On Saturday night the folks that packed the sold out Record Bar were treated to one of the best shows they're likely to see all year. Durand Jones & The Indications are touring behind their fantastic sophomore album, American Love Call, and they showed what an impressive live force they are. The Indications are a really tight band that provide a fantastic background for Durand Jones and drummer Aaron Frazer to shine on vocals. Durand is a true band leader and puts on a frontman show reminiscent of James Brown or Marvin Gaye. At numerous points in time Jones was singing from his knees, flat on his back, or sitting off to the side and letting his band shine. The secret weapon of The Indications though is Frazer. Not only does he absolutely kill it on the drums but his falsetto vocals on songs like 'Is It Any Wonder', which received one of the biggest crowd reactions of the evening, are breathtaking.
The band played most of their two albums and peppered a few well placed covers in the set as well. A sped up version of Curtis Mayfields '(Don't Worry) If There Is A Hell Below, We're All Gonna Go' was a highlight of the night as well as their show closing cover of The Beatles 'Don't Let Me Down'.This will likely be the smallest venue Durand Jones & The Indications will play in Kansas City and for good reason. With two strong albums in their catalog and a voracious live show, hopefully they get the huge recognition they deserve.
Openers Ginger Root described themselves as "aggressive elevator soul" and to be honest I can't come up with a better descriptor. They were a lot of fun and I hope to catch them again soon.
-Matt
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