Strand of Oaks and Apex Manor performed at 9:30 p.m. last night at the Bishop. Spirit of ‘68 and WFHB presented the concert, which ran from 9:30 p.m. to midnight with tickets prices at $18.
The tour manager, Brian Hexter, said the only con of his job was “little to no sleep” but insisted that his work pays off.
He sat near the back corner of the room to sell their merchandise as well as LPs and CDs to promote Strand of Oaks’s newest album "Eraserland". Hexter described their music as “spacey rock” and said the band claims it is a combination of “Grateful Dead and Black Sabbath.” Sept. 26 is its last tour date.
As Apex Manor took the stage, the lead singer Ross Flournoy turned to the audience.
“It’s very bright up here," Flournoy said. "I can’t see any of you.”
Then the show started off strongly with loud electric guitar, deep bass and rhythmic drums.
The band is made up of three members: Ross Flournoy, lead singer and guitarist; Casey Toll, bassist; and Patrick Berkery, drummer.
Blue and red lights illuminated the faces of the band members as Apex Manor brought deep, powerful vocals.
Apex Manor was the opening act.
“We are also playing in Strand of Oaks, so in a way, we’re opening for ourselves," Flournoy said.
Next, Strand of Oaks took the stage, with Timothy Showalterlead singer and guitarist, and Max Somerville, keyboardist. There was a heavy focus around groovy beats with the heartfelt nostalgia of Showalter’s Indiana adolescence.
Cosmic, hypnotic sounds were juxtaposed with drum solos to showcase the band’s universality.
The crowd was commanded by long guitar solos and dizzying lyrics.
Showalter said he had come down with something, but then playfully said “I think I’ve got the Hyperspace Blues,” in reference to his upcoming song.
The final song’s lyrics consisted of “I hope it never ends” which is some insight in to how the audience might have felt about their performance.
