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Listen to Grace Potter and the Nocturnals on Rhapsody...
Words by: Josh Potter :: Images from: gracepotter.com
Grace Potter and the Nocturnals :: 03.11.07 :: The Stone Church :: Newmarket, NH
 Grace Potter and the Nocturnals |
When Grace Potter and the Nocturnals started rehearsing at the Java Barn in Canton, NY in 2002, I half expected to turn on the radio one day and find them chugging along with Garrison Keillor. But, five years on something's changed. It's the rock, man, and it ain't just an island in the San Francisco Bay. With their first major label release a couple months off, festival gigs lined up and an upcoming trip to Japan, GPTN have turned it up. What was once a home-cooked meal is now a three-alarm grease fire.
 Grace Potter |
"The road's been good to us the past few days," Potter told the capacity crowd. "We're still drunk from three nights ago." In anticipation of their Hollywood Records debut, This Is Somewhere, the set was primarily fresh, whiskey-fueled material in the vein of Neil Young, Rolling Stones, and contemporary bedfellows the Drive-By Truckers and North Mississippi AllStars. While their message boards buzz with fawning dudes arguing over which red wine Potter prefers, the majority of the eyes-closed, head-nodders in the crowd were women.
The Nocturnals' shift toward rock & roll is a sign of maturity. Potter moves deftly between her trademark Hammond B-3 and an arsenal of 6-string axes, broadening the band's pallet and her range as frontwoman. Guitarist Scott Tournet splits the ether with his bread-and-butter Telecaster and harmonica playing. The only casualty of the new Nocturnal sound is the double bass, which proved too cumbersome for the relentless stomp of bassist Brian Dondero and drummer Matt Burr.
 Grace Potter and the Nocturnals |
"Treat Me Right" and a lead-footed "Joey" were the only remnants from Nothing But the Water. "Ah, Mary," "Stop the Bus," and "Mystery Train" have emerged as the new standouts. Their gang busting set blurred the line between new and old material. Potter has been polishing her Mick Jagger sneer, and the new tunes about "being on the road and not getting laid" seem plucked from some top secret Rolling Stones playbook.
Even as the Nocturnals cut loose more, they can just as quickly get quiet and tender. Like pulling into a driveway at the end of a high-speed chase, the show closed with Otis Redding's "Pain In My Heart." As glad as I am to see the direction the band has taken, it does my heart good to see that they can still burn it slow. Maybe someone ought to call Garrison Keillor after all.
JamBase | New Hampshire
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