I've never seen so many mustaches in one place.
Beer and Brownies is a small venue off Waters Avenue. Here, doors are open to "dreamers, musicians, artists and poets". There's a bookshelf full of board games and none of the chairs and tables match, but the living room-style accommodations compound the general feeling that you're at home in another dimension. The bartender and owner, Kelly, is friendly enough to make a cynic like myself wonder if he's being sarcastic, but he's totally for real and will talk to you about human nature and your zodiac sign (he’s a Cancer). And yes, they have beer and brownies.
Last Saturday, four acts came to jam.
Nick Muracciole opened the evening with an acoustic set. He's used to performing with a full band behind him as the singer and rhythm guitarist for Drop Cue (née Disheveled), but the band's bittersweet dissolution last month has left him a musical orphan. Nick is a jack-of-all-trades as far as arrangement goes; last time I saw him perform he was slinging bass, but on Saturday he strummed an acoustic and buzzed a harmonica throughout his set which included two covers, respectful nods to The Beatles and Nirvana. The rest were originals, full of gritty lyrics and gorgeous guitar playing, resolved by the timbre of Nick's vocals; the result is something which can only be described as potent, sincere music. If you or your band are looking for a vocalist/guitarist/bassist, Nick can be found on Facebook.
By the time House of I came up, every seat in the house was filled by Tampa characters of all ages, genders and colors. I think I saw Shia Labeouf. It was odd and fitting; House of I looks like a ragtag high school lunch table but they sound like what the cool kids want to hear. They're an alt rock four piece from Miami but now they serenade the Bay area with their devilishly suburban, science fiction soundtrack. Their music is full of howling harmony and tandem guitar solos punctuated by standard clichés, now graduated into proverbs for a disgruntled, extended adolescence. The heartbeat of the entire ensemble is their drummer, who marches, bangs and straight-up rocks to a rhythm all her own. If I had to pick the tunes for the funeral procession of American capitalism, House of I is it. You can find them on Facebook and Bandcamp.
To follow an incredible act is a task, but Jordan Esker & The Hundred Percent pulled it off. For a band that stumbled together by accident in late 2014, their collaboration is seemingly divine. Imagine Hall and Oates had an angry teenage son who made music with what fell out of a self-aware gum ball machine and then played at an aquarium after-hours for a high school prom; that's the Jordan Esker & The Hundred Percent sound. It's a good thing, I swear. At times bluesy folk pop and at others a positive 80's tribute to keyboard slaying and unrequited feedback, the frequent melodies are tempered by timeless drumming and the acrobatic vocals of Jordan Esker himself.
Fun fact about this band, they share a kickass bassist, Emmit Dobbyn, with House of I. Each element of the ensemble is center-stage without turning into a one-man-show. At the end of each song, their sound is sucked up into a silent, alien vacuum and every time it made me double-take; I felt like I had just missed something significant, and listened for more. You can find them on Facebook and jordanesker.com.
Those Darling Tyrants finished the night for us. Their set was the rock and roll equivalent of Dad putting down his beer and showing the kids how it’s done. It was exactly what we needed. If Alice in Chains was groovy and looked like three math teachers, you’d have Those Darling Tyrants. Grizzly melodies follow sturdy rhythms in songs with titles like “Boiled Frog Theory”. The amount of sound coming from only three players was significant. Clearly the guys know what they’re doing; they’ve been jamming together for eight years and frequently play shows in and around the Tampa area. You can find them on Facebook and ReverbNation.com.
This was the seventh installment of the Stellar Concert Series by Freddie Villa, a local sound engineer and show organizer. If you are a venue or band, contact him on Facebook to set up a show.
The shows at Beer and Brownies range from acoustic and full band lineups to open mic events. Their last show for the summer season is on June 18.
The bar is cash only, so be sure to stop by the ATM before you head over when they reopen in September.
