Brett Newski

Lucy & La Mar

Tactful Cactus

Date: February 21, 2017

Location: Acerogami

Story

An incredible night listening to new and old music at a new venue occurred that night. Downtown Pomona unsurprisingly turned quiet that night as music lovers arrived to the Acerogami to partake in this evenings entertainment. As the 25 person crowd chatted among themselves the first band of the night, Tactful Cactus, came on stage. Fun fact the singer designed the poster for this night’s show. Her black outfit matched her brand new guitar which was barely 2 days old. Though she had the guitar for a short period of time she knew how to handle it and perform it masterfully. The dark background of the venue increased the mellow mood produced by the singer’s flowing lyrics. Throughout the performance it occurred to me that the singer reminded of me Zooey Deschanel. Not only did she resemble her a bit but her singing reminded me of Deschanel when she was half of the group She & Him.

Lucy & La Mar took the stage entertaining the crowd for 45 minutes. The soothing vocals of the lead singer paired with the thoughtful lyrics proved to be a winning combination. The three members of the band wore bows; the men had bow ties while the lead singer had a hair bow. The lyrics were almost hypnotic as I felt transported to an earlier decade of wonderful music. Though Lucy & La Mar don’t have a psychedelic sound, I kept thinking about Jefferson Airplane as the band performed. It’s hard for me to pint point the style of music that Lucy & La Mar played, though it is familiar. In between songs the singer would ask how the crowd was doing, getting them involved. The Tactful Cactus singer revealed that before the show she was doing history homework. As the band’s setlist came close to an end, the singer motioned people to get up and dance. Three couples got up on cue as they danced along to the groove of the night. One last tidbit the band mentioned before they played their last song was that the next day they were going to perform for a kindergarten class.

Without announcement Brett Newski started playing his setlist to the surprise of everyone in the room. Months prior Newski had opened up for the Violent Femmes at the Pomona Fox Theater, which is down the straight of this venue. His performance caught my attention and I’ve kept an eye out to see when he would perform in California again. Luckily I only had to wait three months as Newski ventured on his Winter Sucks tour. Wearing a hat that matched his Minnesota white shirt Newski killed it that night. His hilarious, witty lyrics paired with his humorous personality lead to an entertaining night. I RSVP’ed on Facebook a month earlier for this event and actually received a message from Newski himself. In the middle of his performance I walked closer to the stage to take better photos and he nodded at me in acknowledgement which took me by surprise! He made the announcement that he is working on a new album due out this year which he described as “politically light”. I cannot wait for the albums release, I just know that it’ll be great even though the albums title is The Worst of Brett Newski: Songs to sink the American Dream which comes out April 28. The best aspect of Newski’s shows is hearing his amusing stories whether it be how he met Shaquille O’Neal during his first visit to California or the “pure garbage” show he had in Oregon. It would not be a Brett Newski show without the mention of Pabst Blue Ribbon beers. My two favorite songs of his were performed that night; Bro Country and D.I.Y. Bro Country is a great satirical song about country culture while D.I.Y is his best song. I love how during performing D.I.Y. he plays with with a kazoo, not only that he plays the kazoo while also playing the guitar. He might have a point though, if he played Bro Country more he’d probably sell more records. Closing out the night on a high note he performed I Won’t Die Young. By the end of the night there is no doubt about it, Brett Newski is punk as fuck and is the man.

Trivial Notes

1st show at the Acerogami.

Got my copy of Land Air Sea Garage signed by Brett Newski.

Messed up and didn’t get a ticket stub for this show!

2nd time seeing Brett Newski, only seen him at Pomona.

Took a photo with Brett Newski at the end of the show.

Tactful Cactus and Lucy & La Mer liked the Instagram photos I tagged them for this show.

Brett Newski and Lucy & La Mer liked my Twitter mention of the show.