Last year we caught up with Barlow on the Dinosaur, Jr. tour to promote the reissues of Dinosaur, You’re Living All Over Me and Bug. This yeah, he’s back with the band he started upon being excluded from Dinosaur, Jr.

For the first time since the mid-90s, Sebadoh is back with the original lineup, which is phenomenal. I always loved their album III and guitarist/vocalist/drummer Eric Gaffney’s songs were always among my favorites. So, getting the chance to see my second Sebadoh show, and my first with Gaffney was incredible. For the momentous occassion, I decided to drag my 6 year old son out to the show.

After covering over 1000 concerts in my short life, I’m over looking professional, so it seemed like a fun prospect to bring my 1st grader out to Walter’s On Washington and take in some fine music. And also, to get his feedback on the show.

Before the set began, Gaffney took to the stage and it appeared Barlow and drummer/bassist/guitarist/vocalist Jason Lowenstein were going to take the stage as well, but they turned around and headed in the back leaving Gaffney to get his instruments in line and talk to the audience.

Finally, after a few minutes, the set was ready to start. Gaffney started out on guitar/vocals, Lowenstein on drums and Barlow on bass/vocals. This was one of three lineups the band made throughout the night.

The highlight of the first Gaffney set for me was Violet Execution. I’ve always loved the song and it sounded great. My son danced a little to the song and rocked along the rest of the time, so I think he approved of the performance.

After 3 songs, the set shifted to Barlow on guitar/vocals, Gaffney on drums and Lowenstein on bass/vocals. Lou plays shorter songs than Gaffney so he played around 5 songs including Cheapshot, which was a pretty thrashy number. Combine that with It’s So Hard to Fall In Love and you were given a nice little share of what the band had to offer.

The night continued with the band shifting between Gaffney and Barlow led songs. Near the end, Lowenstein took his place at the front of the stage to lead a pair of songs. Everyone had their turn and the audience loved it. Including the 1st grader sitting on the front of the stage.

The setlist for the night included the songs mentioned about and favorites like Freed Pig, Cry Sis, Moldy Bread, Gimme Indie Rock and much more. The band played for over 2 hours and brought it. Sadly, I didn’t make to the end due to an exhausted 1st grader, but I had a blast nonetheless.

Opening the show was The Bent Moustache from the Netherlands. Upon walking in and securing a spot at the front of the stage, we were approached by a friendly Indian man who spoke to us for a bit and got to know Ian, my son. As the show began, Ajay (bassist/vocalist/dude we were talking to) introduced the band and thanked his “Good friend Ian for making it out to the show.”

Needless to say, the boy was happy to be acknowledged and even happier to get a tambourine handed to him and spend the night playing along with the band.

More important than their interaction with the child at the front of the stage was the band’s music. They had oddball moments, but kept enough control to make a dynamic, solid “indie rock” set.

Their energy was high, the sounds was great and the audience was pulled in. Every song had “Texas” included in it since they were here in Houston, TX. For the last song, they pulled the boy up on stage and had him play tambourine along with the drummer. It was a fun end to an awesome set. Everyone enjoyed The Bent Moustache and as proof I’m not just saying these things since they let the boy on stage to play with them, many a person bought a CD or T-shirt before the night was through.

The show overall was excellent. I was shocked the attendance was so low, but on a stormy, ugly Houston day, what can you expect.