Double your fun

Those who were expecting a full-on reunion of the original Breeders may have been a bit surprised to find the Deal twins, Kim and Kelley, fronting a whole new group. But musically I’m pretty sure no one was disappointed by the skill and enthusiasm the sisters and their fellow musicians poured into their set.

To be frank, I’m sorry I didn’t dig out my old cassettes of Pod and Last Splash to refamiliarize myself with the music before the show, because if I had I might have recognized a few more of the songs by title and lyric and not just bounced up and down to the fine, somewhat minimalist grooves laid down by the band as Kim and Kelley shared vocals and traded smiles throughout the set.

What really came across was the obvious joy the band members get out of playing these tunes with each other. And when they slipped “Happiness Is a Warm Gun” into the set, it gave us memory-challenged old codgers something to latch onto besides the party atmosphere that kept the dance floor packed.

I’m a sucker for a band that can get people to laugh as well dance, and Kelley Deal’s impromptu survey of the band to see who (else) had ever played Chico before, capped by guitarist Richard Presley’s non sequitur Dave Chappelle impression of, “I’m Rick James, bitch!” got my vote as best laugh at a rock show so far this year.

Opening the show was Lucero, roots rockers who have developed an approach to mid-tempo tunes that falls somewhere between Kurt Cobain and Bruce Springsteen on the melodrama scale.

All in all, a good night of rock, capped by seeing the Deal sisters happily getting their picture snapped by fans on the sidewalk after the show.