I finally saw the Gourds in concert on Friday the 13th, after having plans to see them disrupted the previous four times they were in town. They were showcasing their new CD, Noble Creatures, but the set list was two and a half hours of the Gourds playing all manner of songs, capped off with a 15-minute Gin and Juice and Midnight Rider medley.

One of the best parts of the experience is that their recorded music now seems more immediate and alive than before.

These guys have to be the hardest working band in the USA, but because radio sucks to the degree it does, they have never received the recognition that, in my opinion, they merit.

The opening act, North Carolina-based David Childers and the Modern Don Juans, shook the roof and set the bar high enough that many an act might have stumbled in their wake. The Gourds just picked up the groove and ran with it.

If you have a chance to see either band, I think you you find it time well spent.