Stepping through the doors at the High Noon Saloon on Saturday night the music scene in Madison materialized and completely justified its existence. Having spent the previous hours witnessing The Hold Steady and The Heartless Bastards entertain across town to a sold out crowd, I arrived fully expecting a lackluster turnout at the High Noon Saloon.

I misjudged the rabidness of Madison music fans, and, as I looked around I was happy to see plenty of other folks I recognized from the show across town. In addition, it was almost impossible to shake the extreme excitement I had just previously enjoyed and wrote about here, but settling in with my group of friends as Califone started their set I realized my amazing night was about to enjoy the perfect encore.

My affection for Califone’s Roots and Crowns began a serious backtrack through their catalogue and provided a perfect starting point (albeit a very tardy one) to their music which has since blossomed into discovering some of my favorite music over the course of the last year. By their second song of the evening, “Spider’s House” the chatter amongst the crowd disappeared and allowed the band to flourish and really own the venue.

Combining elements of experimentation to the uniqueness of their sound the band can, at times, seem to stray off into the distance. That distance however always provides an underlying current guiding the song gently back to shore. If you listen closely you can certainly hear the direction and the changes and cues to other band members of the decision to head back into the song. Being able to pick up on and enjoy those interactions and witness the band begin, stray, and then return through various songs was definitely a highlight.

In a complete opposite direction of straightforwardness, “The Orchids” provided a graceful come down to experimenting and tinkering. A definite highlight of Roots and Crowns relayed the same during the concert. Overall, the concert was exactly what I was hoping for and won’t miss an opportunity to see the group the next time they swing through town.

There are a handful of dates remaining on this tour, but we’re already looking forward to their upcoming set at the Pitchfork Music Festival on Saturday, July 14th.

Myspace: Califone
MP3: Califone – Spider’s House
MP3: Califone – The Orchids
MP3: Califone – Wingbone
MP3: Califone – Slowness
MP3: Califone – One
MP3: Califone – No Expectations (Rolling Stones)
MP3: Califone – For The Turnstiles (Neil Young)