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I have to admit, I only half pay attention to Fort Ancient because I'm talking to friends. They're okay, but they don't really grab the other half of my attention. They're a bit keyboard-heavy for my tastes, with a lot of blips-and-beeps patches, and the guitars are correspondingly lightweight. But the songs seem reasonably solid.
The Waxwings get more of my attention. They're more of a guitar band, and if they're not exactly breaking any new ground, they're at least very solid and have some lovely harmonies. And they're pretty cute, which helps. Their songs are catchy, a little pop, a little rock. A little middle-of-the-road, truth be told, but the drumming is good and the vocals are solid and it's all just fine.
Ad Frank is the reason I'm here. He's introducing some new Fast Easy Women tonight, and he has assembled The Hunkiest Rhythm Section in Boston. It is, of course, sad to lose Shayne on drums, but Ned from Helicopter Helicopter is the new drummer, and we've missed him. He's very good, and you couldn't tell that he hasn't been playing these songs for long. The one real difference is that he hits pretty hard, so the whole set has a more rock feel than usual. "U-Hauls and Ryders" starts out at a breakneck pace that I don't think works all that well, but that makes the big transition to slow, sweeping grandeur that much more effective. So maybe as I get used to it, I'll come to like it. Ad is a wild man tonight, jumping around and screaming, which fits with the more rock vibe. And since I haven't seem him in a few months, I'm treated to a couple of songs I haven't heard before, which are (naturally) exquisitely crafted bitter gems. There's also a new keyboardist and backup singer, Pauline. She's a great keyboard player, but her mic might as well not be turned on, so I don't know how she is as a backup singer.
