Bettie Serveert Delivers The Goods...Big Time

I was not expecting to have had such a great time at the Bettie Serveert show last night. They are one of my favorite bands, but since I just saw them a few months ago and have been in a bad mood lately, I wasn't thinking I was going to be too impressed. I was as wrong as wrong could be on that score.

The show was scheduled for Sokol Underground. At about 6:45 last night, some major storms hit the Omaha area and all the power downtown went out. The power company said it could be anywhere from two to ten hours before it was restored. So, the promoter scrambled to find a new room, and moved the show to O'Leavers. These two rooms are not the same size by a longshot. Sokol holds between 300-400 and O'Leavers is about a 100 capacity club. No one bothered to tell me the show had moved, so when I arrived downtown around 10 pm I found the club completely dark. But not only was the club dark, the entire street for blocks was dark. No street lights, no traffic lights, no nothing. I made a quick call and found out the show had been moved. So I hauled ass back to midtown.

The show was running late due to the venue change, so I hadn't missed anything. When I arrived, I found the band sitting outside of the club drinking and talking to fans. I mosied up to singer Carol Van Dijk and began chatting her up. Carol is way beyond a mere babe. Being European (she's from Holland), she had a sexy accent; and being a rock singer, she was just cool as fuck. I lobbied to get the band to play their version of Sebadoh's "Healthy Sick." Unfortunately, she told me, they hadn't played it in years and their new drummer didn't know the song. Oh well. I bought her a drink (scotch and water) and we drank a bit while talking music. Man, was she beautiful up close. I am so glad that I had the chance to meet her.

The band didn't start their set until after midnight. They played songs from pretty much every era of the band. They even did their version of Bright Eyes' "Lover I Don't Have To Love" which they didn't do last time. Despite the smaller venue and much smaller crowd (I don't think everyone got the news about the new venue) the band put on a stellar show. Bar time in Nebraska is 1 am. The band was not quite done by then, so the bar just stopped serving alcohol and the band kept going. They wrapped up about 1:30. I said goodbye to Carol and the band and headed home. I was so wired from the show that I was unable to fall asleep until about 3. Obviously that is not super smart after being sick, but fuck it...how many times will I be able to see a band of the caliber of Bettie Serveert in my local hangout?

For those who have never heard Bettie Serveert, check out the band's first album Palomine. If you just have to hear something now, check out this mp3 from the band's newest album, Attagirl. Click here to listen to the title track from the new record.