After having played to a packed house in Phoenix the night before, musical group Smooth Hands along with bands Tonight’s Sunshine and Goggles were welcomed to Tucson with a small but energetic crowd at Groundworks, a non-profit venue.
Smooth Hands, a band from the Phoenix area, just released a music video to their song “Butt Rock” and took the opportunity to celebrate with a series of live shows.
Mario Castillo Lechuga, the drummer of Smooth Hands, spoke about what led up to the show.
“When wanted to do one show in Phoenix and one in Tucson, we called Tonight’s Sunshine, who are homies and they agreed to do it with us,” Lechuga said.
Goggles, a local Tucson band, started the night off with the song “Drink Up,” making a pointed remark to the audience to drink up before breaking into song.
The heavy metal band may have been a bit too energetic of a start for the night as the audience declined the band’s numerous attempts to start a mosh pit. Their efforts were not completely overlooked though and the crowd did bang their heads and even sang along to a few of their songs. As their set ended, the audience was left to linger with the question of what to expect next.
The air was filled with anticipation and uncertainty about what this out-of-town band had to offer. But as soon as the four members hopped onto the stage and began playing their first song of the night, “Butt Rock,” the uncertainty was immediately replaced with satisfaction and enthusiasm.
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Smooth Hands managed to grab the audience and make everyone sway or even full-on break out into dance with their musical stylings. Their music refuses to be put in a single category, checking almost every box imaginable from jazz to alternative to garage rock.
They sang a few unreleased songs, and lead singer James Halley mentioned that they had messed some songs up the night before.
“We’ll get it right for Tucson though, only for Tucson,” Halley said.
It was clear that their experimental tracks succeeded and if they messed up, the audience never noticed. The songs “Funky Joe” and “Kiss My Neck” and their whimsical and dreamlike tunes dared the listener to escape themselves as they gave a feeling that can only be described as flying.
When Tonight’s Sunshine came on, the crowd knew what to expect and were here for it. The night almost ended in disaster as lead singer Anastasia Romanov had forgotten their ukulele, but Logan Greene, the director of Groundworks, managed to find one in time for the show.
Their energy was perfect for a closer as it managed to combine the vibes from the first two sets to close out. Their 90s grunge-style tunes left everything on the stage and were gripping from beginning to end. The song “Aphrodite” was no doubt a hit with the crowd and had left them wanting more.
As they were finishing up, the audience began to cheer for an encore before Romanov looked over to Greene for approval and sang their last song of the night “Rubber Ducky.” The concert ended with everyone in attendance, thankful for the ukulele that saved the night.
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