Southern Breeze has become a busy act with their classic southern rock covers. Their show last night at the Broken Spoke Saloon in Laconia, New Hampshire was a good representation of what they can do for a crowed of dedicated followers. Southern Breeze doesn’t just get the notes right. They channel the energy and spirit of those bands that formed and played out south of the Mason-Dixon line before breaking big.Opening with Lynyrd Skynyrd ‘s “Saturday Night Special” these boys showed they had plenty of drive in their singer and guitarists and plenty of density in their rhythm section. Laconia’s local guitarist Jerry Ray Basnar was filling in last night for Breeze’s second guitarist Rick Roy. Basnar may have pulled in last night’s crowd as he rides a motorcycle and several gentlemanly bikers came by to check out this band, seemingly for the first time.
Southern Breeze dove straight into Molly Hatchet’s “Flirtin’ With Disaster” with singer Marc “The Kid” Pilcher belting it out with self-assured charisma. The guitars here were on fire. The blistering lead phrase ripped through the open air deck area like a Chinese throwing star. The old standard “All Over Now” got the southern flavor treatment as singer uses genuine range and dynamics even though at first listen he seemed limited to macho expression. “The Kid” sang out “Dreams I’ll Never See” with a wistful longing the song calls for. Basnar’s guitar break was uncanny in its precision and coloring, giving it just the right shade of guitar edge.
Bass player Joe “Bassman” Zalgenas brought a variety of comical hats that he would put on during different parts of the show. His stove point hat and his court jester/Santa Claus hat were the most unusual. He also had coats to match his hats, and he certainly created a fun side show with his haberdashery.
The band made “Crossroads” rock with a southern accent. The rhythm section went into overdrive and the drummer gave his set a serious whupping around his incessant beat. “The Ballad Of Curtis Lowe” by Lynyrd Skynyrd showed that these guys can slow it down without losing their oomph. Basnar’s good to the last drop of lead guitar notes gave it a tasteful ending. Crowd enthusiasm could be heard throughout the evening. One guy kept yelling things like “Go man, Go!” and solid applause came after each number.
“Call Me The Breeze” gave the rhythm guitar a chance to show off its role as unsung hero in this band. In guitarist Marc “Not The Kid” Vad’s hands the groove was a thickened series of chords, endlessly using its muscle to keep the song structurally sound and always moving forward, like a thick chord that grooved forever with a muscular sound, texture, tone, color and clarity. It made space for the lead guitar fireworks and for the drums to move that skin smacking sound around it, with everything fitting perfectly together.
The Southern Breeze boys began their second set with more energy than many bands start their first. They drove “Give Me Back My Bullet’s out of the starting line with high octane classic rock overdrive. The guitars unfolded soulfully, and the singer knocked everyone for a loop with his rugged take on the stop and go chorus. Some crowd members must have felt like they were at a Nascar race as they were shouting at the band to “Go! Go! Go!”
“What’s Your Name” off of Skynyrd’s sophomore album Street Survivor gave “The Kid” a chance to show another side of his stage persona. His warmth in this song showed a lot of affection for the tune, his svelte voice coating it in southern charm. Like in “Give Me Back My Bullets,” the rhythm section was the meat of the song. Many in the crowd seemed pleases to hear .38 Special’s “Hold On Loosely,” as it was the age group that made it a hit in the early 1980s.
These boys could vary it up a bit. Basnar and Vad played the tender guitar melodies of “Sweet Home Alabama” and “The Kid” caressed the lead vocal to the favorite sing along chorus. Then shifting gears, they went roaring into Z.Z. Top’s “Cheap Sunglasses” with the lead guitar tearing its way forward with burning fever. It was interesting to notice that these musicians from southern New Hampshire could make the Texas groove of Z.Z. Top come alive on the deck of a biker bar in Laconia. Drummer Don “MaGoo” McHugh sang lead vocal heartily on “Ramblin’ Man” and the dual lead guitars made those sweet melodies come alive.
The third set gave even more rocking hits from Dixie. Southern Breeze handled “Hard To Handle” by The Black Crowes, “That Smell,” “I Know A Little,” “Gimme One Step” and “Down South Jukin’” before closing out with the immortal southern rock classic: “Freebird.” Beautiful, memorable guitar lines, a mellow, take-your-time rhythm section, and a handsome lead vocal made it the southern rock anthem the crowd knew and loved.” The close out was perfectly in tune with the mood of the audience.
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