The Sapphires
Live shot
Reviewed by Darcie Stevens, Fri., Aug. 12, 2005
The Sapphires
Hole in the Wall, Aug. 4
"If you're gonna play in Texas ..." The Sapphires took a hint from Alabama Thursday, temporarily trading in injured banjo player Paul Schroeder for recent transplant Monica Lee on fiddle. The local quintet, led by Billy Brent Malkus (Nathan Hamilton) and Rebecca Lucille Cannon (Sincola), spread sawdust on the floor with twang both original and classic. The soon-to-be Texas Sapphires, due to a homonymous Sixties girl group, don't know the meaning of Hot 100, spinning tales that Hank Sr. and Waylon could sing in tandem. Instead, Cannon's exuberant rasp and Malkus' honeydew drawl traipse their own Loretta Lynn ("Driftin' In") and Dale Watson ("Ladyfest, Texas"). With strong roots in punk rock, evidenced by Malkus' skull & crossboned button-up and studded belt, the Maddox Brothers & Rose are tacked up right next to X. A little bit country, a little bit rock & roll. "Rebecca Lucille: singin' 'em like she knows 'em and like she means 'em," glows Malkus. And with a pause and a grin, she replies, "Yep, almost like I know them." Zing! At the end of the day, the only question is if the band has this much fun at home on their front porch.
