Tuesday Aug. 23 2011

There was no getting around it, I needed to be at the Bootleg Tuesday night because College Kids were playing but there will be plenty to come on them later first a ton of love spread about the rest of the bands playing that night.

I come strolling in late as usual and the bands playing first keep making me want to be more punctual. Well this time was the singer/songwriter Kevin Earnest who made some beautiful music but the stage presence was lacking. I think it came along with how they setup, because everybody on stage was there clearly as a compliment to his piano playing and wonderful voice and yet they were all clearly visible while he was tucked away back in the corner on the piano. What was lacking in stage presence was more then compensated in a strong vocal performance and seriously talented songwriting with just the right amount of pop and folk and blended together.

Next came Auditorium who were minus a drummer but after listening to them not sure there was anything missing. It took a couple of songs for them to really get into a comfort of playing without that steady presence behind them, but once they got going the songs were engrossing and I could listen to the lead vocalist sing all night long. His voice has such a great tone that compliments the songs in a way that makes you want to get lost in The Auditorium's music and never get out again. It is such simple indie/pop/rock guitar lead music nirvana.

Next came The Sanglorians which after a night of pop fun came in rocked the place out while being lead by a vocalist and guitarist who could really tear up the guitar with inspiring work on his fretboard. To go along with his playing they were also two pretty girls singing backup and rocking out expertly on violin and keyboards. The rest of the sound was filled out with a rhythm guitar, bass and drummer and while their was a lot of elements going on stage it never felt cluttered or muddled each instrument complimented the songs and created a sound all their own while rocking out never lost the melody that ties the sound together. Two songs in particular stuck out to me in the middle of their set "Selfremember" and "The Lightspeed of Love" (I could be wrong in the exact title of these songs) and highly recommend checking them out.

And with the most adorable nightcap came College Kids who are made up of Kim on piano and Mike on acoustic guitar with both of them sharing vocal duties. The songs are so endearing and lovely that you can't help but have a smile on your lips while listening to them sing their tales of the fresno police or whatever else their want to sing about. It is such simple fun light pop fare that is completely sold on the Mike and Kim's harmonies and catchy songwriting. They ended the night on "Let's Always Be Friends" which perfectly encaptures everything I love about College Kids with it's personal story that you can immediately connect to that is carried throughout by their hauntingly beautiful vocal harmonies and Kim's lovely piano. My only problem with College Kids is that their is not enough of their music to get enveloped in.