Guards Tour Dates

11/15/11 Magic Bag – Ferndale, MI*
11/16/11 Lee’s Place – Toronto, ON*
11/17/11 Castaways – Ithaca, NY*

* w/ Deer Tick

Country alt-rock, whatever you call it, it’s really big here in Minneapolis… as evident by Saturday’s sold-out show at the Triple Rock Social Club.

Due to another show the same night, I ended up missing Thomas Hardy… but I did manage to catch all of Guards’ set, whose southern rock sound fits pretty well with Deer Tick.

Unfortunately, because it was sold-out, it was hard for me to get a decent photograph (and I’m not aggressive enough to push my way in the front). Whatever pictures I took, well they turned out pretty awful, especially because there were hardly any lights on.

I’ve actually seen Guards’ singer/songwriter Richie James Follin before, without knowing it, but he plays in Cults. Although he’s used as background guitarist in Cults, he definitely takes center stage, doing the singing and songwriting in Guards.

What’s interesting is that the band uses an omnichord onstage (played by the only girl, Kaylie Church, in the band), which is an 80s electronic music instrument made by Suzuki Music Corporation. It was the first time I’ve never seen or have heard of this weird instrument, so that was a real treat.

As for Deer Tick, since I’ve previously seen and wrote about them, I won’t spend too much time on them. Needless to say, for a band to bring on stage an iced bucket full of Cools, you know that they are serious drunkards. In fact, singer, John McCauley, mumbles how he’s forgotten that they were supposed to play (they were late coming on stage).

See all the drunkenness and let the good time rolls when Deer Tick and Guards comes through your town.