One of my favorite things about being an extreme Lone Bellow fan is meeting other extreme Lone Bellow fans, and making connections with people I wouldn’t normally have had the chance to know. One such fan is Skip, who we have now run into at many shows spanning both coasts, despite us all living on the East Coast!
Skip was at the Pittsburgh show this past Tuesday, and graciously agreed to write a recap of the happy hour that night, and share photos from happy hour and the show.
Skip was at the Pittsburgh show this past Tuesday, and graciously agreed to write a recap of the happy hour that night, and share photos from happy hour and the show.
Is a happy hour still happy hour if booze is not being served? In the case of The Lone Bellow at The Rex Theatre on Tuesday night in Pittsburgh, the answer is always yes! Serving host to an enthusiastic crowd of a dozen fans Zach, Brian, Kanene, Justin and Jason shared tails of TLB history, favorite fall movies and serenaded the crowd with classics and always fun to hear, new tunes. Plus it turned out to Brian Elmquist’s birthday which meant a hearty and loud Happy Birthday would be sung later in the evening.
The musical portion of the Happy Hour started out with Zach proclaiming he had a few nerves which translated into an “bonus verse” and big smiles for all the band on “If You Don’t Love Me.” The audience quickly got the questions flowing by asking about the origins of the name of the band. Zach told a story about his grandmother’s guest room which was decorated in clown faces (yikes, not cool Grandma!). Zach also saw a ghost out of his bedroom window...which thankfully turned out to be a trash bag caught on the fence. One night a bull bellowed and ever since writing TLB songs reminded him of his grandparents music…thus the threesome became The Lone Bellow.
The next question inquired about the evolution of the band’s writing process from their debut album to the stack of new songs they have been debuting on the road. Zach described the process as free flowing and collaborative with Brian chiming in that “having a bus helps.”
Conversation soon turned to the band’s thoughts on fans having cell phones at concerts and often viewing the show from the camera lens rather than their own eyes. Kanene didn’t think the behavior was bad, more just evidence of today’s “sharing culture” to show their friends they were at the show. Though Zach questioned if anyone ever actually goes back and looks at the videos they took with their cell phones.
Returning to the music the band busted out a new tune titled “Jessica.” It will certainly become another TLB classic with the blended harmonies, exceptional song writing and sincerity that fans love. The next question inquired as to how audiences differed. The band believes a venue and audience can really dictate the tone of a show. Some venues are most accustomed to sitting thus perhaps keeping a more subdued vibe for the audience.
The band went on to share with the audience the story of how they met. Go visit www.thelonebellow.com for the answer if you don’t know it already! As they waited for the next question Zach decided to throw one out to the band asking for everyone favorite Fall movie. Kanene responded with the true classic “ET.” According to other audience members, Brian allegedly said Legend of the Fall (but I couldn’t confirm that in my notes). Jason with all of his seriousness said the Disney movie Pocahontas! Justin with his quick wit responded with “Fall Out Boys.” And not to be outdone, Zach said his favorite fall movie was “Sweet Home Alabama.” Really Z???
The last question of the evening asked the band about other artists they have played with while out on tour. There have been a lot with so many great bands that everyone in TLB felt blessed. A few names that stuck out to the band included Dawes, Leon Bridges, Blind Boys of Alabama, and Brandi Carlile.
The final two song requests of the Happy Hour had the band playing “Button” and “Fire Red Horse.” For the last story of the afternoon, Zach shared with the crowd that the Fire Red Horse was actually his uncle’s horse that he nursed back to health after it became entangled in barbed wire.
If you haven’t had a chance to attend a Happy Hour with The Lone Bellow there are a few shows left to do so! Don’t miss out on what has been such a neat opportunity for fans to get to know and hear the band in an intimate setting!
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