Ryan Davis

The set began and ended the same way; raw and emotional with a country twang. In addition to that, the music makes one long for places they can never be and for lovers they may never hold. Ryan Davis as a one man piece has a really solid sound all things considered. However, for what it had on those fronts, it was lacking in tonal variety. With Davis using a maximum of 5 chords total and the exact same rhythm for each of his 10 minute songs, it was hard to distinguish one song from the next. Despite the different drum rhythms he programmed on his drum machine, each one sounded lifeless and metronome-like. Even the awesome keyboard harmonica used during one song couldn’t make the music any more interesting than the long and admittedly boring songs he had surrounding it. Though the music is easy to listen to and easy to vibe to, it would be easier to do both at home.

Sharp Pins

The Sharp Pins manage to rock pretty hard (despite being from Chicago) with an excellent stage presence and even better hair. They were also among some of the youngest people in attendance at the show besides yours truly, and you can feel the highs and lows of growing up in the music. The jingle jangle of the P90 used by the guitarist is especially distinctive, however the drummer takes the spotlight both in showmanship and in general skill. They especially succeed in creating a distinct sound, however they never go beyond that sound, with all of their songs being indistinguishable from any other song they performed. The only time anything sonically different occurred was after the guitarist did a mini solo, which was almost immediately followed by him putting a capo on the second fret. Thankfully, I didn’t have to hear a rendition of Wonderwall, but I did have to hear the rest of their set.

The Hard Quartet

Finally the big moment arrived, the Hard Quartet walked onto stage and all of First Avenue erupted into cheers, and all I could think was that there was no way these old fogies could rock that hard. The Hard Quartet could in fact rock that hard with a sound that could only be attributed to them. Their range was absolutely unmatched by the previous bands, every song felt like a completely new band was performing, going from groovy bluesy music to songs you could outrun the cops to. Granted, their sonic variety could’ve been a result of the near constant switching of instruments and the people playing them, but it just works. Every member of the band brings something unique to whatever instrument they were playing at the moment, highlighting not only their skill but their experience within a band. The constant switching of instruments was rather maddening to see between each set, however they quickly made up for it as soon as they began the next song. In short; The Hard Quartet goes hard.