Don’t let their New England ancestry fool you — Deer Tick may be from Rhode Island, but their sound is pure alt-country rock. The band played a wild and energetic show at the 9:30 club Sunday night to a boisterous crowd.
Opener Virgin Forest played a loud, chaotic set of anthemic rock and roll, a split from their usual low-fi guitar rock. Songs like “Big Ol’ Mama” and “My Sister Said” were turned into noisy, feedback-laden numbers that dragged on the audience.
Finally, Deer Tick lead singer John McCauley came onstage to riotous applause, holding a six-pack of beer in his hand. He explained he wanted to bring the audience a gift of song, but instead he brought the gift of beer-infused rambling.
The band wore worn-out tweed suits with mismatched bowties, along with beat-up sneakers. They opened the show with a single off their upcoming album, “Divine Providence.” “The Bump”, a crazy, pounding romp, had plenty of opportunities for the excited audience to shout along with the chorus. Deer Tick’s new album, “Divine Providence” comes out Oct. 25th. The band played several cuts from “Providence” throughout the night.
McCauley’s raspy, nasally voice cut through the background chatter of the 9:30 club and the thumping drums and bass behind him brought everyone in the balcony to their feet. People danced, nodded and jumped along with each number. McCauley was fun, funny and more than a little drunk, but his mumbled jokes and stories in between songs were not out of character at all. He had a charismatic presence, mostly due to his legendary antics onstage.
At the 9:30 club, he toned down his act a little. He kissed his guitarist, Ian O’Neil and a male fan that jumped onstage, poked his bandmates and his amplifiers with his guitar, and allowed a crowd of excited fans to dance on stage with him for a couple of numbers, something most musicians wouldn’t even consider.
McCauley and his bandmates spit beer bottle caps at each other in between, and sometimes during their raucous songs. By the end of the night, their bowties were falling off and the six-pack was nearly empty, but the band kept rocking just as hard as they did on the first song.
Deer Tick is a big fan of resonant power chords, which give them their signature down-south grungy sound. The small club was filled with McCauley’s deft fingerpicking and the beating drums of Dennis Ryan, the band’s drummer. The harmonies all five members of the band achieve are rootsy and soulful, bringing an added level of warmth and intensity to their live performances.
Deer Tick is known for its appealing blend of rockabilly, southern roots rock and punk, but still leaves room for some welcome surprises. After announcing that he was “going to sing some sensitive singer-songwriter shit”, McCauley performed a slowed-down solo version of the song “Houston, Texas,” off their second album, “Born On Flag Day.” The dedicated fans at the front of the club began shushing loud people in the back until the only sound was coming from the stage. McCauley’s versatile, soulful voice echoed in the quiet, and brought a moment of peace to an otherwise crazy show.
Later on, the band played a cover of “We Are The Sons Of No One” by “our favorite beer drinkers,” The Replacements. This was a big hit with the crowd, who sang along almost loudly enough to overpower the band. This was just one of many sing-alongs throughout the night.
Any Deer Tick show is a foot-stomping, hard-rocking good time, especially at the 9:30 club. As they put it, “this place is good stuff.” Their heartfelt, authentic performance Sunday night brought the whiskey-soaked sound of southern rock to the small club, making their show with Virgin Forest something no rock, country, punk, or alternative fan would want to miss.
dgooley@theeagleonline.com
