After 25-year wait, the Sadies burn bright in Orlando debut alongside Kurt Vile

THIS LITTLE UNDERGROUND
Kurt Vile & the Violators and the Sadies, The Beacham, March 12

Befitting his continuing climb into the indie stratosphere, Kurt Vile this time commanded a much bigger venue than his last Orlando show a couple years ago.
In the pursuit of his sometimes rambling muse, the current reigning king of left-bent rock has really dialed in his signature in recent years. The golden haze and daze of his stoned sound mine a sweet spot between classic and oblique. It's now a thing of atmospheric richness and slanted warmth that Vile has calibrated to woozy perfection. And live, he and the Violators weave some warped elegance.

Opening were Canadian indie heroes the Sadies, who added major depth and distinction to this bill. This was a pretty big deal because they play here far less often than Vile (love you for that, Kurt!). In fact, after about 25 years in the game, this was finally their Orlando debut. So, yeah, momentous.

The Sadies are one of the most evocative and dimensional bands in the indie roots scene. Though their primary masts of country & western and early rock & roll make an undeniably defining framework, their music rides with remarkable depth. It can rev hard with garage octane or ring over the hills with the sonorousness and cinema of surf and Spaghetti Western sounds, sometimes all in one song.

Live, their rock & roll streak burns bright even amid all the traditional twang. And as a unit, their playing is as locked as it is lusty, with tons of skill and horsepower between them but all in collective service of the music. For their finale, Vile himself came out to join the band for "It's Easy (Like Walking)," the song he also sang on record for their last album, 2017's Northern Passages.
Considering their pedigree, it was nice to see that the Sadies were given a respectful 50-minute set instead of the average opening 30. And since they definitely drew their own ample applause, maybe we'll see the guys again before their golden anniversary tour.




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Email Bao: baolehuu@orlandoweekly.com

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