Briscoe at the Turf Club (08-06-2024)

I’ve been to my share of concerts, and it was to my surprise that last night I saw something for the first time not only once, but twice.

Wells Ferrari opened the evening, Will Wells encouraging the seated crowd at the cozy Turf Club to come closer to the stage. “Lot’s of space here.”

Joining Wells on stage was his musical partner, Mike Ferrari. They met by chance at a writing session for another musician and felt a musical bond that some might call kismet. From there creative ideas began to flow as they recorded songs in Twentynine Palms near Joshua Tree, finding solace and inspiration in the open vastness of the Mojave Desert.

With Ferrari on acoustic and Wells on electric, they played their guitars and sang lyrics to “Southern Belle” and “Lighten Up” from their album Powerlines. There was a nice duet of The Allman Brothers “Ramlin’ Man”. And they were a little disappointed that it was the last show with the next band.

Briscoe shares quite a few similarities to Wells Ferrari. They also started out as a duo and had an immediate musical bond when they first met. As Philip Lupton described first meeting Truett Heintzelman:

It is striking how similar they look. Most fans think they are brothers. There is definitely a fraternal feel, a musical understanding that allowed them to quickly form a duo while attending the University of Texas at Austin, taking classes, playing backyards, living rooms, country clubs, any venue that would have them while seeking solitude and inspiration in the Hill Country just west of Austin, even finding time to record their first album, West of It All, before graduating.

Lupton and Heintzelman have had a busy summer, playing music festivals like Newport and Lollapalooza. They have a touring band with Andrew Read on drums, John Clover on Keys and Mitchel Musso on bass, which has helped stretch their musical sensibilities with the two things I have never seen on a stage.

#1. Lupton played the saxophone. The banjo, I get. The harmonica for sure. But how many times have you seen a cowboy in the Hill Country whip out a saxophone around the campfire? Somehow Lupton made it work, even with the camouflage baseball cap.

#2. Read sitting behind his drum kit playing the slide guitar. Maybe there wasn’t anywhere else to go on stage. Maybe he didn’t need to go anywhere. He also made it work.

If you like Americana, you should check these guys out. You don’t even have to put in much effort. Just go to their website and on top of the tour page is a question: WANT US TO PLAY A SHOW IN YOUR OWN BACKYARD?

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