Rocket Shop 7/18/2012: Amida Bourbon Project; Lynguistic Civilians; Gang of Thieves

Words by Suzanne Friedman. Photos by Samantha Donnelly.

The very fun and bubbly Aya Inoue and Matt Harpster joined Rocket Shop tonight. The country, folky, singer/songwriter pair are only two of five members that make up The Amida Bourbon Project. Their music consisted of deep and sometimes sad lyrics, but the musicality remained upbeat, danceable, and catchy. The songs performed tonight consisted of “The Lion’s Den,” a folk sound with an edge and great guitar riffs. Also a summer tune called “Fireflies” and “Never Again,” a gritty, rough, catchy song that made me want to hear more.

The group has a few upcoming shows including Solar Fest on Friday July 20. For more details, check out solarfest.com. Aya and Matt as well as The Wee Folkestra can also be found at The Precipice: A 3 Day Happening on July 20th, 21st, and 22nd. They will also be performing at The Maritime Festival Saturday, August 11 and they can be heard at Red Square every Sunday from 7:00pm-10:00pm through the end of July.

The Lynguistic Civilians were represented tonight by two of the group members, Scott and Tom. The Lynguistic Civilians is a hip hop group with five emcee’s, a DJ, and producer. Scott and Tom brought a very fun and upbeat attitude to the studio as they were more than ecstatic to be on the radio with Sam. The group is all about the music, showing their passion through poetic, soulful, and playful a cappella rap. Their songs had local Vermont references which are very attractive to the local Vermont audience.

The Lynguistic Civilians will be headlining at The Precipice: A 3 Day Happening which takes place this Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. The group recently played their 100th show at Vermont Pub and Brewery and will be performing there again this Saturday. Finally, they can be heard at the Lake Champlain Maritime Festival in August.

Concluding the jam packed evening of Rocket Shop was the Gang of Thieves who is made up of vocalist Michael Reit, Nick Wood and Leonard Sokol on guitar, and Tobin Bass on bass. This funky rock and roll band was immediately intriguing when they walked into the studio with dreadlocks, and a wonderful sociable vibe. They gave away copies of their new EP tonight on the show to promote the new release.

This funky rock and roll group had an electrifying sound that kept my feet tapping and my head bobbing. They played an original song “Dinosaur Sandwich Party.” Just by the title, it is apparent that this band is one of a kind. The Gang of Thieves is currently looking for a drummer, so if you are interested, check them out on Facebook or Google for more information.

The band can be heard at The Precipice: A 3 Day Happening this Friday at 6:30pm and at Bella Terra Festival in Stephentown, New York outside of Albany on August 16-19. Their new EP ‘Riddle’ that they worked on in California during their tour comes out this Friday July 20th. There will be a midnight EP release at Radio Bean this Friday.  One of the band member’s cousins drew the EP album cover and the artwork on the band’s van, so keep an eye out for the colorful vehicle.

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