On Wednesday September 15th, Truth and Salvage Co, a barnstorming new outfit with six musicians from disparate parts of the country, began their “Great Northwest Music Tour” at Lola’s Room in Portland, OR. The “Tour” is just part of a much larger west coast romp for these purveyors of a sweet and polished new Americana sound. This fall the band will visit both large cities and small towns across the left coast. The Northwest dates have found a home in Oregon’s famous McMenamins’ venues; historic buildings that have been renovated and repurposed for music, food, and drinking by the local brewery/hotel chain. While McMenamins sometimes gets a bad rap among Portland locals for being a growing corporate enterprise, on Wednesday I was reminded of the old-timey charm that oozes from these buildings. The atmosphere added a warm, welcoming feel symbiotic with
Truth and Salvage Co’s shimmering melodies and resounding country rock.
While the members come from various parts of the country, they fell in with each other in Los Angeles during late night jam sessions at Hotel Café and have since developed friendships and collaborations with many notable musicians including The Black Crowes’ Chris Robinson who produced their debut LP out now. Wednesday’s show and some of the others on the Northwest tour are free yet only a small crowd of about 50 settled into the couches and tables at Lola’s. It appeared a few of the band’s friends were mixed in with the locals and as they were performing for the first time in Oregon, the band was in a jovial, drinking mood.
Mixing two pianos/keys, drums, bass, two guitars, accordion, slide guitar, and tambourine, Truth and Salvage plays an accessible and very professional form of Americana rock n roll. Its hard to imagine the band only being together for a couple years their sound is so tight. Guitars flow with warm, earthy tones. Pianos rollick and stream through and around beautiful four part harmonies that can occasionally break your heart they are so sweet. It is not a stretch to let the mind flow toward The Band, those classic Canadians who truly brought Americana to the masses in the 1960s. Songs like “Hail, Hail”, “Them Jeans”, “Heart like a Wheel”, and “Call Back” all have instantly recognizable melodies that could be played on FM radio at any moment and garner fans who love Jackson Browne, The Eagles, and other Laurel Canyon luminaries.
Leisurely pacing themselves throughout the night, the band told a few ghost stories about the McMenamins White Eagle hotel and slipped in and out of small town stompers and arena sized ballads with nary a hiccup. Having opened for The Black Crowes and The Avett Brothers, Truth and Salvage Co. already possess the confidence, power, and most importantly the hooks to play much, much larger stages. I would not be surprised to see this band’s legions grow steadily till they are even playing summer sheds with a little support. The band slowly seemed to dig deeper into their music as the evening wore on, stretching out into a bluesy jam for the first time all night. Part of me would like to see the band continue to show the grit I am sure underlies their elegant song structures and note perfect vocal interplay. Nonetheless, Wednesday night in Portland the band strutted through a sound perfect for backyard whiskey laments over the one who got away or a summer time barbeque with the smell of grilled pork and feel of cold brews on ice. Put on a little Truth and Salvage during those late nights, when the friends are gathered at your place passing some reefer and smiling, because hell, ‘aint this a joyous life.
Glide contributor Chris Calarco can be contacted at [email protected]
