If you’re the type of person who lives day in day out with an unquenchable thirst for real rock ‘n’ roll, chances are you’ve heard of the Bottle Rockets. If you haven’t heard of the Bottle Rockets, it’s time to change that, like now. For over twenty years this gang of Missourians has been going strong, always below the radar of the mainstream. Yet they have managed to maintain a dedicated fanbase willing to see them wherever and whenever they play. Most notably, the band has, for better or worse, been classified as one of the main groups responsible for creating a subgenre called alt. country alongside onetime peers like Uncle Tupelo. However, those that are quick to pigeonhole the Bottle Rockets as alt. country are missing out on the bigger picture, which is the fact that they are one of the true great American rock groups prowling across this country. That’s all that mattered when the band took the stage at the legendary Continental Club in Austin on Thursday.
Years have passed since the Bottle Rockets last played a club gig in Austin, and those in attendance were clearly excited to have them back. The band members shared the audience’s enthusiasm and appeared to be in good spirits while they made their way through a set that, as lead singer Brian Henneman pointed out, took them back and forth from the future and the past. Newer material off their yet to be released album held up to songs like the somber narrative “Smoking 100’s Alone” and the balls out rocker “Radar Gun.” Of course, the best songs, or as Henneman jokingly said, the songs that would’ve been hits had the Bottle Rockets had hits, were saved for the tail end of the set. While classics like “Welfare Music” and “Indianapolis” may have felt a little rushed, as if the band is sick of playing them, they held up as the timeless rock ‘n’ roll tunes they are, quenching that thirst for the real deal.
Following their own set, the Bottle Rockets reemerged as the backing band for Marshal Crenshaw, humorously referring to themselves as the “Crenshaw brothers.” The singer-songwriter is one of the great underrated talents, and at the age of 60 his stage presence and vocals are stronger than ever. Having the raw edge of the Bottle Rockets playing behind him gave fresh life to Crenshaw’s pop-infused feel good tunes of pure catchiness, like “Someday, Someway,” “Cynical Girl,” and “There She Goes Again.” Many of Crenshaw’s most well know songs are over thirty years old, but onstage at the Continental Club they sounded as perfectly crafted and infectious as they must have when Crenshaw first broke out. Crenshaw has toured with the Bottle Rockets for a handful of years now, using them as his backing band and allowing them to co-headline. At first it may seem like an odd pairing, but seeing the Bottle Rockets and Marshall Crenshaw live proves that what these two acts share in common is the uncanny ability to write honest songs filled with meaning and substance all fired out through the rock ‘n’ roll cannon.
