Lucero/The Ready Room

Lucero and Murder by Death

The Ready Room/St. Louis Missouri

Wednesday, July 16, 2014

Murder by Death and Lucero the other night.

They were playing “The Ready Room” which I had not attended a show at prior to this performance.  They have been hosting more and more quality acts lately including my fav’s The Old 97’s.  I had never seen Murder by Death before and they cut right into it with twangy, mounrful Flannery O’Connor soundtrack music about alcoholism, death and of course murder.They are not Chatty Cathies but their lead singer, keyboardist, and guitarist Adam Turla told the crowd.”

According to “Andreina Byrne and KC’s “The Pitch”, “Murder By Death has been riding the wave of dark western for years. Their sound is a haunting one - moreChildren of the Corn than back-porch Americana, but still graceful and wistful at the same time. Cellist Sarah Balliet’s orchestral elements brought some sentimentality to songs that might otherwise drop heavily as morbid tunes. Keyboardist Scott Brackett would often switch things up for a mandolin or trumpet riff, driving tracks “The Curse of Elkhart” to thrilling - and slightly creepy - heights. Turla’s voice was so eerie and enchanting, you either fell in love with him or avoided his eyes for fear of him casting a curse.”  

I quote her because i thought she was brilliant, right on and said it better than I could.  This is a band worth seeing.  They will make a living but never kill it but music is better for bands like this making great music because… it is all they can do.  Their show in St. Louis was just too loud.  The mournful jello was not mournful and the volume was deafening.  The room was packed and the cinder blocks and warehouse roof made me have to move around to find a place with listenable sound.  It was a good opener and the crowd clearly loved them but this is a band I would recommend listening to their music at home rather then take the time and cash to go to their show.

I have seen Memphis-based Lucero at least 7 times.  The first was in the long gone and not much lamented “Fred’s Music Lounge” that was on Chippewa across from Paul's bait and Tackle.  In between I have seen them at the pageant, the Duck Room, Lou Fest and Austin City Limits.  Lead singer and guitarist Ben Nichols drinks too much and he seems to do it...every night.  That boy is placing quite a bit of his pain in the bottle but what does not go there moves with his pen and his guitar to bleed out everywhere for the rest of us and it is…. beautiful and sad and… beautiful again but…

Nichols is a bad and sad drunk and he often puts on shitty and unprofessional shows and frankly, this was one of them.  The volume was toned down from the opener and I waded up front and I got the great high that I always get when I am five feet from the stage and able to catch all the nuance, or lack of nuance that is exhibited.  I have to admit that I was a little shamed by the audience up front.  Everyone knew all of the words to every song.  It was inspiring and made me remember when I was that kind of crazy fan for every band I went to see.  Humbling (again God… with the humbling.  Really?) Nichols was hung over which he announced upon arrival (which made sense based on the review from the night before in KC) and then proceeded to drink whatever was brought to him.  He was slightly critical of the rumple mint.  Now I do not mean to ne one to criticize because I drink too much but this guy… who I love… put on a really bad show.  He was not always in time and worst of all, he kept forgetting and fucking up the verses of songs.  Last time when I saw him at Lou Fest he claimed the flu, came out and tried to sing and puked… but this was just kind of sad and stupid.  I was still happy to be there.  I still got the high that I get form thrumming live music and beautiful lyrics.  I was

The band consisted of Jim Spake on sax, Rick Steff on keyboard and accordion and Scott Thompson on trumpet.  Being an asshole I do not like their more recent stuff as much.  It is great music and his lyrics resonate but it reminds me of Texas Swing or Delbert Mc Clinton (and I say that with respect not disdain) and I am just more of a fan of gritty, jangly, twangy darkness that Nichols does better than anyone else.  That boy… he has a lot of ink.  Songs like “Sweet Little Thing.” Songs like “Raising Hell” become group sings that feel more like going to a dying but grace filled church more than anything else.  A church with a great deal of booze.  My kind of church, were I asked to build one.

Nichols was engaging and he has clearly been around the block since their brilliant debut back in the early 90s.  There are some bands that it is a pleasure to watch age but, I am not sure off this in regard to Lucero.  Nichols drinks so much on stage it is hard to imagine him still being alive but despite the bad show, I am powerfully pleased that he is.