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November 20, 2007 @ The Basement —New Faces Night: Carswell, Marrow, and Matt Hopper
A few drinks, a congenial crowd and some decent music piping from the fine PA of the Basement on 8th Ave. will always make for a well-spent evening of entertainment. This particular night was no exception. It was the usual Tuesday night New Faces showcase at the venue, and I snuck in smack in the middle of a set being performed by four handsomely dressed young men called Carswell. It was obvious from the first whiff of the atmosphere that the crowd was digging what they had to offer, so I listened intently. Indeed, among what they did have to offer was rich guitar interplay, charmingly ragged harmonies and confident but not-too-showy soloing. Oh, and did I mention some darn fine songwriting? Yep, there was that as well. The group featured no percussionist but the triple threat of acoustic guitar (and sometimes mandolin) was supported nicely by an electric bass player lurking in the background. Next up was another local outfit called Marrow. As so often with these Tuesday night shindigs at the Basement, I was unaware of who was taking the stage. However they grabbed me and the rest of the crowd from the first note. Armed with an acoustic guitar and dressed in a black dress with white polka dots, lead singer Aimee Shiree was a vision. What followed was a half hour or so of sweetly melancholy roots music, with the lyrics and melodies assuredly running the gamut from dark (or “creepy,” as she would tell me after the set) to wistful. Towards the end of the set Marrow gave us a song entitled “Nevermind,” which featured one of the succinctly definitive lines I would hear all night: “Once I’m dead, I am dead.” That about sums it up, eh? The songs were complimented by her bandmates, a couple of highly capable lads who alternately switched off on guitar, banjo and mandolin. The final set of the night was the one I had initially come out for. I caught the new kid in town and Alaskan native Matt Hopper for the first time at this same venue two weeks ago. He played a quasi-acoustic set that featured himself on guitar and vocals and a very able guitar slinger named Jamie Timm backing him up with a pearl white Telecaster. The songs and musicianship that evening absolutely floored me, so when he announced he would be playing a Tuesday night gig for the remainder of the month I made it a point to catch these guys again. At this night’s show however, Matt took the stage backed by a full band, and from the opening strains of space-y tremolo guitar, I knew this would be a very different show than the last one I had attended. Jamie returned with his Fender, while Matt rocked merrily away on a Gretsch. The songs ranged from pretty, layered pop to a Stones-y country rock number entitled “Wolf Eyes.” He and his rock-solid band stomped confidently through a bump-free set that concluded with a duet featuring local singer Kat Jones on an original called “Keep You Around.” Matt currently has his own cd, Reverse Odyssey, while guitarist Jamie Timm has one with his own outfit, Band Of Annuals, titled Let Me Live. Both records are highly recommended, and the same can be said for Carswell and Marrow. Don’t miss your chance to catch any of these bands. —Matthew Woodard
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