The Senate: June 17th Three Trees Coffeehouse

Amy Kenna
What’s Up Magazine

It’s always a little hectic when The Senate plays at Three Trees Coffeehouse. Even with a $7 cover, the Seattle-based trio (Nick Drummond and Oliver Franklin on guitar, and Andrew Pulkrabek on stand-up bass) consistently packs limited floor capacity. The venue closes shop before a Senate show to haul away furniture and allow the band ample time to tweak sound to perfection.

By the time the line of avid fans pour in off Holly Street, The Senate is sequestered away in secret pre-show quarters, donning signature black shirts and slacks, and primping their hair with Aveda Men’s Grooming Cream (pliable hold with a natural sheen).

For all the hoopla, you would think they were the Backstreet Boys, but there’s nothing bubblegum about The Senate’s music. Without percussion, these guys depend on strings and three-voice harmonies alone to create their uniquely aggressive polyrhythmic melodies. The result is what The Senate describes as “face-melting acoustic riffage,” and it has an explosive effect on a crowd.

The show introduced ‘Hamsters to new material from The Senate’s recent CD/DVD release, Live at Solstice (recorded last year at Cafe Solstice and released in March). A likely fan favorite is the explosive “Ocean Song,” while “Skeleton Line” and “Broken Dirt,” expose The Senate’s darker, more pensive lyrical streak (sometimes easy to miss within the catchy melodies).

My personal favorite of the evening was “Molly,” a whimsical song which I have deduced is about nursery rhymes and love – two things the world could use more of.

The night closed with a live burial of “The Awesome Song,” which quite frankly, needed to expire. Any song that compels a roomful of fans to raise hands in the air and shout, “Show me how awesome you can be!” is asking for last rites. May it rest in peace.

Onstage, The Senate has an endearing and gleeful quality that keeps fans coming back for more. Call it charisma, or sheer musical excellence, or a combination of the two. All I know is they don’t ever play a show without it.

The Senate will return to Three Trees on July 30 and August 21, and will perform at Boundary Bay on September 6. Check ‘em out. They’re worth the cover.