Son Volt at First Tap

Every month the folks at Moose's Tooth celebrate the first tap of the month. Thursday night they did so with the help of Alt.Country/Americana royalty. I've mentioned Son Volt before as royalty when I saw them at the Fillmore in San Francisco just before jumping on a plane and returning to Alaska. So it wasn't my first time seeing them, but believe it or not in my nearly 5 years of living in Anchorage, this was my first time attending a first tap event. Local singer/songwriter Jared Woods opened the night with some sensitive songwriter songs...to which a friend who hadn't heard Son Volt before leaned over and asked if this is what Son Volt sounded like. I've seen Jared Woods several times in several different venues and combinations, but Thursday was the first time I didn't enjoy his schtick. It's common practice for bands that come to Alaska to book local talent to open for them. And I'm happy to see when Wilco (featured on the front page of Wikipedia today) plays in Anchorage in July, The Whipsaws are the opening act.
Once Son Volt took the stage, they hit hard and kept punching. Several classic Son Volt songs as well as a good mix of songs from The Search. It didn't seem like there was the same level of energy on stage in the Beartooth as there was at the Fillmore last year, but it may have been the difference between leaning against the legendary stage and being seated in a booth at the back of the theater pub. All in all, it was a great show and showed again that if musicians however big show up in Anchorage, the crowds will follow.