Residency Diary: Mississippi Man, Part Three

Residency Diaries are exactly what they sound like: the thoughts, musings, and scribbles of rock bands as they host a series of month-long shows in various Los Angeles venues. This month’s R.D. entries will be from Mississippi Man, whose barroom brawl of guitar-driven ’60s rock and folk-tinged Americana can be heard for free every Monday night in November at the Silverlake Lounge (presented by KXLU and The Fold).

By David Knight (guitar/ vocals)

So it’s the third night of our residency at the Silverlake Lounge and it’s getting heavy. The cat from The Color Turning has some serious chops and here we are with 5 bands laying it down. That’s a hell of a lot of music for one night. I’m getting antsy from watching. Sitting below that weird balcony on that grimy staircase just watching.  I already watched Moostache and Threadspinner and now I’m ready to jam but instead I’m subjected to more music. Is it cool for a musician to get a bit tired of hearing music sometimes? Maybe Michelangelo didn’t lose his eyesight by accident. The bands are good though, heavier than usual but that’s alright by me.

The first band, Threadspinner, is from Santa Barbara I think. They start the evening early with some decent material while Poppa Bear and myself chat. Sweet Keys is doing his thing somewhere with the others.  I noticed the merch for Threadspinner is pretty nifty and is set up better than ours. So it’s now 9 but it seems like 10 as the second band, Moostache, takes the stage.

Their singer is young and looks it too but I like his voice. It’s a bit more mature than you’d expect. I heard their record before I saw them and dug it a lot. They’re definitely heavier live though with equipment you don’t usually see in the LA hip scene. I think they were my favorite support act of the night. Real solid and tight.

While they played, our friends from our rehearsal studio came in. That’s how it should be. Bands supporting other bands. There’s too much cutthroat rivalry in music. Too much pride. Past, future, present, past, passed…

The Color Turning is a band we’ve know for awhile through mutual friends. A few years ago they were one of the only bands playing good music in the area. Then this scene blew up with a new band a week but they were one of the pioneers. Let’s not forget that. They played with the sound of a tried band. Fluid and effortlessly. Heavy too. We didn’t plan it that way but it turned out to be a heavy night.

Maybe that’s why the crowd reacted a bit differently to us that night. We played in-between some heavier bands and didn’t sound as heavy. We’re heavy though, just listen. Our folk/pop sound is just a front. Those notes we play are dark and foreboding. Minor chords and murder ballads.

Spirit Vine took the stage after us and I watched as they played some good music. They have a cool take on the whole 70’s psychedelic sound which may or may not be an oxymoron. Not sure, I’ll have to look it up. We had to jet though so we took off for Taco Zone and, for those of you who haven’t been there, it’s an amazing taco cart in Echo Park on Alvarado. Look for our sticker and tell us about it sometime.

Until next week,
Mississippi Man

November 23, 2009 | Filed Under Concert Reviews, Exclusive Features, Residency Diaries 

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