Tuesday, August 18th saw iheartthemusic out at The Dakota Tavern to catch the country-stylings of Gentlemen Husbands and Blackie Jackett Jr. Having previously spoken with the foursome that make up Gentlemen Husbands, we were excited to be able to catch them again and see the progression they had made since our April meeting. These guys never fail to disappoint. What was disappointing, however, was the fact that there were very few people who were there to witness this. Lead vocalist Rick Ballard always appears on stage with a kind of comfort and maturity that is well beyond his years and this night was no different as he went right into “Family Economics” without a hitch. Despite the lack of audience participation, this writer did not refrain from dancing along to “Compassion Girl” and “Danny Regan”. They were a great start to the evening.

Next up were headliners Blackie Jackett Jr. The crowd were a little bit older but nonetheless out in full force by the time they hit the stage. Having just released their debut album last week (August 25th) entitled Whisky and Tears, this show was a great precursor for fans and music lovers alike to witness the alt country side project of James Black and Rick Jackett; two members of Canadian alternative rock group Finger Eleven. The band opened with “Boozin and Loozin”- an uptempo number that was a great start to an awesome set! Title track “Whisky and Tears” saw the addition of female vocalist Sandra Dee which made for a nice contrast against the soulful vocals of Black. The crowd were all ears as audience members swayed and bobbed their heads to this slow number. For your enjoyment we’ve got a clip from the night:

You can catch Gentlemen Husbands at the El Mocambo on Thursday, September 17th and also be sure to head over to their MySpace where they are offering up four of their newest releases for free!