Good friends, good tequila, and good times are common to any RCPM show, but on this night these principles rang truer than usual.  Roger Clyne came out to the farewell party for my friends Dave and Laura, treating us to very intimate (and drunken) solo acoustic renditions of Peacemakers and Refreshments tunes.  As a nightcap, pals Johnny Hickman (Cracker) and Jim Dalton (Railbenders) joined in for some fun singalongs and cover tunes.

Dave and Laura, you’ll be missed!

Roger Clyne
11.01.2008
Private Event, Secret Location

Source:  Mix [Microtch Gefell M300’s > Lunatec V3 (opti-mod) > Nomad JB3] +
[SBD > Apogee Mini-Me > M-Audio Microtrack II] > WAV >
Mixing in Adobe Audition 3.0 > CDWave > Flac16
Taped by:  Lance Stack

Setlist:
(Roger Solo)
1. intro
2. Hello New Day
3. Mexico
4. I Do
5. Never Thought
6. Contraband
7. Wanted
8. My Best Friend’s Girl > Easy
9. Better Beautiful Than Perfect
10. Leaky Little Boat
11. Broken Record
12. Tell Yer Mamma
13. Maybe We Should Fall In Love
14. Beautiful Disaster
15. Switchblade
16. Mekong
17. Feeling
(Roger, Johnny Hickman, and Jim Dalton)
18. San Bernardino Boy
19. banter
20. Ring of Fire
21. banter
22. Teen Angst
23. Sundown
24. Banditos
25. banter
26. American Girl
(Encore)
27. crowd/banter
28. Green and Dumb

You can grap the zipfile here.

I was quite surprised when Andy annouced between songs at the Meadowlark that this was the second time Houses had performed for a crowd.  For a band that had only taken the stage once prior to Friday night, the buzz is already spreading among Denver music fans.  After seeing the show, it’s easy to understand why.

Judging by the crowd response, Houses promise to be a great addition to the local scene.  Their set showcases a number of catchy indie pop singalongs (reminiscent of Hearts of Palm), mellow jangles, dark jams, and straight-up rockers such as the “Good-Times Bad-Times” influenced “Red Feather”.

Houses have two shows left on the books for this year.  Don’t miss ’em!

• 11/28/2008 – Meadowlark
• 12/13/2008 – Larimer Lounge

Houses
11.06.2008
The Meadowlark, Denver, CO

Source:  DPA 4060s (Core-Sound HEBs) > battery box > Lunatec V3 > M-Audio Microtrack 2 > CF > WAV > Adobe Audition 3.0 > CDWave
Taped by:  Lance Stack

Setlist:
1. intro
2. We’re Alright
3. Fair Weather
4. Rainy Day Parade
5. Crossing the North Sea
6. California Dreams
7. Circles and Squares
8. Matthew’s Groove
9. Red Feather

(A megaupload link to the full show can be found here.)

I was lucky enough to catch Vic Chesnutt with Elf Power down in Santa Fe on Wednesday, as they make their way west.  This tour is in support of their joint collaboration, Dark Developments, just released last week.

Elf Power opened the show with a set of their own music.  After a short break, Vic joined the band on stage to perform most of the Developments material, followed by a pair of moving tunes from earlier albums.  To close out the show, Vic returned to the stage and wowed the crowd with a solo rendition of “See You Around”, from 1996’s About to Choke.

Vic and Elf Power will be in Denver on 11/19 at the Hi-Dive, and I hope to see some of you there.  Until then, here are the Santa Fe performances to hold you over.

Vic Chesnutt (with Elf Power)
11.05.2008
Santa Fe Brewing Company, Santa Fe, NM

Source:  Microtch Gefell M300’s > Lunatec V3 (opti-mod) > Nomad JB3 >
Firewire > WAV > Adobe Audition 3.0 > CDWave
Taped by:  Lance Stack

Setlist:
1. (intro)
2. Mystery
3. Little Fucker
4. And How
5. Teddy Bear
6. We Are Mean
7. (banter)
8. Stop the Horse
9. (tuning/banter)
10. Bilocating Dog
11. Phil the Fiddler
12. Old Hotel
13. Independence Day
(Encore)
14. (banter)
15. See You Around

Elf Power
11.05.2008
Santa Fe Brewing Company, Santa Fe, NM

Source:  Microtch Gefell M300’s > Lunatec V3 (opti-mod) > Nomad JB3 >
Firewire > WAV > Adobe Audition 3.0 > CDWave
Taped by:  Lance Stack

Setlist:
1. Owl Cut (White Flowers in the Sky)
2. Spiral Stairs
3. Fried Out
4. unknown
5. The Arrow Flies Close
6. Dream in Sound
7. Hole In My Shoe
8. The New Mythology
9. Paralyzed
10. Quiver and Quake
11. An Old Familiar Scene
12. Nothing’s Going To Happen

Notes:
Various flaws and level changes in first Elf Power song, as I was still setting up gear.
The Vic set is ridden with wind noise (especially in the quiet parts), but is still quite listenable.

Here are zipfiles of both acts:
Elf Power
Vic Chesnutt with Elf Power

As promised, here’s the last set from Tuesday night, featuring another Canadian band, The Acorn. Lisa has a great review of the night posted at Reverb, and she’s right on target by pointing out that syncopation sets this band apart from the rest of the pack.  While the songs are undeniably folk-rock, complex drum/bass rhythms and a judicious use of harmonics result in a sound that stretches toward acts like Battles or Dirty Projectors.  This makes for a very interesting listen.

The Acorn
10.28.2008
Hi-Dive, Denver, CO

Source:  Microtch Gefell M300’s > Lunatec V3 (opti-mod) > Nomad JB3 >
Firewire > WAV > Adobe Audition 3.0 > CDWave > Flac16
Taped by:  Lance Stack

Setlist:
1. Hold Your Breath
2. Low Gravity
3. Crooked Legs
4. Dents
5. Brokered Heart
6. Darcy
7. Glory
8. Oh Napoleon
9. Even While You’re Sleeping
10. Flood Pt. 1

(The full show as a zipfile is available via megaupload.)

When I headed down to see The Shaky Hands this week, I was pleasantly surprised by the opener, Toronto’s Ohbijou.  Their U.S. tour, in support of a recent split 12″ release with The Acorn, concludes tonight in Chicago, and then they’ll be back to Ontario for a string of dates in November.  This is an excellent set–many of the songs in this set haven’t yet seen an official release, and the laid-back atmosphere in the Hi-Dive stimulated plenty of band-crowd interaction, stories, and jokes.

Ohbijou
10.28.2008
Hi-Dive, Denver, CO

Source: Microtch Gefell M300’s > Lunatec V3 (opti-mod) > Nomad JB3 >
Firewire > WAV > Adobe Audition 3.0 > CDWave > Flac16
Taped by: Lance Stack

Setlist:
1. Memoriam
2. St. Francis
3. Black Ice
4. Cliff Jumps
5. Wildfires
6. Darcy
7. New Years
8. Tender Bones
9. Steep

(Full zipfile of show.)