Sweet, wholesome and so damn cute. Ok, I couldn’t resist. Langhorne Slim swung back into San Diego last Monday for an in-store at M-Theory Records and a show at The Casbah to promote his new album, Be Set Free.

Roger and I can’t resist a chance to take Thomas to live music shows. And this was no exception. I actually skipped the first part of derby practice to head over to M-Theory Records for this family outing opportunity. Their late arrival due to The Casbah sound check allowed us to pick up a couple CDs that we’ve been missing including: Contra from Vampire Weekend, The Crow from Steve Martin and Phrazes for the Young from Julian Casablancas.

Langhorne Slim takes your senses to Appalachian Mountains with the song-writing style that you can only imagine stems from backcountry love and appreciation. Many define his style as simply folk music, but hearing the tinge of banjo and passion of the words, you can easily see that it is much more. He invites participants to engage in his gospel-like performances, uplifting both spirits and “spirits” of the drinking variety alike.

The acoustic set started with “Back to the Wild” and “Cinderella,” then prompted the crowd for requests. My brain was thrown for a loop since these were my two favorite songs off his newest album and I never thought they would actually play “Cinderella” in this setting. Luckily, someone else jumped in with a request from an earlier album. For this intimate session Langhorne hid coyly beneath his fedora cradling his well-worn baby guitar with a golden glittered pick guard, appearing as an artist internalizing his craft.

Returning from practice to The Casbah for an additional dose of Langhorne, I missed the opening act April Smith and the Great Picture Show. From what I have heard of them, I truely missed a good show of the old-timey variety.

The Casbah performance varied greatly from the deeply personal insight that caught a glimpse of earlier. More than toe-tapping, you could say it could be best compared to complete revelry. With the same uplift of the heart and soul, Langhorne delivered some of my favorites from his self-titled album,  “Diamonds and Gold,” “Worries” and “Hello Sunshine” along with newer cuts  “I Love You, But Goodbye” and “Say Yes.”

Satisfying my palatte for good, honest music, Langhorne definitely made my day.

From the positive reviews and airplay of Transfer‘s new album, Future Selves the show was sold out two days prior.  If you missed this one, you should be feeling bummed. It is shows like this one that make me energized about music in San Diego. This show had everything: sweat, lights, good friends rocking the stage and hanging out, new bands I never heard of blowing my mind, and incredible performances all the way around.

For photos and a detailed show review:

Talking to a few of my musician friends about going to this show, I was explicitly told not to miss the first band. It was pretty much an order. I had to be there front and center when the show began. In their first ever performance, Hong Kong took the stage. I mean they took the stage. This well-dressed, three-piece band energized the crowd with their instrumentals of something between 70s soul and 50s surf rock. Many commented that it would be their soundtrack of choice if they were the star of a film, walking down the streets of downtown or along the railroad tracks of California.

I wish I could direct you to when and where they are playing next, but since there seems to be another band in this world with the same name, they are pretty much impossible to search for. Hint: you may want to consider another name.

The only time I have seen Wirepony, the next band on the bill, was at a solo show at Lestat’s. NOT AT ALL the same. Patrick Dennis (from the Truckee Brothers and other projects) has put together an awesome line-up for this band. On lead guitar is his son, Aaron Dennis (from Tan Sister Radio). O is on bass (from Fluf, Reeve Oliver, and many other bands past, present, and future) and Charlie McCree on drums (from bands fromerly known as Hatchet Brothers and Momma/Vertibird). Incredible talent separately, but together they have audible power that could trigger a revolution.

This night was the release of their physical album, Right Hook of Love recorded and mixed in just two days at Chaos Recorders. Here is video of “Willing to Break,” that is on the album, shot by Aaron using a camera hidden in the back of the stage:

Their energy and passion for the music prevented me from taking quality photos. Look at that, I’m blaming the band for my poor photography skills. The only time I could get a good photo of Aaron was while he was tuning.

The high level of emotion and energy did not stop there. Oh no. Transfer stormed through their set filling the room with heart drenching resonance. Waves of unassailable harmonies drifted through the air into the minds of the crowd causing them to lurch and shake. Their live performances can never be duplicated. Although great, both albums (Future Selves and Sunken Eyes) do not compare to seeing them in person. 

With the sold out crowd and awesome tour lined up, I imagine that seeing them play at the Casbah and smaller venues may be a rarer thing in the near future. Catch them while you can.