they also backed Loretta Lynn on her “Van Lear Rose” CD), than for the Greenhornes’ sporadic recording output.
Together, on and off, since 1996, the band’s sound has evolved from their garage rock beginnings. Adding a keyboard/rhythm guitarist for a broader sound, the 2011 version of the Greenhornes sounded less like the Sonics, and more like Sonic Youth.
Having to follow the freneticism and showmanship of Jeff the Brotherhood, along with the Greenhornes’ tendency to perform six or seven minute songs near motionless, didn’t make their task of entertaining an after-midnight Larimer crowd any easier. They did play a few of the band’s early signature garage rock songs, but it wasn’t enough to inspire anyone up front to dance and it definitely wasn’t enough to keep a noticeable chunk of the scenesters in the crowd from filtering out. Still, at the end of the band’s hour-long set, the remaining Larimer Lounge audience appeared pretty pleased with what they’d heard.
Follow our news and updates on , our whereabouts on and our relationship status on . Or send us a telegram.
Mike Long is a Longmont-based writer and comedian and a regular contributor to Reverb.
