I was caught in a dilemma yesterday. I really wanted to head to Mad Planet to catch Lucero, but the temptation of catching the Great Lake Swimmers and Centro-Matic just across town at the King Club was simply too good to pass up. It turned out to be a great decision, as both bands put on absolutely flawless performances.

This was my third time seeing the Great Lake Swimmers, and I admit that I was a little disappointed that they didn’t perform their fantastic version of Tom Waits, “Innocent When You Dream.” I will say that seeing Tony Dekker with a backing band featuring a banjo player and drummer really did wonders to fill out the haunting songs that have become trademark Great Lake Swimmers tunes. Big thanks to the incredibly attentive and polite crowd at the King Club for being extremely quiet and respectful during their set.

Centro-Matic took the stage and provided a perfect contrast to their opening act. High energy and plenty of gritty guitar layered on top of some incredible keyboard made my first time seeing these guys one that I won’t soon forget. I’m going to go ahead and say that front man, Will Johnson may be one of the best songwriters out there today, and the tunes on their new release perfectly back up that proclamation. Since I’m relatively new to their material and really only familiar with the tunes on Fort Recovery, those were my obvious favorites. I was able to pick up a few of their previous albums, and look forward to getting better acquainted with their back catalogue.

Madison’s own, Goat Radio opened the show and put on an entertaing and rocking set, which seemed to go over well with the audience.

Centro-Matic - Triggers & Trash Heaps [mp3]

In case you missed my earlier post, make sure to check out the MP3’s from the Great Lake Swimmers performance at CBC Studios in August of 2004.