Lucero w/ Catfish Haven

March and April seem to be busy months for us Rockists. To many shows we have gone; to many shows we will go. The latest was at the Black Cat on Friday.

Rob: First of all, G.L.'s sangria was amazing.

Second of all, Black Cat's staff blows. While standing in line, a "bouncer" walked up and down announcing that if you just want to go to the Red Room, you can leave line and walk in. He also announced that he had announced that prior and that every time he does, idiots get out of line because they know no better. He then paused at the couple standing directly behind us and asked to "sniff" the lady's water bottle (which, by the way, was filled with a red liquid). He then confiscated the bottle, saying that she couldn't drink it out there. Story should end, right? Wrong. He kicked both people out of line and said they couldn't see the show. WTF? Did we suddenly get enrolled at Wheaton College?

As for the show, I was quite impressed with Catfish Haven (and not just because I have the same blue Levi's cords as George Hunter). They were strident and brash but had a soothing quality about them. I liken it to seeing a bulldog in a bow tie. Lucero's set was long, impressively long. They definitely put their all into it. It gave me flashbacks to a hot summer day, surrounded by my best friends with my stomach full of Busch Ice, watching DBT. Fantastic.

It's refreshing to see bands that could and would kick my ass if they were so inclined.

It's too bad the Black Cat attracts such great bands.

G.H.: Yeah, I mean, my distaste for the Black Cat is well-documented. And, to clarify, she was drinking red Powerade from a Powerade bottle. I've come around and decided that, besides that fact that the girl should've refused to let him have her bottle of Powerade, he was well within his rights to refuse her entry into the show. What that makes him for doing so, I'll refrain from saying.

The show itself was good and exhausting. You can see more about on DCist, but I'll focus on Catfish Haven for the sake of changing it up. This is maybe the first time I've ever seen an indie band I really felt like dancing to. They would make a damn fine party band, and I bet they could cover some old Stax numbers pretty well if they put their mind to it. They did say goofy stuff like "We're gonna heat this place back up, people!", "Spread the love", etc, and I could see their aesthetic feeling less, well, novel, at a jam band festival. And I was impressed with Lucero, too. Loud, kind of abrasive, but with enough tunefulness to hook my girlfriend. Favorite was "My Best Girl", which I'm pretty sure is about a guitar.

G.L.: While I too dislike the staff at the Black Cat (except for the bartenders, who have always been relatively civil), I do think the bouncer had every right to kick that girl out of line and deny her entry. I'm not saying I'm applauding him for doing so, but that girl is an idiot for being so non-discrete.

As Rob mentioned, we drank sangria beforehand (yes, I'm aware of the disconnect between sangria and southern rock, not to mention it snowed later that evening, but whatever) and I was wasted. That may have led directly to my enjoyment of Catfish Haven because I've gone back and listened to them since, and I'm not really a big fan. They did have some impressive energy for a three-piece though, I'll give them that. I really enjoyed Lucero. I did, I'm not just saying that. But after the show, deep down, I wished I had seen the Drive-By Truckers instead...