12/17/08 Cactus Peach @ Some Ranch Blanco, TX

First, props because this show was outside, in drizzle-sleet, and it was at some ranch in the country. Also, they bought a keg and there was some other booze and I got myself drunk. That being said let me add a disclaimer. Myself, the band and I believe the rest of the audience, were drunk during this show. It was cold; it was fun. Anyway, yeah, drunk. So, Austin natives Cactus Peach went on sometime around 10 or so. They were the only band playing and it was one of the members’, Michael Baine, birthday, so they decided to have a show out on his ranch. The first song started and was marked mostly by guitarist Garrett Bircher’s uncomfortably loud guitar. Zane, the other guitarist, and singer, had a good voice, but Im not sure how well the standard chord strumming really went with the bands large lineup (on this song: Micah S. on bass, Garrett on guitar, Zane on guitar/vocals, Michael on drums and Mr. Hollands Opus on Wurlitzer). There was a good, solid melody to the song, but nothing overly ear-catching and it seemed to drone on slightly. The best part of this first song was when I overheard NEWLYWED bassist Jordan K. comment to CLUBS guitarist Alexander B. that “this is a sick bass line” (in reference to Micah’s bass part). Alexander, who was very drunk, noted that this was due to the fact that Micah was a “real” bass player. LOLZ Jordan. Overall, I felt that the band’s first song could have been tighter. AGAIN, let me add, that everyone was fucked up and it was super cold and the sound system was pretty on the fly. Second song was a standout song. It was faster, it was catchier, it was far more technical, and Zane played drums and sang lead vocals. The drum beat was surprisingly complex for someone who was singing and playing, and a few Bane’s and Bircher’s guitar riffs were pretty sick, and all of the band’s parts went extremely well with the song. It kind of reminded me of a more coherent Broken Social Scene song. The third song had the same vibe as the first to me. I’d say that this band’s strength definitely lies in the technical part of their song writing, and that they should try and shy away from the standard chord strumming and utilize their musician fueled lineup. The fourth song was much like the second. Zane again played drums and the song was more uptempo. Like the second song, the drums’ timing was a little loose in parts, but, he was singing, playing drums, and probably drunk in nearly freezing cold weather. It was also their first show, so again, can’t really fault that. The fifth song seemed to be a standout song to many people (bell song?), it was notable because Garett played bells and it was super catchy. The keys on this song were really fucking sick (Baine) and the down tempo, but melodic, drumbeat was very nice (Opus). After that I got kinda drunk and am not really sure what happened. All that really stands out was Alexander B., drunk as nuts, getting on the microphone and going: “THIS IS OUR LAST SONG! WOOO!” yeah, he was that guy. Summary: this band sounded far better than anyone really has the right to when considering all the extenuating circumstances (drunk, cold, first show, lots of equipment, no sound guy). The guys were clearly all tone fiends, and the guitars (yes, bass included), sounded sick and went perfectly with the Wurlitzer and bells. This band’s greatest strength, musicianship and the ability of multiple members to play multiple instruments, was however, also its biggest weakness. Most of the members switched instruments on every song (even Bircher played bells one time. Micah only played bass. Guess micah’s a pussy), but this instrument switching often lead to uncomfortably long pauses without music. I feel that this wouldn’t have been a problem if theyd done all the songs that have the same lineup, in order, or maybe if the member’s not switching, had played catchy, short instrumentals.
Regardless, yeah, this band was pretty tight. Id recommend going to see them immediately once they start playing the local clubs. If they can work out their few issues, this band could be fairly well liked. Not bad at all for a first show.

3.5/5 (was gonna be a real solid 3, but they got me drunk, so I threw in a .5 extra ;) )