Reigning Sound
Trolling South by Southwest 2007
Reviewed by Audra Schroeder, Fri., March 23, 2007
Reigning Sound
Red 7, Thursday, March 15
There's no doubt Greg Cartwright is one of the best songwriters around. He recently co-wrote and performed on Mary Weiss' new album, and he's regarded as a patron saint of Southern garage rock. To see Reigning Sound live, however – to witness them ignite a hootin' and hollerin' sonic shitstorm – is really the only experience. The quartet, rounded out by new organ player Dave Amels, rattled off "Your Love Is a Fine Thing," "You Got Me Hummin'," "We Repel Each Other," and "I'll Cry" from their 2004 standout, Too Much Guitar. Cartwright, in sunglasses and smoking a cigarette, was all energy on the guitar, playing like it was on fire as drummer Lance Wille kept almost robotic time. There was too much guitar and not enough of Cartwright's howl, but the crowd – in which there was an unusual amount of people also wearing sunglasses and smoking cigarettes – ate it up, whipped into a frenzy.
