During SXSW I was held captive in Boston and spent a large part of that week picking up on patterns in tweets. I realize this sounds really pathetic but at least half of the people I was following were in Austin and dropping names of bands I had never heard all over the place, so I collected those names into a nice little pile. One that was mentioned more than a few times, and by people whose opinions and taste in music I respect, was
The Apache Relay. When I saw they were coming to Boston I knew I had to see them.
The Apache Relay opened for Tristen and Ezra Furman & The Harpoons last night and it felt like the headlining act was going first. They had so much energy, enthusiasm, and amazing dance moves (that I am totally stealing) that their stage presence trumped the following acts. The five of them crammed on stage looked like they were about to knock each other out with every twist and leg kick. Sometimes the fiddle looks ridiculously small and delicate in the midst of a roots-rock band, but the way Kellen Wenrich played it, it fit right in like it was incredibly natural to be jumping around and foot stomping with a traditional instrument in hand.
 |
| They moved around far too much to get a good picture...but that's a good thing. |
Halfway through their set they broke out the song "Home is Not Places", a song about that homesickness a band can experience during the long weeks on the road. This song kicked their performance up another notch as they played with a fervor usually not seen until the closing song for most bands. They started visibly sweating and their faces turned bright red while belting out the song. From there on out, it was action packed songs and the crowd continually crept closer and closer. The Apache Relay's songs showcase a tremendous amount of talent from the well crafted lyrics, to the perfect blending of fiddle, guitars, and keyboard. Their sound can go from delicate quiet verses, to crashing drums, and seriously shredding their guitars in an instant. It really gets your blood pumping. They closed with even more energy than they started with, playing "Can't Wake Up", a song off their new record,
American Nomad, out next week.
Most of the time I leave shows thinking one of two things; either "that was good" or "I can't wait to see them again", and this was very much the latter. I might just end up in Philly on Saturday night to see them again. They really are that fantastic and I highly recommend going to see them.
Visible Voice recorded the show and I'm sure the audio files will be up soon.
No comments:
Post a Comment