Phosphorescent, Strand of Oaks at Rock & Roll Hotel, 3-26-13

Phosphorescent at Rock & Roll Hotel, 3-26-13 

Brian, Julia, Joel, Jill, and I all went to this show, but Jill and I arrived earlier and since the show was sold out, the place was packed, so we never connected with the others. We did find the Indie Meetup group, though, and met a few interesting people that we talked to between acts.

We had trouble finding parking that evening, so we missed the first part of the opener Strand of Oaks, but I can't say that I was sad about it. It's a singer/guitarist and a drummer, and they were good, but I wasn't all that engaged in the performance. Mostly, I remember the drummer bobbing his head like Animal from the Muppets. It was pretty funny.

Phosphorescent is technically just the singer/songwriter Matthew Houck with a hired backup band. The last time I saw him was at Black Cat and I was blown away by how amazing he was live. I had never before thought I was an alt-country fan, but that sold it for me. This show was not as good. The sound was poor at Rock and Roll Hotel so I ended up not enjoying the new songs I don't know yet, because I couldn't really make out the vocals. I was also distracted by an obnoxious audience member for quite a few songs, and at other times by the seemingly drugged-up keyboardist who kept trying to steel the limelight. The show was ok, but it didn't live up to the hype from SXSW that I heard about on All Songs Considered, so I was a bit let down. I'd still go see him again, but I'm hoping for a better venue next time - one with good sound.