Between my usual insomnia and the extra-creepy nightmare which got me out of bed earlier than usual Friday morning, I was looking forward to kicking off my weekend by going stright home from work, getting in bed and sleeping until I felt rested again which is why I felt mildly annoyed upon being reminded that I’d made a comittment to go see Hillstomp at Conor Byrne on Friday night. As it happens, my guest for the show had seen Hillstomp before and had nothing but praise for them so I set out for with high hopes that the show would be worth shaking off my sleepiness. I’m happy to report that it was; in fact, as lively as the band is, I managed to forget all about that whole being tired thing.

Hillstomp is a Portland-based duo featuring guitar and percussion who perform punk rock tinged blues with a good old-fashioned hoot’n'holler, foot-stomping sound. Both musicians are skilled performers who play with an infectious zeal that inspired the whole audience to pay whole-hearted, enthusiastic attention to the music. The guys in Hillstomp are serious musicians, but they don’t seem to take themselves too seriously–the pleasure they took in being on stage and playing their music was very evident and very charming. Seattle audiences are often deservedly noted for being a bit on the stiff side but by the time Hillstomp finished their first number, I didn’t notice anyone in the club who wasn’t at least tapping their toes along to the beat.

The primitive, stripped-down set-up of a band like Hillstomp can sometimes be realied as a sound that’s also very primitive and stripped-down. That can be fine, too, sometimes, but it wouldn’t be an accurate description of this group’s sound which was rich, full, and multi-leveled in a simple sort of way. If you’ve heard the blue performed well, you know exactly what I mean, and if you’ve never heard the blues played well, you really need to get on that posthaste. Their songs covered the usual blues topics of heartache and hard times but they weren’t for a moment downbeat or depressing. This was definitely a fun show; I would definitely see them again and encourage anyone who missed them this go-round to see them the next time they’re up this way to play.

Also on the bill and tonight and no less enjoyable were Sasparilla Jug Band [MS], a Portland blues-folk band and Seattle jazz/lounge group Miss Mamie Lavonna, the Exotic Mulatta [MS].

As a sidenote, when we arrived at the club, they were so full that we had to stand in line and wait for people inside to leave before we could go in. My claustrophobia keeps me from squeeing in a sardine can like crowd, anyway, but I would like to applaud the friendly and good-natured Conor Byrne staff for their committment to keeping their customers safe by keeping the club no fuller than its stated maximum capacity.