Recording: Surinam

Artist: Surinam

Song: Hit the Reset

Recorded at Owl's Club, July 21, 2016.

Surinam - Hit the Reset

Scouted out by some of the same crew that had put together the Four Corners gigs, this night took the action out of the typical bar setting and into the Legion Hall. As the crowd arrived, the room got close and humid, then sauna-like. One got the impression this was a different vibe than the weekly euchre tournament. (Though maybe those get intense, too.) There was a faint mustiness in the air that reminded me of the specific smell of an old canvas tent my family had when I was young — a hot, sticky summer smell. This was actually more or less a totally appropriate vibe for this show, and the closest thing we're gonna get to a Four Corners for the time being.

Celebrating the release of their second album Would We Still Be Laughing, Surinam brought their steely glare to bear on the crowd. Focused and intense, the bottled-up feelings in the hot, stuffy room felt ready to burst — but also expelled in a sort of ritualized release, at least until the next euchre tournament.