A trip to ’67

Liz Janes/Senryu/J-Roddy
Harrison Center Underground
Sunday, June 19

You could have easily believed it to be 1967 Sunday night at the Underground of the Harrison Center, with a trio of rock bands who blended old forms and new themes.

J-Roddy Walston pounds the keys during his performance at the Harrison Arts Center.

The Underground itself is an unusual venue, part church, part art-house, part concert hall. It’s certainly a new experience to be hearing someone other than gospel singers while sitting in a pew.

One of the highlights was the opening performance of recent Indy transplant Liz Janes and her highly eclectic backing band, made up of, as she puts it, a bunch of volunteers trying their best to fit together, and surprisingly enough pulling it off.

Folk? Ska? Rock? This neuftet utterly defies description, with three-part vocal harmonies backed by traditional rock rhythms, saxophone and violin. Don’t ask ME to quantify it. It’s just what it is. Janes’ voice is old-school torch singer at its best, a world-weary cry in the darkness, with haunting music from another era. She mixes old and new with flawless precision, and I definitely look forward to the future Indianapolis exploits of Liz Janes and whoever ends up backing her.

Which is not to dismiss the talent of the other performers. The trio Senryu is even more tricky to characterize, delivering swampy guitar riffs mixed with electro-techno keyboards and a folk-songwriter perspective. A little bit of emo and a little bit of Jack White.

Wrapping up the night was J-Roddy Walston and the Business, with their mashup of crazythrash rock and key-pounding piano antics. J-Roddy’s mad keyboard scrambles as he sings are one of the oldest of rock standbys, going back at least to Little Richard and Jerry Lee Lewis, and wouldn’t you know it? After all this time, it still works.