Credit: thecultureofme.com
They are only here in the U.S. for a short time, but Australia’s Eskimo Joe [Official Site, MySpace] are making the most of their time in the States. Hell, they played two sets in three days here in New York before crossing the country to play three more California dates as well. That’s a good sign of an act’s commitment to breaking out here in North America, so applaud the road warriors for their hard work. Besides, after their latest effort, Black Fingernails Red Wine, went quadruple platinum “down under,” they knew the next big test was here on American shores.
The band’s set Friday at Union Hall was a tight, well-rehearsed affair. The members were able to mingle in the crowd watching bocce ball upstairs without being recognized (which must be a treat for them) but that didn’t detract from the moment. It heightened it. Believe it or not, we might have witnessed history in a basement in Brooklyn and only time will tell.
Honestly, one wouldn’t need to know the material that well to enjoy the experience and that was the case as many among the contingent hung on every word of favorites like “Breaking Up,” “Sarah,” or the title track, “Black Fingernails Red Wine.” The room was small. The audience all stood for a change, which was nice, but only after urged to play the role of “rock sponges” soaking up the noise within the room in a bizarre form of social experiment.
Eskimo Joe were good, almost too good for that set and that night. Just a month or so removed from performing LiveEarth, the modified quartet (the drummer was shipped home upon entering the states) ran through their hits with purposeful strength; the band appeared very much at ease on stage, the desired result of playing much larger, stadium shows. My favorite moment of the night was that as I watched the crowd, I could tell that many in attendance pointed and whispered about Stu’s passing resemblance to Bret from Flight of the Conchords, which was playing on the PA as people were arriving.
“Black Fingernails Red Wine” – [mp3]
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