Moondoggies + Junior League - Sunset Tavern (Seattle, WA; Apr. 14, 2008)

“One of the best parts of being in a band is making friends with other bands.” Junior League’s bassist Jason Mattis laughed, “Thanks Moondoggies!” While I can’t quantify the truth of that statement, I will say that watching Junior League and The Moondoggies relax, joke, and generally have a blast together was one of the best parts of being an audience member for this show. The hoots, vigorous applause, and head bobbing of the rest of the small crowd at the Sunset Tavern seemed to agree with me, too. These bands were having fun! Joking shouts for The Moondoggies to play “Rock Me Like a Hurricane” were instantly responded to by the opening riffs of the song and huge grins. Junior League upped the ante on their super bluesy and upbeat cover of Robert Johnson’s “Cross Road Blues” by having various band members try to, with various stages of success, “out blues” each other, before laughing and closing the song. I have to say, I was totally surprised, because the evening didn’t start off that way.

My smug, journalistic pride was quickly shattered at the door when I was told I wasn’t on the guest list, as previously promised. A few vain phone calls later, my cheeks burning like two hot crumpets of shame, I ponied up the SIX WHOLE DOLLARS to get in, collected my dignity, got off my high horse, and tried to mosey, as best I could, towards the darkest corner of the Sunset Tavern. Also, there was some other confusion earlier about whether this was going to be a full Moondogies show or a solo set by their singer, Kevin Murphy. The poster on the wall said it was the full band, but as there were only fifteen or so audience members, so maybe the change had been conveyed too late. I barely had time to grab a beer before Washington D.C.’s own Junior League took the stage and shot into their song “Safer Gray,” a raw, bluesy number, heavy on the old-time fiddle, with a chorus that goes something like:

“Old man, old man, why do you drink yourself away, why oh why do you drink yourself away?
Old woman, old woman, I drink myself away, cause it waters down the darkness, keeps things a safer gray.”

Lissy Rosemont, in a lovely red dress and a self-promoting band sticker pasted onto her arm, played a mean banjo under, over, and around her haunting voice that sent shivers down my spine. The small crowd immediately responded either with yells and applause, or slowly swayed, totally captivated by the sound. Junior League moved on to other tracks, with some highlights being “Same as You,” with its blues progression, sexy lounge feel, and saucy vocals. Also the percussive chords of “Wsm,” over which Rosemont sang:

“The city sex, and your cigarettes, in abundance I miss him
Rain upon my skin, my baptism, show me how to live again.”

This five-piece band sounded tight! The clean-cut guitarist and fiddler weaved back and forth around each other with ease, while the bearded drummer and hardly bearded (but sprouting!) bassist laid down a rhythm section impossible to not tap along to. These were classic, old time tunes, with a modern rock twist thrown in, and it sounded good! In between songs, Rosemont kept things light with stories and jokes, like how she bought some sexy shoes in Berkeley a couple of days ago at a hip shop, only to have the proprietor knowingly tell her “Oh, the other performers who bought these shoes really liked them.” Rosemont confessed she didn’t think the lady was referring to the same category of performers. “STRIPPERS!” she said in a loud stage whisper, getting laughs from the crowd.

After their excellent set, Junior League retired to the bar and merch booth in high spirits, while The Moondoggies began to set up. Rosemont joined them for their first song, which I didn’t recognize, but had the chorus “Ain’t no woman going to put me down!” The three part harmony and Rosemont’s claw hammer banjo playing sounded fantastic! The Moondoggies then launched into other numbers, like the catchy, organ-heavy boogie “Ol’ Black Bird,” complete with group chorus verses, and the twangy “Keep Her On The Line.” While they were far from a jam band, they had their jammier moments. The rocking, sprawling version of their song “Black Shoe” had even the bartender vigorously rocking out to the question “Where you goin’ with my black shoes?” “That’s a song that we’ve only learned how to play live,” Murphy confessed afterwards. The Moondoggies’ songs (I still can’t get past their name. I can only hope it’s a nod towards the blind viking himself) are loose enough to let the band play with them, without sounding like a dreaded Phish remake.

Despite their name, these guys are serious musicians. Their ease of communication was obvious when Murphy would turn to the band between songs and quietly ask, “What’s next? Something slower?” and the bassist or drummer would start a few notes of a song and the rest of the band would immediately join in. This level of understanding and relaxed musicianship can only truly be appreciated live, and when you consider that the band hasn’t even put their first album out yet, it’s astounding. Equally amazing is that Murphy and others are able to draw such deep emotion and seriousness out of simple lyrics like:

“I’ve been thinking about you night and day, night and day
This is the way my body shakes when I’m not beside you
Oh, I’ve been lying beside you all night long, all night long”

These from the song “Night and Day,” which they closed with. Not ones to build up expectations, the band simply smiled, waved, and waited for the applause to die down before picking up their equipment and getting their beers.

For a venue that claimed, “the shittiest bands in Seattle” on their t-shirts, both bands were excellent! Junior League continues their tour eastwards and The Moondoggies are working on their debut through Hardly Art Records. I left the venue unable to stop smiling, with rollicking, cosmic country licks and melodic lyrics floating through my head. These guys are definitely going to do some great things and if you get the chance, see them. They’re catchy as hell!

SPONSOR: Buy cheap tickets here, including the Bon Jovi schedule, Tim McGraw tickets, George Strait and Reba McEntire tickets, Cheech and Chong “Get It Legal” tickets and loads of other concert tickets.

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