On Thursday, April 13, I went over to The Warehouse to catch a show headlined by Lowboy, with Eleven 29 and Lower Unit opening up. I arrived at The Warehouse shortly after Eleven 29 took the stage as the first opening band.
This was the first time that I've been able to hear Eleven 29 play, so naturally I was curious as to how they would perform. I had heard mixed reviews on the band from various sources. Needless to say, I was eager to make up my own mind. The quartet from Nashville - vocalist Gary Bailey, drummer Mark Gusso, lead guitarist Chris Martz, and bassist David Martz - got the show rolling at around nine thirty or so. Their sound can be summed up in two words: guitar solo. Eleven 29 is a band that is not afraid to bust out some old school grooves, as Chris Martz proved several times throughout the set. His guitar strings were smoking by the time the set was over. The coolest solo came when Bailey and the Martz brothers utilized their wireless equipment and took a stroll among the sparse crowd (It would be hard for Gusso to walk around with a drum kit). David and Gary ended up in front of the bar, while Chris soloed his ass off on the dance floor. After awhile though, over kill took the place of guitar solo as the words that describe Eleven 29. I enjoy guitar solos when they're used responsible; too many solos can ruin a good show. And Martz soloed on every single song. However, if you're into that type of groove, than Eleven 29 is the band that can give it to you.
Lower Unit claimed the stage next. Vocalist Ryan Agee, in rare form, told the audience to get up from the get go; the show never looked back. Agee, guitarists Eric Leaver and Kevin Smith, drummer Dale Leaver, and fill-in bassist Allen Crowder were on top of their game all night long. The crowd, who had been filing in slowly but sure, packed the dance floor in front of the stage. The Unit boys worked their music and had the crowd moving and grooving throughout their set. One thing that can be said about Lower Unit is that they definitely know how to work a crowd. Their brand of music - a rap/metal hybrid - lends itself towards energizing an audience. "Outkast", the title track from their cd, stood out as the best song of their set. All in all, their performance that night was among the best that I've heard them.
Lowboy took the stage as the headliner once again. The foursome from Clarksville - frontman Scott Trotter, bassist Charles Irwin, guitarist Brian Williams, and drummer Charley Grubbs - took the ball from Lower Unit and ran with it. The crowd, who at this point had swelled to around one hundred or so, made it standing room only in the front room of The Warehouse. From the opening song "Cusp" (a song that was written in the two days prior to the show), Lowboy kicked the show into high gear. "Cusp" shows off a different dimension of the band, being that it's not quite as hard as their other material; the song still rocks on its' own terms. At times they were a little off, but being as the vast majority of the audience was drinking, nobody really noticed. All in all, it was another great show put on by Clarksville's finest.
The energy of the show was matched only by the intensity of the bands' performance, Eleven 29 is good as what they do, and when Lower Unit is on their game, the place is sure to rock. And of course, Lowboy is as good as they come. These three bands put on one helluva show.
