It was a great line up for Valentiger’s first trip to the Whiskey Lounge on the seedy south side of Grand Rapids.  However, on this Thursday night they found a nice venue inside a tin-roof building engulfed in a gravel parking lot.  Michael Riley took the stage first crooning his way through a good forty five minute set.  Next, Scarlet Oaks (Detroit) plowed their way through a high-energy set of thump and twang, featuring solid backing vocals from the drummer.  One heckler commented on their similarity, “You guys sound like the Old 97’s, but better.”  Lastly, Valentiger brought closed the night at the midnight hour with a hard-hitting set.  From the very beginning “Bosses in Their Offices” took off at a rapid pace, leading into the classic “Joke.”  After “Have It All” and The Kinks’ “Picture Book,” the boys decided to switch to a more dynamic, melodic and lyrical power.  Rider’s bell set on “Courses” sounded the best yet, while Shirey and Kehoe brough tight and sincere vocals to “Man on Fire.”  Surprisingly, the newest addition to the setlist, “Under the Gun,” received the best response when it incited a patron to approach the front of the stage to accolade Rider’s drum beat at the song’s ending.  He then proceeded to lick Shirey’s guitar strings as he soloed.  Of course, the trio finished the night with a romping lineup of The Jam’s “In The City,” “The Girl That Everyone Forgot,” “Hard To Let Me Down” and “Leaving Town.”  The crowd had decided to limbo under the band’s “blinds banner” throughout all of this (again).  And with the perfect nightcap of “Goodbyes in the Wind,” it was all over.  A big thanks goes out to the Whiskey Lounge for having us and also to the Scarlet Oaks for coming in from Detroit – Valentiger certainly had a blast!