Dex Romweber Duo at Cafe Nine...

"Romweber is still ruler of his own bossa nova rockabilly kingdom, skipping from surf-guitar rave-ups to spacey instrumentals to sepulchral balladry, with the occasional Xavier Cugat cover tossed in. Only a sibling could keep up, and Sara's accompaniment is perfectly dialed into Dexter's otherworldly wavelength." --Spin.com
"Classic, howling, other-worldly Dex"-- NOLA.com

Let's do this.  I hate 'doors open at 8; show starts at 9' because I'm now committed to getting home at one in the morning.  Seven o'clock Sunday shows are so much better.  Suck it up.  The Reet says no way, but I'm meeting the Pool Hall Studs along with Jackie and Mo.  Hey, everyone needs a really good fifth wheel.  Nothing against these two warmup bands, The Fadeaways and Jackie & the Cedrics, but I really came to see Dex.

Tooling down State Street, I pull into an open space in front of Cafe Nine, not the sign of a sold-out show, but good for me.  Around the side to the entrance, where I fork up my $8 cover, get stamped and receive a CD (given to first thirty patrons)!  I can't read who it is though.  Inside the renovated bar (they chopped off the front end of the bar and removed one of those annoying posts), the Fadeaways, a really young Japanese surf, garage, punk band, are tuning up, so I grab a Bass Ale and look around.  Just as the Fadeaways burst into their LOUD and quite lengthy set (I like them), Mark and Maureen appear.  Barry/Jackie arrive almost an hour later and wonder why Dex isn't on.  Hey, Barry, we've still got Jackie & the Cedrics to go!  He's annoyed that Dex Romweber didn't go on at nine, but it's almost ten!  Talk about a prima donna!

Eric Danton of the Hartford Courant is here as is Michelle Terranova a/k/a Go Kat Go, who produces these rockabilly shows and the Gansett Girls (hi, neighbor, have a Gansett!) are here!  We get posters and shit!  Gansett Kingers are $2.50.  We discuss the 'death' of Johnny Gumbo (the iconic character, born at Lucy's Retired Surfers Bar at the 2005 New Orleans Jazz Fest, is gone forever) while Jackie & the Cedrics do their quirky spin on Buddy Holly, Ray Charles, surf guitar songs, etc.  As with the Fadeaways, I can't quite get whether these guys are a campy, inside joke or serious about rockabilly.  It's all good fun.

We spot Dex Romweber's sister/drummer Sara arriving, grabbing a beer and taking in the stage show.  Finally, showtime.  Mark's on a tight schedule (he's a VERY busy guy on a VERY busy schedule, unlike you and me) and hints he might have to leave early.  Barry makes no such excuses; says he might leave early.  Whatever.  Dex and Sara take the stage; Dex, looking rumpled and worn, mumbles a brief hello, almost a personal one since the 'crowd' numbers in the several dozen.  Suddenly, he hunches over the mic and starts 'awailin' and a slashin.'  I'm not too familiar with the Romweber catalog, but I think he's performing a sizable chunk of his new album, Is That You In the Blue?  His second number is the title cut, an Elvis-esque ballad that's become one of my favorite songs recently ("I hope you find loneliness with him, whatever dark night you're in.").  Sister Sara is pounding out the backbeat, looking very cool with her long hair covering her face as she keeps up with her brother's sometime frantic, slightly off-center delivery.  I like him a lot, but can't help feeling bad for this talent (he's one of  Dan Auerbach and Jack White's heroes for God's sake!) playing before such a small crowd.  Oh, well, late Sunday night shows in small towns will do that.  My other four wheels decide to call it a night about halfway through the set, but I persevere.  Good show.  I forgot my free CD.

Here's a clip from a Boston show the previous night: