I've long considered Chris Brokaw to be one of the most underrated musicians out there today. Besides his solo work, he's been a member of Codeine, Come, The New Year, Consonant, The Lemonheads, Thurston Moore's band, Martha's Vineyard Ferries, and more. His 2021 solo album Puritan was my #8 album of that year, so obviously I try to get out to see him play live as much as possible. As soon as he announced that he was playing shows as Chris Brokaw Rock Band with his Consonant bandmate (and member of the legendary Mission of Burma) Clint Conley on bass, I knew I could not miss that.
Playing songs mostly from Puritan, Chris Brokaw Rock Band played with an incredible tightness usually not seen in bands that have only played a small handful of shows together. I could be wrong, but this could also have been Clint Conley's third or fourth time on stage since Mission of Burma ended in 2015. (Aside from the music, it was great to see much a legend playing again, and my fingers are tightly crossed for more Clint Conley live performances.) Opening with the epic "The Heart of Human Trafficking," Chris Brokaw Rock Band played a fantastic set of songs, which included Martha's Vineyard Ferries "Betty Ford James from 2021's Suns Out Guns Out.
The advantage of seeing such legendary musicians in such a small venue (Lilypad's capacity is eighty) is how laid back the evening was. Chris Brokaw was taking money at the door, and Clint Conley was walking around the venue greeting friends. Even a strange beeping coming from somewhere on stage (it sounded like when my bluetooth speaker is dying) added to the charm of the evening. Chris Brokaw mentioned that the band is playing December 6 at The Middle East, and I highly suggest you make it to that show.
Sky Furrows made the trip to Cambridge from Albany for the show. I was unfamiliar with them, but pleasantly surprised by their set. They had a noisy 90's indie rock meets spoken word sound that reminded me of certain Sonic Youth songs. For one song, vocalist Karen Schoemer read the lyrics to the song off of playing cards, which gave the entire performance a more free form feel. They were one of the more interesting and unique bands I've seen in a while, and I'll be keeping an eye out for more Boston area performances.
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