IN THE South Bay music scene, some of the best singer/songwriters go completely under the radar, even if they’re in the area’s most popular bands. Perhaps they’re better known for their guitar mastery, like Shawn Packer of the Shitkickers and Suicidal Barfly, or Derek See of Careless Hearts and The Bang. Maybe it’s the sound of their band that gets the most attention, like Dave Miller of Talky Tina and the Odd Numbers, or Dave Baisa of the Odd Numbers and the Pimpsticks. All of the aforementioned, who’ll play solo Friday at the Blank Club with Bry Caughey and Pimp Sticks saxophonist Mike Belardes for “Night of the Troubadours,” share one thing in common: they put their bands first. What Baisa, who organized this event and wants to turn it into an annual concert, wanted to do was showcase his friends’ songwriting skills in an acoustic setting. “They don’t really get to do that,” he says. “I sit around and play acoustic guitar a lot, and I know these guys do, too. I know all these guys have their own songs.” All he had to do, it turns out, was ask—everyone jumped at the opportunity. Only Lars Fredericksen of Rancid was unable to play, as he’s on tour in Japan. Baisa wanted this to be a night when fans could hear all the words, for once, and for himself it’s an opportunity to get back into playing live after spending the last four years as a newly minted family man. He knows , too, that it’s not necessarily easy for the artists on the bill to leave their bands behind: “It’s kind of hard to get up there with just a guitar sometimes.”
Friday, Feb. 18, 9pm
$5
