The Show

Alright, the show was pretty damn good, all through, from front to back, with The Damnwells rocking the house, just as I had hoped, though they lacked the beautiful backing and harmony vocals that are present on their CD. They recently changed drummers, and as per Seth, the old drummer handled the majority of the backing vox. Ah well. But otherwise, they bring a high-intensity show (even to the Birchmere!), and the pint-sized Alex Dezen has a huge voice, to go along with some killer guitar riffs. It was such a rush to hear them kick start into "I Am A Leaver" live on stage.

Ari Hest and his backing band put on a solid performance. He's got a few catchy songs, and his voice is solid, but he just doesn't do it for me. What can I say?

But the surprise discovery of the night? The above-pictured Julian Velard. This quirky New York-accented, keyboard-playing character has an amazingly rich and soulful voice that made CC and me turn our heads. His songs started out a little bit weak on the hooks, but his set (along with the songs) grew stronger as it went on. There's nothing I like better than a pleasantly surprising opening act. Lines Through Lines has a couple of his mp3s up over here.