It was a night of loyalties.
Early in Murder By Death‘s killer set on Friday night, Adam Turla said that the band wanted to kick off their 20th anniversary shows at a comfortable venue that the band loves.
So what better choice than The Jinx here in Savannah? Turla said that Murder By Death got their first alt weekly mention in 2003 (by our friend Jim Reed) when they played the Velvet Elvis, which was transformed into The Jinx just a few months later by Suzanne Warnekros, who made the bar a home for metal and Americana, established a hip hop night that is still going strong 15 years later, hired some of the best bartenders in town, and has loved Murder By Death for ages.
Murder By Death played at The Jinx for the inaugural Savannah Stopover in 2011, at the club’s 10th anniversary party in 2013, and for gigs in 2014 and 2016.
Murder By Death had been on my radar screen before that 2011 Stopover show, but I had never appreciated their power until I saw them live. I’ve been hooked ever since — and have been lucky to see them for all those Savannah gigs plus shows in Asheville, Columbia, and Louisville (twice). So I’ve seen MBD nine times, but I bet more than half the attendees at The Jinx had seen them more than that — the band’s dedicated following is willing to follow the band to literal or metaphorical dark corners all over the map. I really need to get to one of the Stanley Hotel shows and one of the Tennessee cave shows (I did see them at a Kentucky cavern).
Turla apologized a few times for playing old songs that the band had barely rehearsed, but there was no need for any of that. The evocative songs, stellar musicianship, perfect pacing — the band seemed to be firing on all jets even though they were playing their first show in months. The fan-curated sets that they will be playing will be filled with deep cuts.
I haven’t been shooting many shows lately, and I only brought my Fuji x100t on Friday. I was a lazy photographer — I staked out such a great spot to enjoy the show that I didn’t move until just before the encore over an hour later.
Click on through for a few more shots — and buy your tickets now for Murder By Death’s upcoming dates.
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