The plan was to write a good old fashioned concert review of Shapiro's show at Yucca Tap Room last night.
But sometimes promoters have babies -- congrats to Ami Johnson and Matthew Reveles by the way -- and can't make all the normal arrangements for a touring act coming through on a Tuesday night.
And sometimes the only person in Phoenix that a band on a five-week coast-to-coast tour knows is a music writer who covered them five years ago while working as a reporter at the small-town daily newspaper in the city where they went to college.
So, yeah, having just given the guys from Shapiro some Raisin Bran before
sent them off to Vegas (with directions for a stopover at the Grand Canyon, natch) it feels a little disingenuous to pen a
traditional "review" of their show.
Obviously, I liked the show enough to toss a 12-pack in the fridge and offer-up my pullout couch and washing machine.
The band's sound has evolved a lot over the last five years (they oddly only played one song from their just-released debut album at Yucca, my favorite track, "All Things Around The Sun") going from piano-poppy to proggy, but they're still the same cool kids that have a lot more talent an snobby Yankee like me ever expects to find in rural Virginia.
I also found them to be respectful, cleanly and unobtrusive visitors.
So if you're in one of the cities on the rest of Shapiro's three-week tour, allow me to vouch for them as house guests even if I'm too biased to review the show.
