The Dawn Drapes - Money Cannot Be Eaten - The Post -- Iota - Nov 29 2013

The Post - Coming out of the murky depths of sound so dark and muddled that it would make grunge blush a bright pink, comes an interesting young up and coming band. I don't think this sound was entirely their choice as the soundman brightened things up a bit as it went on. But I hope they keep some of this unusually dark undercurrent that gives strong color to their pop rock moves. It reminds me of the production of an obscure psyche classic, Fenner, Leland & O'Brien, although the band has more in common with Ill Wind and other SF psyche rockers. The keyboardist takes the lead vocal role with her powerful pipes as the guitarist adds some interesting rock textures. They even had a guest sax solo. They are clearly raw and innocent at this stage, but I hope as they keep gigging, they retain as much of this as possible. It really works. One problem... they mentioned their facebook URL two or three times and I can now see why as I cannot find it. Perhaps they should call themselves the Posst or the Postte or something a little easier to find.

Money Cannot Be Eaten - This Harrisonburg Virginia trio has a name that is easy to find and you won't forget any time soon. Thankfully, their music is also quite memorable as they clearly have some strong creative moves within a comfortable rootsy, indie, Americana, rock structure. They employ a guitar, keyboards, and drums with plenty of stirring vocals mostly from the guitarist. The songs are melodic and seemingly simple and accessible enough, but they merge in some of the wildest breaks I have heard in this sort of music. Crazy uses of space, tempo, and sonic shifts rarely come out in ways as this. Most bands would take those ideas and become full fledged psyche bands and far too many bands ignore doing anything like this at all. Full credit to these creative moves as it elevates them from a solid professional outfit to something you should go out of your way for. They closed with a cover of John Lennon's "Jealous Guy" which was fine, but their originals are still sticking with me.

The Dawn Drapes - I saw this band as 'The Two Alpacas' a while back and enjoyed them. The name has changed, but the fine music remains. They do it with two guitars (with switches to keyboards), drums, and three voices. They have a bit of Canned Heat/Ten Years After jamming vibe early on but they roll it through a dough press and come out with something smooth, luscious and more up to date than those bands. The songs vary from near-Dead Meadow tinged folk-rock to straighter material. There is always something interesting going on and it is easy to dig into their material. The hour was a bit late and had people leaving a bit early unfortunately, although many of them were the loud obnoxious self-centered types that can do their bar hopping elsewhere as far as I'm concerned. Thankfully, the remaining crowd dug into the music and got plenty to chew on.  This was a good night of smart yet accessible music. Keep the name 'The Dawn Drapes' in your head as they should become another solid entry into the local DC scene.

Quote of the Night: From someone digging the Dawn Drapes... "Zeppelin!!! but you guys are awesome!"