Neal Francis @ Colectivo Back Room [Milwaukee] - 11/13/21
Neal Francis brought his psychedelic soul to the Back Room in Milwaukee, WI on Saturday (Photo ©2021 Kevin Hill)
Chicago’s Neal Francis owes a lot to musicians that came before him, and honors that in every note or shimmy across the stage. On his new record, In Plain Sight, he shares a lot of DNA with artists like Benny Sings or Eric Johnson of Fruit Bats. But let loose upon a stage on a Saturday night in Milwaukee the deeper roots of Dr. John, Traffic, and an entire history of psychedelic soul come rushing to the surface.
At times Francis and his band approximated Billy Joel dipped in Owsley blotter. Others, the kind of NOLA soul act you’re likely to catch at DBA opening for John Bouteé. Hell, bassist Mike Starr looks like he stepped right off a T Rex album cover. Their performance was an entire history of music in one potent shot. But Francis proved that by leaning into that and, more importantly, being able to execute on that history, the result is something that is wholly original, even as it wears its influences prominently on its sleeve.
The set balanced songs from 2019’s Changes, a more directly funk/soul effort, and the new record with the sound of the former seeping ever-so-slightly into the more pop oriented In Plain Sight material. Opening with “Put It In His Hands,” a funk gospel rave-up, Francis set the tone as more of a joyful worship service than concert. The band then proceeded to blast through ten more of Francis’s tales of broken relationships and spiritual reckonings in a set that would have felt just as at home under a revival tent as it did the small stage of the Backroom, getting ever dirtier and loose as the evening went on.
Somewhere along the way there was the type of extended jam you’d expect to see at a Derek Trucks show (Trucks played on the In Plain Sight single “Can’t Stop The Rain”) and even a nod to the yacht rock/blue eyed soul that ruled the airways in the late 70’s with the track “BNYLV.”
In Plain Sight is out now on ATO Records. Neal Francis’s tour continues on 11/8 in St. Louis, MO. Miss it at your peril.
Hailing from Columbus, OH, openers Doc Robinson live somewhere between the Spin Doctors and Allman Brothers Band. They kicked off the night with a potent set of party soul that you’re sure to hear filling bigger rooms in the future.
Photos by Kevin Hill
SETLIST
Put It in His Hands
Problems
Alameda Apartments
Can't Live Without Your Love
Changes, Pts. 1 & 2
Can't Stop the Rain
Very Fine
BNYLV
Asleep
Sentimental Garbage
ENCORE
She's a Winner
Covid Safety Rating
Venue Check for Proof of Vaccination? Yup
Masks required? Not required but suggested
Was the audience wearing masks? 90% No. Do better, fellow music fans.
But at least the staff was wearing masks, right? Totes!
