By Chris Middleton
There’s certain weekends in a city like San Francisco that an up-and-coming band just shouldn’t schedule a debut record-release party. Like say, this past weekend which was jam-packed with the free-admission Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival in Golden Gate Park, Oktoberfest By the Bay, LovEvolution (formerly LoveFest) and the Castro Street Fair. There was even a 49er game to contend with. Despite the crowded itinerary, Bay Area retro garage band The Hi-Nobles decided to throw a party for their first record “Shake” at Annie’s Social Club on Friday. So, did anybody come?
It didn’t appear so when keyboardist/singer/comedian/over-all multi-talented entertainer Kitten on the Keys made her way to the stage around 10 o’clock. Moments after the eccentric, witty, leopard-print wearing MC took to the mic, plenty of people moved away from the bar and to the stage area. Almost instantly a crowd of about 25 to 30 people appeared; certainly no LoveFest, but a clear illustration of people’s willingness to check out a tiny morsel away from the herd.
With a subtle, yet uncompromisingly dirty sense of humor, Kitten on the Keys kept things very San Francisco as the opening act. One highlight was her take on “The Bus Song” also known as “The Wheels on the Bus” (you know the lyrics: The wheels on the bus go round and round, round and round). The song, in which she switched over to accordion for, included a number of anecdotes about creepy and disgusting passengers that always seem to sit next to her on MUNI; sexual deviants and that sort of thing. The lyrics – like her entire routine – were hilarious and easy to relate to if you’ve lived in the city.
The Hi-Nobles took a long while to take the stage after Kitten’s performance, but when they started they didn’t slow down during their entire set. “Shake” is a very suitable title for their album, one chuck full of fast-paced party tunes pulling from late 60s and early 70s blues-rock and garage soul. Backed by Jeff Hashfield’s energetic organ playing and some guitar rifts that sound surprisingly surfer, others that feel classically R&B, the band is old-school from every angle. They brought the perpetual sound and energy on Friday, a great success to anyone fond of good-old throw-back racket.
Simply put, the band does what they do very well. They’re tight, controlled and play their brand of music as hard as they can. They have a blast performing, as evidenced by Hashfield’s almost never-ending smile and lead-singer Scott Holderby’s amp-leaps and theatrics. The drums are constantly beating and guitarist Greg Ingraham can play some mean licks too. What they could use, however, is variety. Slower songs and moodier melodies would go a long way in breaking up the happy-go-lucky, toe-tapping ones. Even so, The Hi-Nobles pulled a crowd Friday night, and that’s never an easy task in San Francisco.
Tags: Annie's Social Club, The Hi Nobles
