The Reeves Brothers, the Rhyolite Sound at the Beauty Bar / The Psyatics at Evel Pie - Saturday July 22, 2017

I've said it before - outdoor gigs in Las Vegas are not the best idea - it's blazingly hot in the summertime (it was over 100 degrees during these shows) and freezing cold in the winter time (I've been to a Beauty Bar show when it was 20 degrees). Regardless, this was a great night at both of these outdoor venues, and the B.Bar was especially packed for the night despite the heat.

I've been wanting to see the Reeves Brothers again since catching them at the Bunkhouse last month, and finally got a chance at this show. Brothers Cole and Matt are joined by Kelly on bass and this evening (as at the Bunkhouse), they had the Rhyolite Sound's Larry Reha sitting in on drums. Larry and Kelly hold down the fort while the brothers cut loose with amazing guitar playing (individually and dual leads/unison playing - some of the best playin' you're gonna see in town) and some terrific genetic harmonies. They mix originals with covers from the likes of Waylon, Jerry Reed, Merle Haggard and more to fill out a set of traditional Country (with a capital "C") music - no "bro-country" pop/pap here! There's a bit of the blues in "11 months and 29 Days", a nice ballad and they end with a rousing "Hot Rod Lincoln". If you're a fan of trad country, these boys are for you! I hope they continue to make more inroads to Vegas instead of just playing in their adopted home of Pahrump!

I made a quick dash across the street to Evel Pie to catch the Psyatics out in the back patio - I really wanted to catch them after missing their set last weekend at the Double Down and I wanted to check out this relatively new venue. As usual, they did not disappoint - despite roasting in the open air (it had gone down to 104 by the time they started). I didn't take as many notes as I should have, but they were tight'n'solid as they ran through numbers from their three CD's, stompin'n'shoutin'n'sweatin' with guitarist Jack roamin' the "room". Dancer Ivana Blaize added more visuals to the proceedings and raised the temperature a few degrees herself! Outta site set of their own unique brand of garage punk'n'roll.

Back to the Beauty Bar to find the Rhyolite Sound a few songs into their set and joined for a number or two by Clydesdale's Paige Overton on harmony vocals. Another special guest was Matt Reeves from the Reeves Brothers on drums! No steel player this evening, but an A-#1 set of their own brand of honky tonk, again combining originals with old school covers, and I would defy you to tell the difference. I wish I took more notes, but you've seen me rantin'n'ravin' about these cats for years now, so you know that you need to see them if you haven't! They played to one of the biggest crowds I've seen at the BB this eve and I'm sure they won over plenty of new converts. They're going to be playing Life is Beautiful this year, so let's hope that the audience there digs 'em as much as this crowd did!

I do wish that Vegas could manage to not put every show that I want to see on the same night, but at least these two were (very) close together! I didn't even have time to sample the pizza at Evel Pie, so I definitely need to get back there! Oh, and I gotta give a shout-out to DJ Hanson for spinnin' some amazing discs at the Beauty Bar! Fun times on Fremont!