“I have played in Lubbock before, but I have always dreamed of playing the Cactus”
Josh Fleming
Last Friday night, along with my little brother and favorite sister in law, I got to witness the Vandoliers Trio play live at the historic Cactus theatre in Lubbock, Texas.
Texas songwriter Summer Dean opened the show for the Vandos at the Cactus and did a perfect performance of her brand of Country music.
The Ft Worth based Vandoliers bring their own sounds to the Texas Music Scene, yet it’s a sound that resonates the heritage of Texas music no matter what genre you like. The band self describes this sound as cow-punk. In a Vandoliers song you can detect hints of Rock, Punk, Red Dirt, Country, blues and even Tejano. The lyrics that Fleming writes tell stories about where the group has been and where the group is going all the while spelling out Texas in heart and soul.
Originally the Vandoliers were formed as a six-piece band in 2015. Yet, the show I got to see was, The Trio, which was composed of the bands lead singer, guitarist and song writer Joshua Fleming, fiddler Travis Curry, and multi-instrumentalist Cory Graves. This threesome was so much fun to watch. The group took control of the stage and their energy kept the audience entertained all night long. Curry’s fiddle and Graves’ horns echoed amazing sounds throughout the acoustics of the old theatre. The music sounded as pure as if right from one of the groups albums with the full band in play.
VFFV – Vandoliers Forever Forever Vandoliers. Each of the band’s members wear this credo proudly as a tattoo.
Friday night the group played a mix of their own songs as well as a few punk covers. The band currently has 3 albums (“Ameri-Kinda,” “The Native,” and “Forever”) the group has also recorded several singles, its most recent, Waiting on a Train, was recorded mid pandemic in Bruce Robison’s Bunker indicates to me the possibility of another album coming soon.
Pancho’s Picks today by the Vandoliers are Cigarettes in the Rain and Every Saturday Night.
Give these guys a listen and follow them any where you stream your music.
Pancho.