Osage Orange And Swale At Light Club Lamp Shop And The Wee Folkestra At Radio Bean February 13, 2016

Words by Tim Lewis.

I had a great time seeing music last night at Light Club Lamp Shop and Radio Bean. I worked until 5:30 then went home, had dinner, and pondered the news about the passing of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia. I got myself out the door around 8:30 and arrived at the Lamp Shop about quarter of 9. Osage Orange were on stage and started soon after I settled in. They are a trio with guitar, bass, drums. The guitar player sings most of the songs and the bass player sings a few. Their sound started as lo-fi indie rock with a sparse sound but some catchy riffs and lyrics. The one with the lyric about Take Your Own Medicine was familiar and easy to sing along with. As the show went on the songs took on more flesh with some deeper and darker tones. One song in the late middle of the show almost sounded like a song by The Church (Territorial Baby?). The show was not long, but was really good. I seem to catch up with Osage every couple of years and always enjoy it when I do. I should try and catch them more often.

After a bit of a set break, and some tricky instrument placement on the small stage, Swale began with an upbeat version of Beaten Down. It seemed an odd opening choice, but for the bar full of Saturday night party people, and some Swale fans, it proved a great way to get the show going. A soothing and searing Armadillo followed. They kept the line between mellow and intense balanced with a great version of Soul Piggy Bank, then played one of the louder versions of Soft Fireworks that I’ve ever heard. It needed a bit more muscle to keep the chattering crowd in the background. They dropped Fireworks into a fun version of Dimedrop, then pulled out a stunning version of We Could All Be That Way. I love the way that one builds and builds and builds. A fun version of Waiting For You followed then they played a song I’ve heard a couple of times, maybe called Loser. It’s pretty catchy and fun. They followed with a couple that I did not know, maybe Bright Lights Tonight and Lay It All Down On Tonight. Both were quite good. They followed with Good Medicine which started slow but builds into a stunning Eric Olsen guitar solo. They said they read the news today and pulled out a blistering version of War Pigs. After, they dedicated it to the man in the long black coat. They wrapped the night with a gorgeous version of If You Get Lost and that was that. What a great show.

I immediately ducked out the door and ducked into Radio Bean and caught the last few songs from the Wee Folkestra. They are super talented and always fun. They played the song about having your Hands Up. They played One More Cup Of Coffee For The Road. They played one I did not know then ended the night with Oh Mary Don’t You Weep. Thoroughly sated, I took the quick and frigid walk home, but my heart was super warm from the great music.

Note:  Per Tyler Bolles from Swale “Glad you made it out, Tim! I Want to say that Bright Lights Tonight is a Richard and Linda Thompson song off the album of the same name. Funny, we were totally expecting a different vibe on blisteringly cold night at the Lamp Shop. I guess it was date night, and BTV music lovers aren’t afraid of a few digits below zero!”

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