Tatanka made its way to a speaker near me on Feb 3rd, 2010. Hodi’s Half Note in Fort Collins welcomed them with a free keg of PBR for this Wednesday night show. Ladies, if you want to find your very own fried egg, you can probably pick one out from the sausage fests known as free keg night at Hodi’s.
I arrived after the keg had dried up and the remains of the crowd resembled a frat party. However there are key differences.
- Quality beer is available
- Everyone wears bracelets to signify that they are indeed 21 years or older
- The guy that is so drunk he can’t stand is yes, obnoxiously hitting on the pretty ladies, but rather than making crude gestures, he is tumbling towards the stars. He says lines like, “Jus lovin life man” or “sunshine woman” or “hey there pretty lady.”
Somewhere inside me I want to share in his joy. My face may read revolted, but inside I can tell he is the simple kind of guy that drinks a six-pack and falls in love with the world. The fact that he can’t stand up straight still turns off. I wander up towards the stage where the band is getting ready for their second set.
Tatanka is a three-piece band with drums, guitar/lead vocals, and a keyboardist that also straps his bass on. The dancers begin to sense their presence needed at the front of the stage. When live performances are going on, the audience is a key component to make the wheel spin. As the dub riffs and smooth vocals crank out, the entire audience begins to move.
This band is not a frat party band. They are Jamiroqui meets the Temptations. The vocals are Frank Zappa meeting Zach De la Rocha. The multi-tasking keys & bass feel like Pink Floyd has met 311.
It’s the law of supply and demand. As the second wave of Hodi’s folks filters in the band announced, “We didn’t plan on playing this long so… We’re just gonna make this up as we go along.” The dub got thicker as you can tell that’s what they have the most fun playing. Too bad the sound guy couldn’t be bothered to turn down the harsh sound of the keys. This band would have it going on if it wasn’t a free keg Wednesday at Hodi’s Half Note. This is just another example of the wet behind the ears young crowd party they throw. I’m curious how this band would perform in another venue; I’m going to say Tatanka is one to watch.
