Liela Moss is a pistol. As much as you wanted to check out the rest of the band, it was hard to take your eyes off her. She knows what she's got and she knows how to work it... and there were photographers who literally never stopped taking pictures of her the entire show. Actually there were about 12, right up front, whose lenses seemed mesmerized by her. There is no doubt Moss is beautiful, but she's got the pipes to match and, obviously, a stage presence to hold it all together. She's also pretty good with a harmonica.
That said, The Duke Spirit killed it. were playing their first US headlining shows since completion of their second album, Neptune. I was never that big a fan of the band before but the new album is just great -- it rocks, it pops, and just sounds great. (If you're got real speakers, crank it up.) Moss held the crowd but certainly the rest of the band kept her up, powering through nearly the entirety of Neptune before peppering the set with songs from their debut. Highlights were new single "The Step and the Walk," the breezy (for them) "Sunken Treasure" and "Lassoo" which rocked and showed off Moss' total command of the stage. A lot of crushes were made Wednesday night but The Duke Spirit are the total package.
MP3: The Duke Spirit - The Step and the Walk
(Download Neptune now, the CD's out in April)
Setlist: Send a Little Love Token | You Really Wake Up the Love in Me | Sunken Treasure | Lassoo | Dog Roses | Sovereign | Neptune's Call | The Step and the Walk | This Ship Was Built to Last | Red Weather | Love is an Unfamiliar Name | Lion Rip | Into the Fold
Tickets are still available for their show tonight at Union Hall.
Photo above from treeannolson's Flickr photostream. Others in attendance: Punk Photo, Disconap, Music Snobbery...
I interviewed guitarist Dan Higgins. We talk about food.
I thought my camera kicked the bucket before the show but it turned out I had changed some setting that magically fixed itself after a restart...which I figured out after the show. Though I couldn't take pictures, it did allow me to shoot video:
The latter half of "The Step and the Walk":
And "Red West":
Great video dude, nice work. Really enjoying the new album!
Posted by: mike | Thursday, February 14, 2008 at 01:22 PM