Black Dog Prowl - Danvilles - Vinyl Side -- Rock'n'Roll Hotel - Aug 24 2012

Vinyl Side - I wondered what had happened to the Killer Balloons and tonight the mystery is solved as they have reappeared with a new name and a new powerhouse drummer, as they accurately describe him. They have extra power and volume throughout the set and while not having lost the garage soul feel in the vocals and keyboards, now add some heft in the guitar and drums. It's nowhere near metal, but follows a kind of classic very hard rock pattern that can veer into soulfulness and a touch of R&B depending on the song. Probably the only thing to worry about going forward, for those of us that could be found guilty of over analyzing things, is being a little lost between genres and audiences. But continued focus on songwriting and regular gigging usually allows bands to figure it out. And if they don't, they rock hard and give the audience their money's worth.

Danvilles - This was the first time I experienced this Virginia based twin guitar quartet and I walk away impressed. They rocked hard with bluesy and western swing undercurrents. At times they reminded me of thick and heavy Reverend Horton Heat, at other times it was bit more like Graveyard. The audience tonight was even more self-indulgent than a usual Friday night crowd and were pretty dead with many of them leaving after the first band played so they could continue their mundane conversations shouted atop cliched DJ noise in another locale. Or perhaps, I exagerrate. The Danvilles deserved a bit better as they did a solid job. And the 18 people that remained (from 60-70) seemed to really enjoy this set.

Black Dog Prowl - I cut out early since this band is playing in town on Saturday night and I'll check out their set then. But that gives me time to head over to the Red Palace.