It was a Tuesday, November 20th 2007 at around 8:30 P.M. to be more specific and the Line up was Darwin Smith, Hilary York with guest Heidi Thomas (Danny Malone) and Chris Gates (Big Boys, Poison 13, & Junkyard). The night usually starts off with a guest. The featured song writers seem to be real enthusiast about sharing the stage with a variety of different artists. It is a nice prelude as the usual suspects Aimee Bobruck and Hilary York also offer a variety in both song writing style and music texture. Aimee was missing in action this night, however, Darwin and company took the vacancy and complimented Hilary. Darwin frequently accompanies both Hilary and Aimee at times in the way of lead guitar. The guy has a real ear for adding leads that offer great strength in their subtlety and illustration.

 

Darwin's band took stage and opened with a great ambient feel. The mediums involved were steel guitar, upright, and drums that settled in nicely. This was the first go around as I'd never heard any of the music before. It just seems better to see it live first, in my experience. Before I'd actually seen the band, Darwin described it as "Country". I kept this in mind while listening. I suppose the vocals and lyrics would occasionally anchor it to country here and there. However it clearly divorced itself from the standard in its execution. The guitar served as the backbone with a very vibrant hall sound that reminded me of the soundtrack to Dead Man. However there were several times Darwin would walk it right into a melodic lead. The steel guitar sometimes took on twang of country and other times reminded me of Pink Floyd. There was an exceptional approach the drummer used with mallets adding a nice soft parade of percussion. The upright was subtle but steady. A few songs into the show Darwin made the comment that the songs are played about three times as slow as they should be. It got a good laugh though sometimes slowing things down too much can be a real bore. In this case it fit the bill for the simple fact that it allowed for the instruments and vocals to be heard and soothe like a nice cool breeze in the middle of a Texas summer day in August.

 
Hilary played next augmented by the vocals of Julie Lowery. Hilary is a great performer I've seen her a few times now at the Red Scoot Inn. She mixes it up by playing with different guests, though without question she stands on her own. She did a cover of Radiohead's "Exit Music" from the modern take on Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. Radiohead's version has a lot of background going on and the vocals layer over it very well. Hilary delivered the same momentum solely relying on her vocals and guitar. The addition of Julie Lowery during Hilary's Performance was a pleasant surprise in the way the two voices harmonized like ex choir girls that now have their own story to tell. "Baltimore" was a great finale to the set.
 

Heidi Thomas closed the show she usually plays with Danny Malone. This was Heidi's first performance armed with her own original material. Darwin accompanied her on a few songs and she did a few solo that were just as powerful.

The artists always stick around after the show and are very friendly. There are many types of liquor, wine, and several beers bottled and on tap out back to facilitate even the worst conversationalist. Red Scoot Inn Tuesday nights houses some great song writers and great music with no cover. I mean unless you count the tip jar?

Darwin Smith

http://www.myspace.com/darwinsmith

Hilary York

http://www.myspace.com/hilaryyork