Cass McCombs hit The Sinclair on a snowy long weekend night, playing an agreeable mix of rock that showcased his fluid guitar playing. He’d swap between finger-picking his Telecaster Deluxe or occasionally playing with a plectrum, and his bass player did the same. There were moments of reggae on “Laughter Is The Best Medicine,” the start of “Belong To Heaven” featured a freeform jazz breakdown before swerving out of that ditch and back onto the marked lanes, and if you put the DNA strands of “Robin Egg Blue” under analysis, Ancestry.com might yield The Feelies as a primary predecessor. “Bum Bum Bum” wasn’t his update on a certain Sir Mix-A-Lot song but a sublimely catchy and simple song that carries farther than you’d think it would. A pleasant evening out from this veteran.
Opening duties was handled by Kolumbo, a retro-’70s trio led by Frank Locrasto, who also lent his keyboard talents during McCombs’ set. The vibe was heavy on green shag rugs and Econoline conversion vans with mag wheels, and one could imagine this band cast as the house band who might have played at Jackie Treehorn’s party in The Big Lebowski. I half-expected them to cover Lalo Schifrin’s theme song from Dirty Harry to close it out, but maybe next time.
Primarily based in Boston, Massachusetts, Tim Bugbee is no stranger to traveling throughout the country or overseas to capture the best live music photos.
