Last Saturday, relocated from the roof deck due to, you guessed it, nearby thunderstorms. My friend Austin is excited about the formation of the band and developing sound - they are Roughshod, a Spanish infused rock group coming at you from the downtown area. Austin, a Lynchburg native who I watched play in more than three campus bands during our time at college - very much the session musician of the time - handy on drums, doing a whole stint as a bassist, is at home as lead guitarist of this group and as much as ever - drops clear guitar notes in what I've always thought was a kind of frank and laid-back manner. Underneath the kind of rhythm-adherent, quarter-note leads he plays, there has always been this surf rock flair that gives his music a little rebelliousness. When I asked, he laughed and reassured me that there's a little of the surf rock vibe in his new group's sound. And shared that as an adolescent in a small town - he went out for the coffee-shop old-time traditional music scene, and all-the-while, has continued to develop his own style.
So it's Spanish-inspired rock with a retro punk vibe - a lead singer who I think kind of inhabits the music that backs them up -- and while at their recent Fuzzy Cactus appearance, I felt the drummer very much led this group, when I saw them again at Starr Hill, I actually noticed that the group of musicians can improvise together and do share the stage in creativity. And that Austin's solos are taking it away more and more. The group formed and played Ipanema regularly, where I guess they developed their sound, and are now branching out to new venues. I'd say the experience will be great, and that their bass amp needs some more room to breathe. I was a little disappointed that their last appearance was moved indoors, but they sounded great at both venues. Susan and the Banshees was my favorite of their covers, except for maybe the improvised renditions of Blondie's "One Way Or Another," and the Violent Femmes "Blister in the Sun." Or one of the preserved songs from our college days - "Black Widow," by Sugarlift. You can tell a group works well together when they take a request from their fans, and the lead singer parks it on the floor scrolling through the lyrics (actually shuffling to look them up while singing shreds of them,) and the bassist is half-hunched over his own phone lying on the amp while the audience carries them through some fragments of Blondie's verses (why do I love songs about grocery stores so much?) With lightness, irony and yet total professionalism, this group brightened my evening. I think it's definitely millennial humor if you write a song called, "My Plant Died." The original Spanish songs, "Como Antes" and a new one they haven't recorded, are my favorites. Check out Roughshod's September 2022 release, Attic Hours, on bandcamp. And think Pretenders, Chrissy Hynde, in the way the vocalist lets the lyrics fly and kind of sink into the dappled shadows of the music. Think steady hoofbeats and adventurous terrain in the tone of guitar and brightness of percussion. Josh Small, the group's opening solo performer plays an original style of acoustic guitar with some slide and percussive chord changes. His Taj Mahal cover really penetrated the gathering and his music was perfectly reminiscent of the day - of sunshine and summertime - embracing sunset, refreshment and friendship. The whole evening was well-spent, and I can't wait to hear these performers again!
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AuthorWe are Kieran and Michelle, two 32-year-old William & Mary grads living in Virginia. Archives
March 2024
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