Jeremy Gilchrist, Spencer Goddard And Bad Smell At Light Club Lamp Shop October 10, 2015

Words by Tim Lewis.

I had a great time seeing music at the Light Club Lamp Shop a few Saturday’s ago. I had wanted to check out Bad Smell and did not think I’d get a chance, since Jane moved away, but she came back to town for a few days and she and Raph scheduled a show. I got there early and Jeremy Gilchrist – Singer-Songwriter began the night with songs of time travel and life in Vermont. His voice has an inviting tone. His songs have a pleasant structure to them. His acoustic guitar playing is solid and nice, but it’s his lyrics that truly set him apart. The small audience was pretty attentive and he played a bunch of really cool songs. He tossed in a cover of Down By The River and gave a small tease of Breathe at the end. I really enjoyed his set.

Spencer Goddard came on next and sang and played acoustic guitar. He released his new EP at the show and played the whole thing. I listened as intently as I could, but even 10 feet from the stage, the chatting of the audience overwhelmed the sound. Most of the people seemed to be there to hang out in the cozy space and were not at all focused on the music. Nothing really jumped out at me in any of his songs, but it was hard to tell and I barely caught any lyrics. The small crowd really was that loud. I may have to check him out sometime when I can actually hear.

After a bit of setup, Bad Smell took the stage. It was just Jane Boxall Percussion on drums and Raph Worrick playing with three sets of keys and one control panel. All of the songs were instrumental and just had a cool fun feel to them. Raph had a bit of a mad scientist feel to his playing and Jane was so spot on it would make a metronome blush. Each song seemed to kick off with Raph triggering an electronic beat and Jane matching it and augmenting the sound with double taped drum sticks, brushes or whichever tool in her arsenal that she chose to use. Raph would go off in some crazy fun direction and Jane would fill out the sound one beat at a time. It’s really hard to describe but as Marc Scarano pointed out, it was a lot more fun than it seemed like it would be. They played a short set but it was all really fun. I’m so glace Jane came back to town for a few days and they did the show.
