Short’s Brewery – November 7, 2009

November 9th, 2009 · 3 Comments

Valentiger seems to be caught in some sort of Brewery vortex.  They’ve found themselves back at Short’s after playing Original Gravity and then making their way to Goose Island in Chicago and The Hideout in Grand Rapids over the next two weeks.  But Rider seemed to realize that this might make sense after conversing with some people in Belliare, “I think breweries work for us for a reason.  People come to these places looking for something new to try.  Whether it’s beer or a band, I think they’re looking for something outside the average beer or jam band and we seem to fill that need.”  And the boys did play a very diverse and tightly orchestrated pair of sets.  They began with some slower, more melodic tunes which incorporated a lot of their usual live material.  “Under The Gun” was followed by a shouting of, “Is that one on the CD?”  “Hard To Let Me Down” chased by “Leaving Town” received the best crowd response of the night.  And after a short break and some of the brewery’s famous pizza, the boys decided to pick up the pace with a range of covers including The Kinks, Pavement, Oasis, The Rolling Stones and the Pixies.  The set was first ended with the conclusive “Lament,” but then succeeded by “In Your Head” after an encore applause (copies of Magnet Heart Conveyor went out the door because of this).  Valentiger acheived great results, as did Kehoe from his second night of using the newly purchased Fender Bassman head.  However, not so great was the drive back to Grand Rapids for the band.  Three hours they trudged through a horrendous fog with only two gas station sandwiches, a Snickers bar and a bag of Jujyfruits to save them.  And although Michael Moore was not in attendance this time, East Side brewer/celebrity, Brad Sancho came to check up on the boys.  Thanks to Short’s for hosting Valentiger who strongly suggests trying their Pandemonium Pale Ale.

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