Here was a concert that I was delightfully surprised by the date in my sleepy town of Asheville, North Carolina. I was even happier when I saw that Rosegarden Funeral Party was the opening act for this leg of the March Violets US tour. I would have gone to see them without the considerable bonus of March Violets, but the twofer of Gothic goodness was impossible to pass up. My Post-Punk fan neighbor [a.k.a. leftymcrighty73 in the comments] also agreed, so I had company for the show last Thursday night.

We arrived at The Grey Eagle in time to actually get a parking spot in front of the club, so we entered and I scoped the merch table, hoping for the silver disc and only March Violets could slake that thirst. They had LPs and CDs of their latest opus, “Crocodile Promises,” so I bought one. Alas, Rosegarden Funeral Party had only fabric goods left on this, the last night of their tour with the headliners. The club was populated by what I’m assuming was the cream of the Asheville Gothic scene; about 40-50 people [most much younger than my neighbor and I] with most of them sporting far more elaborate looks than I ever did, even at that age. I’d hoped that since the night was still young, we might have a larger turnout by showtime.

I’d managed to get a listen to the March Violets album on Bandcamp the morning of the show and I was quite impressed by the high caliber of the songs and performance throughout. This was material 40 + years later that compared favorably to the young upstarts who’d been releasing singles on Sisters Of Mercy’s label all those years ago. That Rosie Garland and guitarist Tom Ashton go all the way back to the debut single from 1982 was definitely impressive.

I’d had the new “From The Ashes” album by Rosegarden Funeral Party recommended to me by a commenter and I also had a listen to that on Bandcamp. It showed the trio weaving a tapestry with the threads of Post-Punk and something a little more confessional in the lyric stance. And Leah Lane was a strong vocalist who could embody those lyrics with conviction. I was disappointed that I wouldn’t be leaving the gig with an album in hand. It was shortly after 8:15 that the evening’s festivities began when Rosegarden Funeral Party took to the stage.

ROSEGARDEN FUNERAL PARTY

The band on this evening was Ms. Lane on guitar and vocals and Dean Adams on drums. The third leg of the RFP tripod, bassist Wil Farrier, was not in attendance. This meant that RFP’s set was the two live musicians plus playback of synths, bass and sax. A little disappointing in that in this post-Dex Romweber age it’s been proven that the guitar/drums combo is robust enough to carry everything off.

Fortunately for us, the vital drums of Dean Adams that impressed on my listen to the new album on Bandcamp was onstage this evening, and his propulsive fills pushed the songs ever forward with inventive skill that belied its complexity in execution. A percussion balancing act that was expertly carried off.

Ms. Lane rocked lead guitar as well as her own fine voice. Her urgent songs of heartbreak and healing found her occupying a place not dissimilar to Pat Benatar and Neil Geraldo in one package. The reliance on playback to fill the sound unfortunately meant that her solos were few and far between, but one near the end of their set could have gone on for a few bars more in my estimation. I enjoyed their set at a crisp nine songs and it warmed my heart to see a trio of the group’s überfans right up front, obviously hanging on the band’s every move.

Their set complete, they headed towards the merch table to meet fans and I had intended to go there between sets and discuss the work she had done with Peter Godwin as Re/Generation and introduce myself but I ended up talking to my neighbor and the breakdown between sets was so rapid that it caught me by surprise. To my slight chagrin. But with March Violets famously using a drum machine, I guess that makes the stage swap amazingly fast.

THE MARCH VIOLETS

Seeing The March Violets walk onstage came so quickly I barely had time to re-insert my earplugs as they began their headlining set. It bears mentioning that the most wonderful aspect of this evening’s entertainment was that were I not already suffering from tinnitus, I probably wouldn’t have been wearing earplugs. The sound of the evening’s performances was some of the best live sound I’ve heard in ages. Kind volume levels with a lack of compression that made each element of the sound clear and distinct. And best of all, my whole body was not vibrating, which I dearly hate. No “bass fracking!”

Since I had never owned any March Violets apart from their songs on the “Some Kind Of Wonderful” soundtrack, with the end-of-life 80s lineup of the band, all of this was new and fresh to my ears. Tom Ashton’s guitars were right in the center of the Post-Punk zone for their slightly flanged tone. Vocalist Rosie Garland, being also a poet and novelist, was no “shrinking violet” and spoke generously with the crowd instead of just letting the music do the talking. I can’t say what prompted her to revisit the band of her youth that many years afterward, but I was glad she had. The last 17 years have had March Violets almost making up for lost time with various albums and collections of their legacy singles. I recognized a few songs of their set from my one listen that morning to their new album, but at least I’d be taking that one home with me this evening.

Following about an hour’s worth of tunes, with their set having ended, March Violets returned quickly for their encore and let us know that they would be reaching far back for their encore as they next proceeded to play “Fodder” from their debut “Religious As Hell” EP. Then, with this being the last show of this leg of the March Violets tour [it picks up again in October with a different opening act], they called up Rosegarden Funeral Party to join them onstage for “Snake Dance.”

After Ms. Garland announced the last encore, she was waiting for Tom to “hit the button,” forgetting that this would be the only song of their set without the drum machine running the show. Instead Dean Adams counted in and the eerie spectacle of March Violets with a live drummer and two singers brought the night to a suitably big finish. While I appreciate their devotion to the Leeds drum machine band ethos, the two bands dovetailed onstage like it was meant to be. And the big smiles on every musician’s faces made all the sense in the world. And then it was over and we walked out into the damp night air at a very kind hour.

This had been a big surprise for me and I was glad that I could catch both of these bands in my little hamlet. The turnout was thinner that I would have hoped for up front. I’d heard that Asheville had something of a Goth scene but this city is all about the Jam Bands, so other cultures are further underground. Everyone attending was there by the time that Rosegarden Funeral Party began their set, but I’d been to shows at the Grey Eagle that were far more meagerly attended, so let’s be thankful for more than a dozen people. I’ve been party to those gigs. This had been a nice warm up for the next gig on the agenda: The Chameleons in October in Greenville, South Carolina…once more with my neighbor as company! Join us next month for that tale…be there…aloha!

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