By Annie Bohling
Photos by Sarah Lemke
Feb. 9, 2017
What a great night. And it’s only night one of Lincoln Exposed.
It’s a fun challenge running between the five venues, each feet away from one another at 14th and O streets, to try to see as many bands as possible. While the four-day music festival features more than 100 local musical artists, Wednesday featured 22 of the live acts.
Highlights include Pure Brown, Mike and The Likes, Once a Pawn and Risky Clique. The whole night featured an impressive load of talent and energy, not to mention a diverse balance of genres. It was a sensational kick-off to the 12th annual festival. This writer managed to catch 11 bands.
Pure Brown is pure magic. Wednesday was in shock by this group’s rapid rock. Faces were melted.
The best part was either the band’s incredible execution of obvious practice and carefully orchestrated songwriting, or the fact that their songs should be soundtracks to video games. It’s something the band celebrates. Pure Brown lists its interests on its Facebook page as, “Playing rock versions of old Nintendo songs. Writing songs that sound like they could be rock versions of old Nintendo songs. Hanging out. Playing Nintendo.”
As easily imagined, the band’s sense of humor shows on stage. The guitarist who shouts things like “This song is about ninjas! … We killed those ninjas!” before and after each song was especially entertaining.
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Risky Clique is a group of 20-somethings who show off impressive palates of musical tastes, bringing to the stage rock with strong undertones of blues and funk. Four men on guitars, bass, drums and keyboard, and Kyrst Alaine on vocals, Risky Clique delivers the familiar sexiness of an old blues band but twists it into modern funk-rock with undeniable young energy.
Mike and The Likes is another band from the Wednesday lineup that leaves audience members excited to catch a full set of the Lincoln band in the future. Mike Semrad is no stranger to the Lincoln music scene, as a singing, guitar-playing and song-writing member of three bands, as well as a label owner and producer.
Semrad’s renown may have helped draw the crowd to the set at Bodega’s, but the music itself pulled in plenty. With the stage next to the front door, the exhaust of Mike and The Likes was head-turning and irresistible for passers-by. The band was well-rehearsed in band practices, as individual musicians and as lovers of many types of music. Mike and The Likes fed the crowd happy rock ‘n’ roll that was impossible to stand still to. Songs shifted from Bob Dylan-esque influences to rockabilly fusion, but it remained rocking and rolling.
Some bands’ drummers sing or rap for a few songs. Once A Pawn’s C Balta does it the entire set. How? It’s a mystery. But it is a delight to watch and witness, especially while digging the three-piece’s indie pop-rock and punk-rock jams. The group pumps out respectable punk that manages to be accessible to any ear.
There was a good bit of buzz about The Renfields going into the festival – comments about their talent and how they rarely play shows. The band gave the fix their following was craving while intriguing the whole crowd. Watching and listening for the first time, in question was the genre of the three-piece (the band in the past has been much larger). It was a little bit like Radiohead, but also not like anything. Raw and smooth. Hypnotizing. The band’s self-description answered it all: Transylvanian pogo punk. Oh! OK. Perfect. Here’s hoping they play another set sometime in the near future.
The 1867 Bar, a venue new to the festival this year, seemed to be the perfect place for Ozark Hutch to perform. The space was calm and dimly lit while singer-songwriter Will Hutchinson serenaded the crowd with his smooth, sweet voice and romantic acoustics also poured out from Hutchinson’s guitar and the bandmates’ upright bass and lap guitar.
Night number one of Lincoln Exposed featured plenty of other local goodies, including reggae from 23rd Vibration and the blend of rock, blues, reggae and psychedelic sounds from Stonebelly.
Lincoln Exposed continues Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights at the Bourbon Theatre, Duffy’s Tavern, Bodega’s Alley, The Zoo Bar and 1867 Bar.
For more about Lincoln Exposed, including a full schedule, check out the Facebook event page.
Annie Bohling and Sarah Lemke are two of KZUM’s tireless interns
