Great Northern at the Belly Up

It always love going to the Belly Up for concerts. The idea of Great Northern and The Comas playing at the Belly Up was a sure thing on my concert calendar. It was co-presented by two San Diego music blogs, SD:Dialed In and Chickrawker along with the backing of FM 94.9 who are one of the alternative rock stations in San Diego. I last saw Great Northern when they performed a sweltering set at Little Radio and was excited to see them again.



The Truckee Brothers started off the night with a blend of Kings of Leon and Louis XIV stylings of rock. I managed to only snap a few photos due to the food coma induced by a excellent $8 dollar burger and fries from the Belly Up kitchen. The Belly Up hands down wins for best food at a live venue. It was worth every penny.




The Comas were up next and rocked the audience proper with their energetic songs that reminded me of early Veruca Salt, and Weezer coated with synthesizer glazes. Nicole Gehweiler (Guitars) was displaying some blazing riffs on her vintage Gibson Marauder along with a huge assortment of Boss Pedals and an Electro-Harmonix Holy Grail Reverb. Nicole also adeptly used the E-Bow during the set. Andy Herod(Vocals/Guitars) gave an energetic performance to the very receptive crowd. Rachel and Solon from Great Northern came out for a guest tambourine bash to show support for their fellow tourmates.







Great Northern will be on a movie soundtrack by the end of this year or some closing segment on a popular TV show. Their music is very cinematic and their album "Trading Twilight for Daylight" should finish on everyone's list of outstanding albums of 2007. You can download their album now on itunes for the bargain price of $5.99. They received a large round of applause when they approached the stage and proceeded to play the wistful opener of "Our Bleeding Hearts". I could tell by the smiles on their face that they were happy to be back in California. Rachel Stolte (Keyboards/Vocals) was gracefully tapping out piano melodies on her Kawai Digital piano. Solon Bixler(Guitars/Vocals) was adjusting his Boss Loop station as he coaxed some nice overdriven tones from his Fender Telecaster deluxe. Great Northern sounds even larger in a live setting and sounded perfect over the Belly Up sound system. They capped the evening with a somber version of "Babies" that still had the audience wanting more. They will be dropping by the Detroit Bar soon and this will be the last time you will be able to see them in such a tiny venue.


Great Northern Setlist for the Belly Up Tavern in San Diego (8/9/07)
"Intro"
"Our Bleeding Hearts"
"Just a Dream"
"Telling Lies"
"A Sun A Sound"
"Low Is a Height"
"City of Sleep"
"Home"
"The Middle"
"Into The Sun"
"Babies"