By: David de Young
The Haves Have It were formed in 2005 by guitar player and singer Portia Richardson and bassist Jenn Gallup. The band released a debut EP in 2006, and that same year they settled into their current three-piece lineup that includes the band’s only male member, Kelly Pollock on drums. (This reviewer notes that Richardson’s hair is almost a 4th member of the band, and that if it gets any longer it may require its own zip code.)
The Haves Have It - Photo by David de Young
The Haves Have It celebrated the release of their debut full-length album, Friction, with a CD Release show at the Hexagon Bar on Friday. The 11-song disc was produced by Jacques Wait and recorded at the Devil’s Workshop this past winter. With Friction’s release, The Haves Have It (hereafter THHI) demonstrated that they do indeed have it, and it doesn’t appear to be going anywhere anytime soon. To put it another way, they are catching their proverbial stride.
Friday’s widely attended gig included openers Communist Daughter, the new project from Johnny Solomon and Adam Switlick of Friends Like These, Splinter Cells, and The Haves Have It in the third slot. National Bird rounded out the night as headliners.
THHI were already on my radar by New Year’s Eve, 2007 when Richardson famously sang a duet with Mark Mallman at the Varsity Theater and kicked off what is undoubtedly slated to be the most stellar year for the band to date. Another milestone for the band looms on the immediate horizon as they are scheduled to play the 2008 Voltage: Fashion Amplified lineup at First Avenue on April 16th.
THHI are known for tearing up the stage with their dynamic and engaging rock shows. Richardson is bad ass in a similar way to Ouija Radio front woman Christy Hunt. Both women are blonde bombshells, and neither has any qualms about rocking hard and ripping it up on guitar. In Richardson’s case, raw power seeps from her pores without the slightest likelihood she’d ever be accused of acting like a Stooge. The tough rock front woman quality she possesses is something I’m still searching to find the words for. To call it post-feminist is a cop out.
Awesome bass chick (those words came easily and seem to fit) Jenn Gallup’s enjoyment of her role in the band adds still more delightful personality to the lineup. Gallup’s basslines are high and gritty in the mix and do substantially more than just hold down the chord progressions. In Gallup’s hands, the bass is a lead instrument that contributes ambulatory hooks which gives many of the band’s songs a feel of continuous forward motion. Kelly Pollock’s stoic and steady drums round out the rhythm section perfectly. There’s a chemistry here that just plain works; a more flamboyant drummer would, in this band, be a distraction.
Gallup and Richardson play off each other downright sexily at times in a way sometimes similar to the interplay between Ryan Smith and Pony Hixon of the Melismatics. You find yourself awaiting the long instrumental parts of the songs when Richardson and Gallup play right into each other face to face. It’s unquestionably fun to watch, (and it makes for great picture taking.)
THHI opened their set with “Security Systems Experts” and worked their way through all 11 songs from Friction, though not in album order. Some mild dancing broke out at one point in the front row, and I thought the slow ballad “Touch and See” which closes the album out and features a haunting piano part went over well despite the lack of a keyboard. The band closed their set with one of my favorite THHI songs, “Pie” (watch a video of that song I shot of that song at the Playwright’s Center l on February 9th.) I was glad to finally get a copy of the CD so I can put names to the rest of the songs I’ve been enjoying over the past few months, songs with unexpected titles like “Videos and Tanning,” “1st Place Pants,” “Tow Tag” and “Burnsville.” (The CD wasn’t sent out for press prior to the release as the band only finally got it into their hands a day or two before the show.)
Richardson remarked in her gracious thank yous at the end of their set that the band had had a really memorable and fun evening. I don’t think she used the phrase “time of my life” but maybe she did.
See a full set of photos from this show here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/howwastheshow/sets/72157604299632690/
Location Info:
Hexagon Bar
Artist Info: The Haves Have It
Share this story:
Article comments powered by Disqus