Hangin' with The Crime Band

I've only written poetry this week and haven't really sat down to post anything other than that. And with the week and month I have had, I needed to get out and loosen up a little. As luck would have it, I had a pretty good weekend. I have not been to a happy hour with co-workers in almost a year so Friday night I was invited and went to enjoy a couple of cocktails. We ran into a very nice couple who invited us to see their band the following evening at the Rock Hard Café, a little sports bar in Tampa. (I love the play and reversal of the name.) Apparently the original band cancelled and these folks were called at the last minute to fill in. Now I don’t normally hang out at bars and listen to bands too much, I’m more of a quiet English pub and good conversation kind of guy. This is for two reasons really. I grew out of that stage of my life back in my 20’s and two, to be quite frank, most of the bands all sound the same and are stuck on the old 70’s and 80’s covers. Especially the beach bands out here where I live. But I thought what the heck, I love music, (especially alternative rock), I have no plans and maybe I could get in a few shots with the camera if they didn’t mind. Well I must say I was pleasantly surprised. They performed all the current music that I enjoy from all my favorite bands from the late 90’s to the present. I either knew almost every song or own every CD that they came from. I had a wonderful time and made some very good new friends. These three guys are incredibly talented and play for the love of the art of music rather than playing because they have to. That’s’ the reason I had never heard of them before. They engaged the crowd very well and the lead vocalist is also the percussionist which you don’t see very often in bands and covered each song seamlessly. I’ve always admired the guys who can do that. Anyway, I went with some friends, listened to the band and before the evening was up, I had taken over a hundred shots on the camera. They said they would post some of them on their website at www.TheCrimeBand.com . It will be nice to see my work there. I’ve attached a few to this post as well. If you live or are visiting in and around the Tampa Bay area, I encourage you to give these guys a listen.