Dom The Barber And The Nancy Druids At Radio Bean November 25, 2015

Words by Tim Lewis.

I had a great time seeing music on Wednesday at Radio Bean. I had the day off and got lots of stuff done early followed by the most relaxing of afternoons. I caught a nap and woke up in the early evening. My copy of RUSH 40 had arrived so I popped in the DVD to check out some of it. Time slipped and soon I was scrambling to get out the door on time.

I walked into the Bean about 9:45 and there was a podium with a white sheet on the stage. Behind it, and other hair cutting accessories, was Dom the Barber. He had a psychedelic swirl projected on the sheet and a slow groove electronic beat going on. When the song came around he started singing “History shows again and again how nature points out the folly of me” and I knew I should have arrived earlier. He had us sing a couple rounds of Godzilla and moved on through the set. His between song banter was a mix of endearing and genuinely funny. His next song was played on a singing drum, which had a gorgeous sound, that was made by a guy named Tim on Pine st. The next song was was a compulsive piece about checking the door 13 times (You are all wondering if you left the stove on before you left, aren’t you?”). A spacey electronic jam followed where he played his 3 string bass like thing and a Theremin. He wrapped the show with a song played on ukulele, though he played it like a bass and had the heaviest sound I’ve ever heard from one of those. The song was a fun ditty about alien abduction. I loved every moment of the show and wish I had gotten out the door sooner.

After a longish tear down and set up, The Nancy Druids hit the stage with their beautiful songs and solid playing. John Franklin and Ann Mindell had the rhythm section moving as one and Sean Toohey let the songs drive through endearing melodies and towering solos. The first two songs put me in a beautiful place and I loved every moment. The third, Ordinary Breakdown Day (??) was almost exactly in the middle of the harmony driven Beatles and the heavy crunch of Led Zeppelin. This was the third time I had seen them so I’m getting familiar with their songs, but don’t quite know them yet. I really enjoyed all of them before and like them more each time I hear them. The band were really good before, but tonight found them extra locked in. They tossed in a couple of brand new ones that were pretty good too. As the set progressed Sean pulled out more of his trademark out of this world guitar solos in which he brought the guitar close to different amps to change the almost feedback tone. It’s so great to be in the presence of a master. Songs like Space Between A Secret And A Lie (all song titles approximate) and Falling are quickly becoming favorites. They wrapped the night with another killer original then said they would play a very complicated cover. They did a great job on I Am The Walrus and Sean kicked the song with another towering solo.

I said a quick goodbye then headed out the door, walking home in an effortlessly blissful way.

This post was originally published by Tim Lewis at his personal blog, https://timstriangletribune.wordpress.com.