Brother Cane A Concert Review	July 20, 1995 The Double Door Chicago, IL A Review by The Dude on the Left & The Dude on the Right

Before Brother Cane were a couple of other bands. Really quickly, Blackbone was pretty cool. They played well. Then came this something Red band - they sucked. On came the Nixons. How could you go wrong with a band named (well, maybe not really named, , but it is the same name) after our greatest president - The Nixons. They weren't bad - weren't bad at all, and even started a fire. Cool, fire, fire, fire, cool!!! Then, hours later, Brother Cane took the stage!!

Brother Cane were a hell of a lot more talented than I thought they would be - but then, all I had ever heard from them was their original CD in my friends car, "Got No Shame" almost three years ago, and one song off of their new CD. So, I listened intently to a bunch of songs I didn't knew, and found myself wrapped up in them, even though the crowd seemed a little lackluster, only there to hear "And Fools Shine On" or "..Shame."

I liked them. The guitar work was excellent, the band tight and together, and I must say that even though the beach seemed like a much better place to be, I was kinda glad I came back to Chicago to see them. It definitely was not a wasted trip.

And the ratings: Blackbone - pretty good, but just not the greatest impression, I guess the show was too short - they get a shrug. That red band - Two Thumbs Down. The Nixons - even though they brought fire, they still need some work. And finally, Brother Cane. Although I like them, it ONE THUMB UP from me. They just couldn't kick the crowd into the show, and probably need one or two more hits without such a long delay between albums to build the fan base again. Oh well.

Party Smart, and as always, Rellim Reeb, Rellim Reeb!!!

The Dude on the Left
Brother Cane, with lead singer Damon Johnson, although he introduced himself as Billy Corgan, a little comment in reference to The Smashing Pumpkins Chicago history , played Chicago on July 20th. But let's start at the beginning. Blackbone opened first. Blackbone, which is from Nashville, Tennessee, has only one album out, "Homegrown", but they are a very good band. They have a style their own but if I had to describe it they are a hard rock band with a Rage Against the Machine type twist. But anyhow, they played my two favorite songs off "Homegrown", "Meatcake", and "Falling Down". This was the third time I've seen Blackbone and I am impressed every time I see them. If it hadn't been for the total lack of volume, they would have sounded great, but the volume was way too low and the crowd sucked.

Next it was Mean Reds...two words...they blow.

So then it was the Nixons. The Nixons got a little more volume, and they played well. I don't know much about them, but I liked what I heard, when they lit a barrel of kerosene on fire, I felt like moving around and getting a little rowdy, but once again, the crowd just stood there. The crowd ruined the whole thing.

But then Brother Cane came out, and the guy with the volume control finally turned it up, way up. Brother Cane played almost flawlessly. You could tell this band has a lot of talent, it was almost like listening to the radio, but still the crowd stood there. The only reaction I saw was to "Fools Shine On", which got the crowd to raise their arms, if only for a couple seconds.

And now...the verdict. It's a tough call but I can only Brother Cane ONE THUMB UP. The sound was weak and the crowd needed an enema. Brother Cane and Blackbone both played well and I thought the show was good, but I can only manage one thumb for each of them.