Houndmouth at The Orange Peel in Asheville, NC

September 01, 2018 • Leave a Comment

First on the stage was Liz Cooper & The Stampede, a folk-rock band from Nashville, Tennessee. With no fancy tricks or gimmicks, you could tell they had won over the crowd by the end of the first song. With an organic sound that is reminiscent of old school rock-and-roll, the trio made their short time on stage a highlight of the night by simply playing the music in a way that was incredibly interesting to watch. With drummer Ryan Usher as the backbone of the performance, it led to interesting solos from not only frontwoman Liz Cooper but also bassist, Grant Prettyman. Along with these, they also left plenty of room for drummer Ryan Usher to showcase his obvious talent and supreme technical ability. With how naturally these solos flowed through the performance, you can tell that this is an experienced group that has been around each other long enough to play both a starring and supporting role in live music together. Not only is this a talented three-piece on its own, it has also proven to be an excellent pairing with houndmouth, who have a very similar style and tone overall.

Following Liz Cooper & The Stampede was Houndmouth, the headliner of the night. With the new album relying more heavily on electronic instrumentation in comparison to their older work, many fans, myself included, were anxious to see how this new style would play out in a live format. I’m happy to say that the change in tone for the group seems to be taken in stride. Not only do the new songs translate very well in a live setting, but they also fit in surprisingly well alongside the bands previous tunes. Similar to Liz Cooper, this is a class-act that has learned how to play together as a group. In the same way that jazz musicians learn each other's strengths so that they can be accurately highlighted, houndmouth played together in such a way that each member had an equal chance to shine and showcase their talents on stage. Houndmouth has proven themselves to be a powerhouse, both in the studio and in live performance. This is a must see show from two amazing trios that complement each other exceptionally.