St. Joseph, Missouri isn’t a huge attractions for bands. Most bands hit surrounding areas and avoid St. Joe unless of course they are from St. Joe. This was the case with Saturday July 16th 2011 show at the Cafe Acoustic in St. Joe. A couple local bands joined forces to put their talents on display.

It was my first experience with the Cafe Acoustic and I was impressed. Parking sucks and the venue is small but it seemed to have good sound and be very band friendly. The Cafe Acoustic would be anything but acoustic with these two bands performing.

Pompous Pilot took the stage first; a band that has been on the scene in the city for years. The band is comprised of Kiley Bodenhamer on vocals and guitar, Sam Blumer on bass and drummer Jeff Jensen. They are a straight-forward 3-peice band with few frills, just straight ahead rock. The band has an album out named roads? and it is available on itunes and cdbaby. The album has some strong material on it but it appears to be totally in their rear view mirror at this point. The band is sporting almost all new material; much of it their best yet.

The strongest of this material in my opinion is “Peace, She Said” aka “Songs/Bombs” which has become a staple in their setlist. Other highlights are “Kids” and “Pink Pistol” a driving instrumental that would fit in any good heist movie soundtrack. This material has yet to make it on a purchasable disc but I’m sure will be in the near future.

Pompous Pilot on stage at the Cafe Acoustic ( not Dsoedean as the grainy picture might lead you to believe.)

Dsoedean would take the stage next. Unlike Pompous Pilot they are a fresh face on the music scene. They are playing shows in St. Joe and Kansas City supporting their pair of strong EPs; Send A Sign and On An Edge. Dsoedean, like Pompous Pilot, is a 3-piece band, just drums, bass and guitar; the way it should be. The band is Zale Bledsoe singing and guitar, Marcus Words on bass, and Bobby Floyd on drums. Their sound and style resemble Modest Mouse but is far more polished than Modest Mouse was at this point in their career.

I had seen Pompous Pilot about four times so I knew what to expect from the band. Dsoedean was a different story. They are a great pairing with Pompous Pilot but are a very different act to see. Pompous lets their music blast through their subdued lyrics while Dsoedean puts their heartfelt lyrics front an center behind big hooks.

Dsoedean would perform their entire first EP, Send A Sign and I believe their whole second EP as well. Their first EP features the crowd favorite “Under Toe.” The band translated the music very well to the stage not only matching but exceeding the intensity of the songs on record. The material off the second EP; On An Edge was new to me. My first impressions were great for the aggressive “Shuffle Your Feet” and near the end of the set “Climb The Fence.”

The set ended with “Like The Ghost” and was interrupted by a broken guitar string. Pompous Pilot would also break a guitar string on their last song but would power through it to finish their set. “Like The Ghost” was re-started with the same vigor as the first time an finished an impressive performance. They are a good band, go here to find their music.

Dsoedean at the Cafe Acoustic on July 16th 2011.