Friday Would Come too Soon/ He Would Fly You to the Moon

Who: Langhorne Slim with Rayland Baxter

When: January 11, 2012
Where: Ninth Ward/ Buffalo, NY

With: Katie, PJ, PJ’s roommate who has a name that I don’t remember
Of Note: Stay classy Buffalo!

Katie shot me a note to say, “Let’s go to this.  It’s $12.”  I said, “Okay.”  I’m not entirely sure I was prepared for what was to come. 

It was an unseasonably warm night so we walked down to the Ninth Ward.  None of us knew anything about the band but, for $12, you couldn’t really go wrong.  We grabbed some beers and a spot on the floor and waited for the show to start. 

The opener, Rayland Baxter, was very tall, a fact that was accentuated by his rolled up high water pants and enormous bright orange Chuck Taylors. He also had a porn-stache, a homeless man cardigan and a skull cap.  I’m going to make him the same offer I made the lead singer of the Leagues: let me take you shopping?  I am more than willing to do some pro bono stylist work, because building a personal brand is important.  And, the brand that you’re building pretty much says, “I gave up,” and “I just stumbled in and somebody handed me a guitar.”

His music, however, was good.  His voice was really clear and his whistling was off the charts amazing.  He also did the singer/song-writer thing where he peppered the songs with jokes and asides, “No, I don’t actually have a girlfriend; I did when I wrote this,” being my favorite in ‘Driveway Melody’, if I recall correctly.  I really liked ‘Willie’s Song’, which was surprisingly optimistic in melody, given that it was dedicated to a friend who had a serious drug problem.  Rayland sold CDs that he burned himself and put in brown paper lunch bags, sealed with wax.  (Actually, maybe the “homeless” brand is right then?)  He was very nice and signed the lunch bag that the CD came in.  (This reminds me that I need to make a copy of the CD for Katie.)  I would definitely listen to more of his stuff in the future; his voice was just that good - and all the songs had a certain quality of longing or haunting about them that really stuck with me. 

Next, came Langhorne Slim.  Apparently, Langhorne Slim is “a thing” because there were lots of people there to see him that knew his music and were really enthusiastic.  Langhorne’s (that cannot be his real name, right?) style is also worth noting; I dubbed it “fancy ranch hand”.  Between the Wrangler jeans (“He’s a Wrangler man!”), tucked into tasseled logger boots, big hat and scarf around his neck like an outlaw, he was definitely making a statement.  

I don’t remember the particulars about any of his songs but the band had a very distinct rockabilly sensibility to them.  His keyboard/banjo player was amazing, even if he looked slightly like he was seizing during a particularly intense solo.  The band was at its best when they were upbeat, enthusiastic, dance-able.  The set took a bit of downturn when Langhorne gave the band a break and did some solo acoustic; I just preferred them more high energy.  I would think that, given a bigger space, Langhorne would have done some bigger stage acrobatics; the small stage seemed to constrict his flailing, a bit.  There was a good portion of the crowd who was really into him, singing along – and I do love to see an enthusiastic fan.  While I don’t think I would seek his music out to listen to on a regular basis, if he played mid-afternoon at a festival, I would totally go see him again (possibly mostly for the banjo player; I’m a sucker for a good banjo player). 

The crowd at this show is also worth noting – or at least two specific members of the crowd.  First, there was a girl there who was young and there with a group of her friends.  I was particularly taken with her outfit, which included an unfortunately small shirt, mid-calf leggings, black athletic ankle socks and silver flats.  (I’m not usually this fashion police-y…apparently I was feeling extra judge-y that night.)  Also worth noting was that she was hammered.  When Katie came back from the restroom, she noted that the girl and her friends were chugging tequila out of a water bottle.  Awesome.  The girl made the rounds of the venue, settling on close to the stage where she swayed dangerously and gave come hither glances to the musicians.  I just wanted to pull her aside and say, “Oh honey, someday you will know better.”

The other noteworthy member of the audience was a guy who also got quite close to the stage.  He sat down almost on top of it during the portion of the concert that it was just Langhorne, without the band.  I missed exactly what happened, but there was some kind of tussle with this guy and another guy who was sitting in the front row.  The first part that was audible was floor dweller shouting, “Don’t take my picture!  You’re going to take my picture and put it on facebook!”  Langhorne stopped his song and told them to break it up.  Someone from the back of the room yelled, “He’s just a big baby, spoiled brat.  His dad owns Allen liquors and he’s an ass.”  The guy then got escorted in the direction of the door, by Langhorne himself, chugging his beer before exiting. 

When I said hello to the drummer and bass player outside after the show, while waiting for Katie & co. to get their coats, I made sure to tell them that despite what they had seen, Buffalo was not all assholes.