Hot Water Music were one of the bands that I had to let grow on me. As a kid who was always drawn to the melodic and often whiney, hearing HWM for the first time on a Warped Tour DVD was a bit of a culture shock. Chuck Ragan’s vocals were gruff and strained in the best possible way.
Easily mistaken for shouting rather than singing by those conditioned by bands with vocal coaches, it wasn’t until I’d heard the likes of Gaslight Anthem and The Menzingers who are so heavily influenced by Hot Water Music that you recognize that sound as experience, maturity, and authenticity.
Now Chuck is on the road with his new solo album Love and Lore and we get to hear it at King Tuts tonight.
Nate Bergman is tonight’s support and he’s playing to the fullest I’ve seen King Tuts. Nate goes beyond the usual singer/songwriter we’re used to. His songs are sorrowful and his voice is tremendous enough to make them heartbreakingly sincere. A crowd participation of “I wish I was dead” brings the audience together beautifully. It’s easy to say a guy with an acoustic guitar is emotional, or tear jerking, or anything like that.
But Nate is as close as I’ve been to tears at a show since Aaron West… and that is the statement of the year! Get this man on your music player of choice and drink whiskey while you top it up with tears. If you’re aspiring to be a singer/songwriter… this is the bar. His banter is remarkably funny for such depressing music but it sits awesomely with the crowd… especially when he walks into the middle of them and plays a song literally unplugged for a finale. No mic… no PA… and we could hear every word. Nate… please come back to Glasgow.
Chuck comes on stage and his voice has more gravel than a school football pitch in the ’80s. Paired with his guitar, the mix of grit and smooth is a great combination which would make for a great set on its own. Paired with pedal guitar played by Todd Beene, it’s stunning. Todd also plays other instruments, but we’d be doing the pedal guitar a disservice if we didn’t dote over it for a while. Perfectly pitched, it gives the whole night a beautiful texture as it’s ghostly wail oscillates back and forth across the room.
Speaking of the room, it’s a bit of a nightmare for those who can’t squeeze into the part of the room where you can actually see the stage. As those who have been to Tuts (most of us?) know… a bit part of the room by the merch table and bar is round the corner from the stage. Tonight was so packed out that quite a number of people were forced to stand around that corner with no hope of seeing the stage. The bar staff were great in trying to give advice on where to go, but it was a hopeless task. The sound was still fantastic but they miss out on who is playing the harmonica and Chuck’s emotive face as he howls down the mic.
Even if you can’t see the emotion in Chuck’s face, you can certainly hear it – and that’s the point of tonight. His heartfelt, personal solo material with a nice little Hot Water Music song thrown in makes for a night that’s cathartic for all involved. As the crowd are singing the words back to Chuck, he throws their sorrows back into the mic to be done with it. I won’t say it’s a religious experience, but it’s what I imagine one would feel like. Both acts tonight have been a lesson in self care through letting it out, and it’s a lesson I want to learn over and over again.
Photos by Catching Light Photography
Catching Light Photography
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