Compound Presents celebrates 13 years of bringing great eclectic music to Bozeman with one final show on Tuesday, November 17th with none other than outlaw country singer/songwriter Nikki Lane.
The Filling Station holds a special place in the heart and soul of both Compound Presents and Bozeman as a whole so this will be a bit of a tear jerker for Grant Gilmore, the brainchild behind Compound. Grant will still be working as the talent buyer for Sweet Pea Festival but needed to take a step back after basically working two full time jobs for over a decade. It is with a heavy heart that he ramping down but would love to see all you music lovers at this one for one last ‘Cheers!’
Opening the show at 6pm will be Bozeman’s own Echodrive featuring Andrew Hand on vocals/guitar, Dustin Tucker on lead guitar, Jake Boggess on drums and Matt Fegel on bass. Their lyrical themes deal with the struggles and battles we face in life, looking deeper into our own existence and reason for being on this planet, and also about overcoming the defeats that we face along the way…hopefully providing a bit of support to move ahead in a positive direction. This is a rocking take on Americana with a passion for organic and symphonic melodies and rhythms. Next up is Clear Plastic Masks at around 8pm. It might be cliché to say that the mark of a true rock n’ roll band is that they play from the heart, but in the case of Clear Plastic Masks it is exceptionally true. As the band’s moniker indicates, there’s not much to hide with one of the most talked about groups in Nashville’s burgeoning rock scene. This is the sound of heart-on-your-sleeve blue-collar soul. Recalling the sneer and snarl of the Rolling Stones’ early R&B-influenced work, Clear Plastic Masks’ brief catalogue runs the gamut from mid-70’s New York punk to Stax-style soul to tight, almost ELO disco rock to Lou Reed-style spoken word poetics to more recent nods toward Nashville contemporaries like the Alabama Shakes.
Weaving through the ten tracks on their self-titled debut, the band dips into the well of American rock, soul, and blues, but never stops long enough to let one part soak in too deep. Throughout, the group swings seamlessly from soulful crooning to raucous punk and gnarled grunge riffs, and then throws you back to classic ‘60’s garage rock and near-‘50’s influenced sock hop rockers and ballads. Crispy guitar licks, floral backing keys, and a tight sharp rhythm section swell behind Katz’s soul-quivering vocals and poetic, story-telling style lyrics which peak in crescendo choruses that stab you right in the heart, and then hold you sweetly as you let the music flow through you. Simply put, it’s the sound of Clear Plastic Masks. Finally the critically acclaimed Nikki Lane takes the stage around 9:30pm. Rolling Stone voted Nikki Lane’s “All or Nuthin’” as the #11 Country Album of 2014 and also placed #11 on the 15th Annual Country Music Critics’ Poll. Nikki also was nominated as best emerging artist at the 2015 Americana Music Association Honors & Awards along with First Aid Kit, Houndmouth, Doug Seegers, and Shakey Graves. For her sophomore album, Nashville songstress Nikki Lane teamed up with Dan Auerbach of The Black Keys for a record that turns the vulnerable singer-songwriter stereotype on its ears. With songs that crucify ex-boyfriends, celebrate one-night stands (as long as she can bolt town right after) and proclaim that it’s “always the right time to do the wrong thing,”
Lane comes across like a modern-era Wanda Jackson, albeit with more oats to sow. “My songs always paint a pretty clear picture of what’s been going on in my life, so this is one moody record,” she says. “There’s lots of talk of misbehaving and moving on.” Lane’s been touring nonstop since the release of All or Nuthin’ hitting events like Willie Nelson’s Heartbreaker Banquet and the Blake Shelton-headlined Stagecoach Festival. She’s played with Shakey Graves and Spiritualized, and, soon, she’ll open for Jenny Lewis and Social Distortion through the fall. But country radio hasn’t been so friendly to her outlaw-spirited songs that spill over with slinky, Seventies-era inspirations cased in a streetwise, modern shell that’s as unapologetic as Johnny Cash’s middle finger. But Lane knows it can be a fickle climate for the rebel–she’s been listening to Jamey Johnson and Gretchen Wilson, two artists who once held the “Second Coming of Waylon Jennings” title but only came out shredded and shattered by the mainstream machine.”What did country music do to them?” she asks. “They were the best thing in that time period, and where did they go? Jamey Johnson was the Sturgill eight years ago. Did they jump off the ship because the climate was so bad, or did we kill ‘em? Do we really like outlaws, or do we just like to kill them off? I don’t know, but at least I feel like the doors are opening again.” Don’t miss Nikki Lane, Clear Plastic Masks, and Echodrive at The Filling Station, Tuesday November 17th at 6 pm. It’s going to be one of those shows where you reminisce ‘I saw her at the Filler back in the day!’ •
