T0W3RS is Derek Torres solo for now, and it's a different kind of trip. Last time I wrote about T0W3RS, I mentioned they were moving towards a more electronic province, which I liked, but also wondered if they would lose the twangy I also liked. But really, Derek just has an edge that's driven by the energy he displays on stage, not his guitar. Oh yeah, and great songwriting. In this format, just him alone up there, some keys and other toys, this energy really comes out even more. Seldom have I seen a solo act come off as so rock'n'roll.
Then See Gulls played what was maybe their third show? You wouldn't know it. Their 50s clean pop-90s fuzz pop-sorta meld is really fun. And bittersweet. And sometimes a little biting. Like on the song By Now. Ca-CAW!
Raleigh's Wool took the stage amid the crunchy melodies of the first cut, Mountains, from their EP, Delta. Their sound also harkens back to the 90s. I'm thinking Blake Babies, Built to Spill, or even my old buddies from Baton Rouge, Becky Sharp (not to intentionally alliterate or anything... is that even a verb?). Anyway, Blake Babies for the guitar more than anything (or guitarist John Strohm's own band, Antenna). I think I saw Wool early on, maybe at Local Beer Local Band?, and thought they were okay but had a lot to work out. Maybe it was the larger venue of Kings, which I think it really suited their sound, but they are most definitely getting wherever it is they're going. Check out the excellent EP Delta here.
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