The Duke Spirit at the Hammer Museum

I really regret missing The Duke Spirit when they opened for Queens of the Stone Age at the OC Fair back in 2007. The Duke Spirit teamed up with IO Echo for a packed to the rafters night at the Hammer Museum for the "Also I Like To Rock" series sponsored by Indie 103.1.

IO Echo





IO Echo is becoming a force to be reckoned with. Indie 103.1 has been supporting IO Echo dating back to August 2007 when I saw them at the Viper Room when they played a Monday Night Check One..Two showcase. When I caught them in November of 2007 at the Viper Room, I was impressed by their growth as a band. On this particular night, IO Echo completely won over a new audience with a fine tuned set of their post-punk goth spiked tunes. Leopold Ross (Guitars) was a whirlwind of hair as he bashed on his Fender Telecaster and ventured on top of the speakers. IO (Vocals) was all over the stage with the only restraint being self-entanglement with her microphone chord. Salvatore Romano (Keyboards) had a two layered keyboard setup consisting of Korg Triton and a Roland keyboard to add various layers and pads to their ethereal tunes. "Addicted" was a crowd favorite with its driving semi-fuzzed bass line and tight wire guitars. "I Want You (She's So Heavy) was also warmly received as their set came to a close all too soon. IO Echo needs to release a full-length album soon to continue to capitalize on their stream of steady buzz.

The Duke Spirit


Liela Moss (Vocals) is so captivating that it hard to take your eyes off her. While Liela is striking in her own right, The Duke Spirit has the musical punch to knock you off your feet. Neptune is The Duke Spirit's latest musical offering that begins with the hymnal "I Do Believe" before shifting into overdrive with the roaring "Send A Little Love Token" that sounds like a Queens of the Stone Age song if they were fronted by a female. This might be due to the fact that their album was produced by Chris Goss who has worked with Queens of the Stone Age associated project entitled "The Desert Sessions".


The Duke Spirit did not relent during their performance at the Hammer as they nailed "Lassoo". A combination of Gibson Firebird and an Epiphone hollowbody guitar dialed in the appropriate fuzz and blues tones that were impressive as they meshed together. Luke Ford (Guitars) and Robin Ford (Guitars) had an impressive collection of fuzz pedals incorporating a Fulltone Soul Bender, Pro Co Rat distortion pedals and an extremely rare Colorsound Tone Bender.


Liela continued to work the crowd as the ever present tune on Indie 103.1 "The Step and The Walk" was absolutely joyful. Delicate chords and twinkling melodies of "Sovereign" gave the audience a chance to breathe as Liela displayed her impressive vocal range. "This Ship Was Built To Last" was a droned out fuzz masterpiece that ebbed and flowed like the morning tide. "Neptune's Call" and "Cuts Across The Land" capped a perfect evening of free fuzzy rock courtesy of Indie 103.1.