The Record Company | photo by Wendy McCardle for WXPN

XPN Fest Recap: The Record Company shreds and then shreds some more

July 31, 2017

07:07 AM

The Record Company | photo by Wendy McCardle for WXPN

In a weekend full of bands so big they were tough to stuff onto one stage, The Record Company broke the trend. The Los Angeles trio spaced out across the River stage Sunday evening with plenty of room. They needed every inch.

Unless he was forced to stay seated because of a lap steel guitar, Lead man Chris Vos was all over the place. He was like an animal out there, thrashing around with his guitar in a solo-flooded set, starting with the band’s latest single “Baby I’m Broken.” After that, the band’s only released LP Give It Back To You filled up the setlist. The vibe floated between rock in its truest and most mind-blowing form, with occasional drops of a country flavor seeping through the cracks. It was simple but in a good way. Between songs, Vos had plenty of positive messages — thanks to WXPN’s very own Bruce Warren for spinning a demo of theirs in 2012, news that they’re working on a new album we can expect next year, and notice that bassist Alex Stiff is a local boy who loves playing shows near home.

Although the set could be summarized by its bulk of shredding solos, it wasn’t without a few memorable moments. After a harmonica session on the front of the stage, Vos picked out a kid in the crowd and tossed him the instrument to keep for good. It just came with one warning: “Wash it before you use it.” Later, after the solo of all solos closed out what should have been the final song, a clamoring for more (and a few extra minutes in the budget) allowed for one more tune. Vos led the boys back on the stage, admitting that they didn’t have another song planned, but that “rock ‘n roll ain’t supposed to be pretty.”

Once the actual last song came to a close, the man next to me said it was the highlight of his weekend. It might not have been “pretty,” but if it qualified as a highlight, it sure got the job done.