Scattered Trees, The Alternate Routes
Prophet Bar
August 8, 2011
Better than: a band in a mismatched room on a quiet Tuesday.
The four members of Chicago's Scattered Trees took the stage at the Prophet Bar for a modest audience of perhaps 50 when they started their headlining set last night.
Perhaps the small turnout wasn't a surprising.
A band on its first national tour? On a Tuesday evening? During an extremely hot August? In Texas?
Fortunately, though. the show was booked into the Prophet Bar, and the intimate setting of the room provided a satisfying environment for band and listeners alike.
The band is touring in support of the excellent album, Sympathy, a suite
of songs written as a cathartic response to the passing of principle
singer-songwriter Nate Eiesland father a couple of years ago. And while
the album presents a somewhat restrained delivery of the music, the
band's live performance was exuberant. And the songs were delivered more forcefully.
Guitarist and keyboardist Jason Harper and bassist Ryne Estwing provided
nice backing harmonies to Eiesland's strong voice, too. Baron Harper (Jason's brother) and his strong drumming filled out the rhythm section nicely.
These
guys have been playing together in and around Chicago for years, and
their cohesiveness and professionalism is obvious.
High points of the set were perhaps "Love and Leave" and "Four Days
Straight." But the entirety of the 40-minute performance was tight, and the
audience was appreciative. The small crowd demanded an encore, and the band gave them one.
Earlier in the night, The Alternative Routes, a hard-rocking Americana band from Connecticut, opened. With an energetic guitarist
that looked a bit like a Hamburg-era Paul McCartney (if you squinted), the
band played their set loud, fast, and tight. This band has been around for a
while, with a couple of albums produced by Jay Joyce, the man
responsible for Cage the Elephant's recent sound. And like Cage, this
band works hard.
In the end, it was a night featuring two really good bands willing to work hard and deliver the goods,
despite the modest turnout.
But it's nights like this that can build the
foundation of a career. Just ask Dawes.
Critics Notebook
Random Note: Preparing to write about the band, I came across an
article on The Onion's AV Club site featuring Jason and Baron Harper
and discussing their film, A Black History, which deals with the subject of
being the rather rare black musician in the indie rock world. A good
read.
By The Way: I hadn't seen a rock show at Prophet Bar since that space
was the Gypsy Tea Room. I'd almost forgotten what a good venue it is
for rock.
