The poster from the Cafe Acoustic’s facebook page used to promote the Factory Workers and Gastown Lamps show. Give Cafe Acoustic a like on facebook here.

The killer duo of the Factory Workers form Kansas City and Gastown Lamps from St. Joseph, MO returned for an encore performance at the Cafe Acoustic to finish out the month of March. The bands last performed together in St. Joe on 10/14/11 also at the Cafe Acoustic.

There isn’t a ton to say about the show in March that I didn’t say about their excellent performance in October here. The Gastown Lamps have added a bass player somewhere over the past five months and you can tell it in their sound. The addition of bass gives the band a little bit thicker sound and allows the gritty guitar more room to stand out in the songs.

The Gastown Lamps performed an excellent new song presumably called “Levee” about the flood of last summer in the Midwest. The area is still recovering from the flood and will be for a long while giving the song a very personal feel live. The band’s best song is likely “Free To Run” a very bluesy number with using the classic start and stop technique.

Gastown Lamps at the Cafe Acoustic in St. Joseph, Missouri on 3/31/12

The Factory Wokers seemed to have a little less of the bluesy sound the highlighted the Gastown Lamps set but still would definitely fall in the blues category. With just guitar and drums the two-piece band blasted through about 40 minuted of music without much of a break in their fast tempo. They even enticed a few onlookers to get off their chairs and dance. This couldn’t have hurt in filling their tip bucket.

The Factory Workers played to a slightly smaller crowd than the Gastown Lamps had. The Cafe Acoustic is a strange venue because the crowd size fluctuates a lot. The small bar has exits at both the front and back allowing the crowd to easily move in and out of the place.

The Factory Workers at the Cafe Acoustic in St. Joseph, Missouri on 3/31/12

One thing you can always count on at the Cafe Acoustic is superior sound. I have seen many bands there and the sound is always great. Some of the bands I have seen at other bars in town and they don’t sound near as good as at the Cafe. This night was no exception as both bands stomp seemed to be a comfortable bar volume without blasting the audience out the door and still sounded great.

If this Factory Workers and Gastown Lamps lineup could play together in town 2-3 times a year it would easily be worth attending every time. Their music compliments each other perfectly and it makes for a great night of music.