With the rodeo ending, there is always a bit of nostalgia as to what will happen next. There are a lot of artists from across the country whose goal is to be able to play at this stadium size venue and share their talent and music with their fans and admires of their specific genre of music. Most artist see themselves in the spot light with thousands gathered around the revolving stage to play their music, but though Lucero does not have this immense fan base, they still exhibit the enthralling energy which makes them more of an asset musically than those large country/bluegrass artists.
Lucero stopped by Houston on the 12th of March sharing a show with Built to Spill at Fitzgerald’s. Though the venue is a descent size to hold a few hundred people, it sold out leaving those expecting to buy tickets at the door without hope, not including the scalpers at the door.
This was during the week of spring break so there was an overabundance of people with nothing to do on the first Monday of the holiday week, but still enthusiastic about the bands. The crowd plays an important part to the overall enjoyment of a live performance, and this one threw it all in as the band began to play its set.
This Memphis band had a new album,” Women and Work,” which is their first album with their new record label ATO. This label holds many bands already deep into their career like My Morning Jacket and Drive by Truckers, so it was only right for this band, now on their seventh album, to move in this direction. Having been with Universal previously, they used that same producer to mix this new album, which was available at the merch (merchandise) table. It was made to come out on the 13th of March, the day after the show, or if you were there late enough, that same show.
Lucero looked like a bunch of eighteen wheeler drivers, truck stop clerks, and any other stereotypical southern reference which you could imagine. Their simple look makes them easier to connect with not portraying that rock star glam look, but once the music started the true essence of the band shone through. Ben Nichols, the lead singer as well as the main guitar player is the true force behind the band which was perfectly seen throughout the set. The majority of the tracks were from their breakthrough album, “Tennessee,” which is also my favorite album, with a few exceptions from, “Attic Tapes,” as well as the promotion of the new album.
The audience screamed the lyrics to the popular tracks and held their beers high along with the band as they began to move from their lyrically aspiring tracks in, “Tennessee,” to more of a fun and upbeat rhythm with their new album, “Women and Work.”
Overall the set was a nice mix of fan favorites, which were seen as Ben Nichols, told a fan girl in the audience that kept requesting a song, “I swear that I will play that song next time. I promise, you know what come see me after the show and we will talk.” Though this can be seen through a multitude of lights, there were fans who loved the band from all spectrums of society, which is an amazing thing to witness, especially in such a diverse city as this. Not only were there a number of different people at the venue, there were also people from out of town who drove to Houston in order to catch this spectacle of a band. After their set was done, the band actually came out and greeted the crowd and talked to them a bit. This was the final demonstration of love to their fans and true sentiment and gratitude for their support.
The band is still touring across country and has their album is out in stores. Their entire collection is one which truly resembles that of a passion and love for music as well as a true essence of true country, folk, and bluegrass which is currently undergoing a pop transformation with current mainstream artists. This music is what serves the purpose of living life, having fun, being with a loved one, and overall experiencing new and fun life ventures.
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